Secretary Jewell to Join Education Secretary Duncan to Discuss Native Youth Education Grants

WASHINGTON – Today, Thursday, September 24, U.S. Secretary of the Interior Sally Jewell will join U.S. Education Secretary Arne Duncan in a press conference call to discuss more than $5 million in funding to help Native American and Alaska Native youth become college- and career ready. Under a new Native Youth Community Projects (NYCP) program, the Department of Education is making grants to a dozen recipients in nine states that will impact more than 30 tribes and involve more than 48 schools, some of which are schools funded by the Bureau of Indian Education.

Parts of this funding will also help in the transition from federal control of Bureau of Indian Education schools to tribal control, an ongoing effort to establish educational self-determination for tribal communities. These awards are a demonstration of President Obama’s strong commitment to improving the lives of American Indian and Alaska Native children and a key element of his Generation Indigenous “Gen I” Initiative to help Native American youth.

Secretaries Jewell and Duncan will also be joined by Ahniwake Rose, the Executive Director of the National Indian Education Association, and Gloria O'Neill, President and CEO of Cook Inlet Tribal Council, a grant recipient.

Also today, Secretary Jewell will participate in the National Tribal Energy Summit. The Summit is a White House Council on Native American Affairs interagency effort and includes participation from the U.S. Department of the Interior, as well as the U.S. Departments of Energy and Agriculture. The two-and-a-half day event will explore energy development and security issues identified by tribes and DOE’s Indian Country Energy and Infrastructure Working Group.

WHO:

Sally Jewell, U.S. Secretary of the Interior Arne Duncan, U.S. Secretary of Education Ahniwake Rose, Executive Director, National Indian Education Association Gloria O'Neill, Pesident and CEO, Cook Inlet Tribal Council

WHAT:

Press conference call to discuss Native youth community education project grants

WHEN:

TODAY, Thursday, September 24, 2015 at 2:00 p.m. EDT