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Section 1(b)(2) of S. 496 would add a new subsection 103(c) to direct the Secretary of Education to, subject to a matching requirement, transfer to the Secretary of the Interior funds for the benefit of secondary school students attending Bureau of Indian Affairs funded schools, which include BIA-operated and tribal schools. The Bureau of Indian Affairs and the Department of the Interior have a dismal record in requesting matching funds in the budget. This section provides that if the matching requirement is not met, the Secretary of Education will use the funds reserved for this subsection for purposes of carrying out subsection 103(b)(1). While there is no general objection to the funds going back to the 103(b)(1) program since tribal

some point the Congress should deal with the issue of including tribal schools in the definition of "local educational agency" for purposes of the Carl Perkins Act and many of the other statutes authorizing federal grant-in-aid education programs administered by the states. We understand that, in the Senate, there would be jurisdictional problems for the Select Committee on Indian Affairs to unilaterally deal with this problem, but the problem of exclusion because of this definition often arises for tribal schools. A recent case in point is the exclusion of such schools from the Even Start Program. The Council will be studying this issue further and would appreciate the Committee's consideration of measures to ultimately address this exclusion from eligibility of tribal schools and other tribal entities for federal education programs for which public school districts are eligible.

Technical

assistance to programs serving the vocational/technical educational needs of Indians and Alaska Natives is also important to help such programs most effectively utilize the available resources and to attract

non-federal resources, including those from the private sector. In addition, the Council believes that teacher training for Indian and Alaska Native vocational education instructors is also important. S. 496 addresses these

issues.

The National Advisory Council on Indian Education has expressed over the years support of Indian preference in programs serving Indians. The Council recommends that Indian preference be used in the hiring of staff for the Indian vocational program and that Indian readers be used in the proposal review process for this program. In addition, the new section 405 to be added

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in

Vocational-Technical Training is clearly patterned after the current section 404 of the Act which established the National Center for Research in Vocational Education. Although the language is slightly different, both sections direct the Secretary to designate the respective research center, acting upon the advice of a panel composed of individuals appointed by the Secretary who are not federal employees and who are nationally recognized as experts in vocational-technical education training, administration, or research. The Council is of the opinion that the new section 405 should have some safeguards that at least a portion of these individuals must have expertise in Indian and Alaska Native vocational/technical education, tribal economies, or tribal economic development.

Mr. Chairman, there is one last related issue which I want to address. Part E of title V of Public Law 100-297 authorized the President to call the White House Conference on Indian Education. Since this conference has the broad purpose to develop recommendations for the improvement of educational

programs to make the programs more relevant to the needs of Indians, I believe that it is relevant to the general discussion of Indian vocational/technical education, which is the subject of this hearing. We indeed expect that Vocational/technical education will be a subject to be addressed by the conference. Part E needs some technical amendments, and while S. 496 may not be the vehicle for these amendments, such a vehicle should be found. The needed technical amendments include correction of section 5508 to authorize appropriations for fiscal year 1991 to correspond to the authorization to call the conference to be held as late as September 30, 1991. Currently, the section authorizes appropriations for fiscal years 1988, 1989, and 1990, and it is clear that these years were not pushed back when the bill (H.R. 5) introduced very early in the first session was passed in the second session of the 100th Congress. In addition, there has been concern expressed by Council Members and the Indian and Alaska Native education community that the task force to be established under section 5504 to plan and conduct the conference is to consist of "such employees of the Department of the Interior and the Department of Education as the Secretary of the Interior and the Secretary of Education determine to be necessary to enable the Task Force to carry out its duties." The reported fear is that the task force will consist totally of seasoned bureaucrats who may seek reasons to preclude innovations rather than find ways to get things done. It should be noted that there are no provisions in Part E for NACIE involvement in the conference, although the Council does expect to be involved and has already begun soliciting and receiving comments from Indian and Alaska Native organizations and individuals regarding issues

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that should be addressed by the conference. It has been suggested that the NACIE Executive Director should be specified in the legislation as a member of the task force and that the NACIE Chairman should be an ex officio member of the advisory committee for the conference under section 5506. At its January 1989 meeting, the Council voted unanimously to support such an amendment. equal concern, however, is some language to direct the Secretary of the Interior and the Secretary of Education to appoint an equal number of employees from within the departments who know the current system with its constraints and new employees specifically hired from outside to bring a fresh approach. While I am not advocating that S. 496 be the vehicle to amend the provisions of Part E, I am recommending that the Committee, in its wisdom, direct staff to find the appropriate vehicle to do so.

Mr. Chairman, the Council and I greatly appreciate this opportunity to appear before the Committee today to address Indian and Alaska Native vocational/technical education concerns. I will be happy to answer any questions you and the Committee Members may have or to supply any additional requested information for the record.

Thank you.

TESTIMONY

OF

UNITED TRIBES TECHNICAL COLLEGE

ON

REAUTHORIZATION OF THE VOCATIONAL EDUCATION ACT

BEFORE THE

SENATE SELECT COMMITTEE ON INDIAN AFFAIRS

PRESENTED BY

RUSSELL HAWKINS, CHAIRMAN

BOARD OF DIRECTORS

AND

DAVID GIPP, PRESIDENT

UNITED TRIBES TECHNICAL COLLEGE

3315 UIVERSITY DRIVE

BISMARCK, NORTH DAKOTA 59504

(701/ 255-3285)