IV 

109TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION H. RES. 977 

Reinforcing the Federal Government’s Federal trust relationship and commitment to working with American Indian Nations to empower, promote, 

and support the educational development of American Indian and Alaska 

Native children and youth. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

JULY 28, 2006 

Ms. MCCOLLUM of Minnesota (for herself, Mr. KILDEE, Mr. GRIJALVA, Mr. 

HOLT, Mr. OBERSTAR, Mr. BOREN, Mr. DAVIS of Illinois, Mr. UDALL

of Colorado, Mr. KIND, Mr. UDALL of New Mexico, Mr. MOORE of Kansas, Mr. GEORGE MILLER of California, Ms. HERSETH, Mr. FILNER, Mr. 

HINOJOSA, Mr. PAYNE, Mr. MORAN of Virginia, and Mr. KENNEDY of 

Rhode Island) submitted the following resolution; which was referred to 

the Committee on Education and the Workforce, and in addition to the 

Committee on Resources, for a period to be subsequently determined by 

the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned 

RESOLUTION 

Reinforcing the Federal Government’s Federal trust relationship and commitment to working with American Indian 

Nations to empower, promote, and support the educational development of American Indian and Alaska Native children and youth. 

Whereas the Federal Government has established educational 

priorities to ensure that all American children are adequately prepared and educated to be productive, healthy 

citizens; 


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•HRES 977 IH 

Whereas the Federal Head Start program was created to ensure access to quality early education, to promote school 

readiness, and to help prepare low-income children for 

success in kindergarten and beyond, and low-income 

American Indian and Alaska Native children are among 

the more than half of all eligible children who are not receiving services because Head Start is consistently underfunded; 

Whereas the Federal Government seeks to promote the development of all children and has enacted the No Child Left 

Behind Act (NCLB Act) to ensure that all children receive a quality education and that academic progress 

among all children is measured; 

Whereas the President of the United States signed an Indian 

Education Executive Order on April 30, 2004, that reaffirms the right of every American Indian and Alaska Native child to the highest quality education that meets 

their unique cultural and academic needs; 

Whereas the Federal Government has demonstrated its commitment to preserving and strengthening American Indian culture and language by enacting the Higher Education Act of 1965, the Indian Education Act (1972), the 

Indian Self-Determination and Education Assistance Act 

(1975), and the Native American Languages Act (1990); 

Whereas there are more than 815,000 American Indian and 

Alaska Native children that are striving to be healthy and 

productive citizens; 

Whereas the high school graduation rate for American Indian 

and Alaska Native youth is 54 percent and the college 

readiness rate is 14 percent, and those rates are signifiVerDate Aug 31 2005 23:49 Jul 31, 2006 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6300 E:\BILLS\HR977.IH HR977

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cantly less than the rates of white students, which are 72 

and 37 percent, respectively; 

Whereas the Bureau of Indian Affairs, which receives Federal 

appropriations for Indian Education, including school 

construction, to fulfill treaty obligations has been consistently underfunded and unable to meet the educational 

needs of American Indian and Alaska Native children 

and youth; 

Whereas one-third of the 184 Bureau of Indian Affairs 

Schools are in poor condition and in need of repair, and 

most of the facilities and structures of these schools have 

exceeded their ‘‘useful life’’, as described in the NCLB 

Act; 

Whereas the Federal Government recognizes that American 

Indian and Alaska Native people possess a rich culture 

and history that has significantly contributed to development of the United States and therefore must be preserved for all Americans; 

Whereas the NCLB Act recognizes the importance of American Indian and Alaska Native culture and language 

through title VII, and research has shown that language 

and culture-based programs increase student performance 

and success and contribute significantly to the success of 

American Indian and Alaska Native students and to the 

betterment of all American children; 

Whereas Tribal colleges and universities are designed to promote the higher education of American Indian and Alaska Native students and the Federal Government supports 

the education priorities of Tribal Nations through Federal TRIO programs, Pell Grants, and other Federal student financial aid, and yet these critical programs deVerDate Aug 31 2005 23:49 Jul 31, 2006 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6300 E:\BILLS\HR977.IH HR977

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signed to enhance college readiness and access have been 

severely underfunded by the Federal Government; 

Whereas after-school activities serve as a significant enrichment mechanism for American Indian and Alaska Native 

students, because such activities allow youth opportunities to interact with peers, actively engage with elders, 

and participate in cultural activities, and research indicates that after-school activities are important in fostering positive youth development and promoting a positive cultural identity; 

Whereas the economic status of American Indian and Alaska 

Native communities is significantly lower than the general United States population, as demonstrated by the 

fact that 31 percent of American Indian and Alaska Native children were living in poverty in 2004; 

Whereas research indicates that poverty is not only indicative 

of economic hardship, but also of other outcomes that 

negatively affect educational development and attainment; and 

Whereas educational attainment for American Indian and 

Alaska Native people is positively linked with an improved housing environment, economic and food security, 

and an overall healthy lifestyle, and education serves as 

a mechanism to promote and strengthen families and 

communities: Now, therefore, be it 

1 Resolved, That the House of Representatives— 

2 (1) affirms the Federal Government’s special 

3 legal and political relationship with American Indian 

4 and Alaska Native people by recognizing the sov5 ereignty of Tribal Nations; 


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1 (2) calls upon the Federal Government, includ2 ing the Bureau of Indian Affairs and the Depart3 ment of Education, to recognize and fulfill its trust 

4 responsibilities and consultation obligations to Amer5 ican Indian and Alaska Native people and commu6 nities; 

7 (3) acknowledges that the past Federal policies 

8 of the forced removal of children from reservations 

9 to boarding schools have negatively impacted Amer10 ican Indian and Alaska Native families, commu11 nities, and youth; 

12 (4) urges the Federal Government to promote 

13 success and eliminate disparities among American 

14 Indian and Alaska Native children and youth during 

15 consideration of the reauthorizations of Head Start 

16 and the No Child Left Behind Act, and through the 

17 Federal appropriations process; 

18 (5) urges the Federal Government to recognize, 

19 promote, and work towards strengthening the edu20 cational needs of American Indian and Alaska Na21 tive youth and families; 

22 (6) reinforces the educational commitment to 

23 promote the best interests of American Indian and 

24 Alaska Native children by reinforcing native cultural 

25 and language development which strengthens, preVerDate Aug 31 2005 02:37 Jul 30, 2006 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\HR977.IH HR977

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1 serves, and promotes cultural identity, and recog2 nizes that it is imperative that the Federal Govern3 ment sharpen its focus and commitment to title VII 

4 of the No Child Left Behind Act consistent with the 

5 desires of American Indian and Alaska Native peo6 ple; and 

7 (7) recognizes that education is significantly 

8 linked to overall quality of life and therefore must be 

9 prioritized and organized to meet the unique and 

10 specialized needs of American Indian and Alaska 

11 Native students. 

Æ 


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