[Congressional Record Volume 145, Number 93 (Monday, June 28, 1999)]
[Senate]
[Pages S7719-S7720]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]

      By Mr. INOUYE (for himself, Mr. Domenici, Mr. Dorgan, Mr. Conrad, 
        Mr. Bingaman, Mr. Johnson, Mr. Daschle, and Mr. Akaka):
  S. 1290. A bill to amend title 36 of the United States Code to 
establish the American Indian Education Foundation, and for other 
purposes; to the Committee on Indian Affairs.


                  American Indian Education Foundation

 Mr. INOUYE. Mr. President, I rise today to introduce a bill to 
establish an American Indian Education Foundation. I am joined by 
Senators Domenici, Dorgan, Conrad, Bingaman, Johnson, Daschle and Akaka 
as sponsors of this measure, because we believe that this foundation 
will help American Indian and Alaska native students immeasurably in 
the years to come.
  The foundation will be a charitable, non-profit corporation that 
would be authorized to: (1) encourage, accept, and administer private 
gifts in support of the bureau of Indian Affairs' (BIA) Office of 
Indian Education; (2) conduct activities that will further educational 
opportunities of American Indians and Alaskan natives attending BIA 
schools; and (3) assist Federal, State, tribal, and individual entities 
that will further the educational opportunities of American Indians and 
Alaskan natives attending BIA schools.
  Similar foundations, such as the National Park Foundation and the 
National Fish and Wildlife Foundation have been extremely successful 
over the past several years. This foundation is modeled after those 
foundations.
  Indian children are the most important resource in native America. 
And while the bureau's elementary and secondary education facilities 
and curricula have improved over the past few years, there is still 
much that can be done to make the learning environment a better place 
for Indian students.
  We want to motivate tribal students to look forward to school every 
day. We want them to be eager about learning. But realizing these 
objectives is difficult when students are forced to learn in 
dilapidated buildings with outdated books and broken-down or no 
computer equipment. The foundation will be a start in helping to 
address these problems.
  There are many Americans who have asked how they can contribute to 
the education of Indian students, but currently, there is no formal 
mechanism that would enable private resources to be dedicated to the 
support of the bureau schools. The foundation would serve as a means 
for channeling private resources to provide that much-needed support.
  Considerable thought has gone into the composition of the foundation. 
The board will consist of eleven directors

[[Page S7720]]

who must be knowledgeable and experienced in American Indian education. 
The Secretary of the Interior and the Assistant Secretary of Indian 
Affairs will both serve as ex officio non-voting members.
  The foundation would be based in the District of Columbia and will 
meet at least once annually. The foundation will submit an annual 
report of its proceedings and activities to the Congress.
  Mr. President, we feel that the foundation will provide greatly-
needed opportunities to American Indian and Alaskan native students, 
and would urge our colleagues to support this measure.
 Mr. DOMENICI. Mr. President, I am pleased to join Senator 
Inouye in sponsoring this legislation to establish the American Indian 
Education Foundation.
  Similar foundations exist for national parks and national fish and 
wildlife purposes. Many Americans leave assets to benefit American 
Indians, but there is currently no national foundation to encourage 
this type of giving for the benefit of Indian children in BIA schools.
  The American Indian Education Foundation would primarily benefit 
elementary and secondary American Indian students with books, 
computers, school supplies, cultural preservation programs, literacy 
programs, and many other worthwhile activities.
  There is already a pool of about $400,000 held by the Office of 
Indian Education in the Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA). These personal 
assets have been donated over the years for Indian students, but there 
is no legal mechanism to transfer these funds to BIA schools. This 
legislation would allow the BIA to direct these funds to BIA schools to 
meet immediate education needs of today's Indian students.
  I am proud to encourage this kind of targeted giving, and I am 
optimistic about its potential. America is a generous nation. As more 
Americans become aware of the spectrum of needs at BIA schools on 
Indian reservations, I predict a huge success for this important 
foundation.
  I commend the Administration for developing this legislation, and I 
thank my friend Senator Inouye for taking the initiative to move it 
forward in the Senate.
  I urge my colleagues to encourage private gifts to national Indian 
education purposes by supporting this proposed foundation.
                                 ______