The U.S. Department of Education today announced the award of more than $50.4 million in new grants to support American Indian Tribally Controlled Colleges and Universities in a dozen states. Under the Tribally Controlled Colleges and Universities Program, the formula-based grants will help eligible higher education institutions increase their self-sufficiency by providing funds to strengthen their academic quality, management and overall fiscal stability.

“Tribal institutions serve a valuable role for American Indian students,” said William Mendoza, executive director, White House Initiative on American Indian and Alaska Native Education. “As accredited institutions, tribal colleges are unique. In addition to functioning in a similar fashion to community colleges or small, public four-year schools, they support the preservation and revitalization of Native languages and serve other cultural needs of their students. They deliver instruction in culturally appropriate ways, thereby promoting tribal culture and academic achievement.”

To qualify for funding, institutions must meet the federal definition of the term “tribally controlled college or university.” That is, they must be formally controlled, or have been formally sanctioned or chartered by the governing body of an Indian tribe or tribes. No more than one institution shall be recognized with respect to any individual tribe.

The Obama Administration is committed to expanding educational opportunities and improving educational outcomes for American Indian and Alaskan Native children. As demonstrated by President Obama’s Executive Order on Improving American Indian and Alaska Native Educational Opportunities and Strengthening Tribal Colleges and Universities, the Administration continues to work to improve the programs available at tribal colleges so that Native students are well prepared to compete for the high-skilled, quality jobs of today and tomorrow. Last year, the President announced the launch of Generation Indigenous (Gen I), a Native youth initiative focused on removing the barriers that stand between Native youth and their opportunities to succeed.

More information on Tribal Colleges and Universities can be found at the White House Initiative on American Indian and Alaska Native Education’s website.

The following is a list of grant recipients:

American Indian Tribally Controlled Colleges and Universities Program, Part A State City Institution Amount AK Barrow Ilisagvik College $500,000 AZ Tsaile Dine College $1,603,374 AZ Sells Tohono O'odham Community College $500,000 KS Lawrence Haskell Indian Nations University $1,238,600 MI Brimley Bay Mills Community College $571,116 MN Cloquet Fond du lac Tribal College $500,000 MN Cass Lake Leech Lake Tribal College $586,196 MN Mahnomen White Earth Tribal and Community College $500,000 MT Harlem Aaniiih Nakoda College $500,000 MT Browning Blackfeet Community College $799,341 MT Lame Deer Chief Dull Knife College $544,849 MT Poplar Fort Peck Community College $600,128 MT Crow Agency Little Big Horn College $606,789 MT Pablo Salish Kootenai College $1,136,594 MT Box Elder Stone Child College $672,602 ND Fort Totten Cankdeska Cikana Community College $500,000 ND New Town Fort Berthold Community College $500,000 ND Fort Yates Sitting Bull College $598,822 ND Belcourt Turtle Mountain Community College $936,542 ND Bismarck United Tribes Technical College $795,110 NE Winnebago Little Priest Tribal College $500,000 NE Macy Nebraska Indian Community College $500,000 NM Santa Fe Institute of American Indian Arts $601,492 NM Crownpoint Navajo Technical University $2,247,693 NM Albuquerque Southwestern Indian Polytechnic Institute $988,600 SD Kyle Oglala Lakota College $1,510,470 SD Mission Sinte Gleska University $969,950 SD Sisseton Sisseton Wahpeton College $500,000 WA Bellingham Northwest Indian College $1,053,591 WI Keshena College of Menominee Nation $543,934 WI Hayward Lac Courte Oreilles Ojibwa Community College $547,372 TOTAL $24,153,165