This bibliography is reformatted and customized by the Center for Positive Practices for the Positive Universe: Earth Protection Team website. Some of the authors featured on this page include Alliance for Excellent Education, Katy Beck, Jon Reyhner, Bethesda National Institutes of Health (DHEW), St. Paul. Minnesota State Advisory Committee to the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights, Paul Gerard, Bruce Granville Miller, W. F. Springer, Elizabeth Klobusicky-Mailaender, and James I. Schaap.
(1992). Educational Opportunities for American Indians in Minneapolis and St. Paul Public Schools. This report is based on background research and a community forum held in September 1990 in St. Paul, Minnesota, and addresses issues related to equal education for American Indians in Minnesota public schools. Minnesota's Native American population is increasing, is younger than non-Indian Minnesotans, and is becoming more urban than rural. The dropout rate is higher for urban Indians than for rural Indians, and the educational attainment of American Indians still lags behind that of the total population. Most of the report consists of summaries of presentations at the forum from individuals, agencies, educators, state government officials, tribal government officials, and superintendents of school districts. Of central concern was the question of whether equal opportunity in public education means simply equal access to education, or whether it includes the certainty of equal attainment. Some participants called for Indian-controlled separate schools or a separate district to educate American Indian students; others pointed to successful programs within public schools, such as cultural enrichment programs and Native language programs. Chartered schools and magnet schools were recommended as expanding parental choice and providing a means to focus the curriculum on American Indian culture and values. Many participants agreed that however Indians are educated, there must be parental involvement. The appendix is a policy brief presenting policy and legal arguments for separate and for integrated Indian schools. [More] Descriptors: American Indian Education, Charter Schools, Demography, Dropout Rate
(1995). Challenges Confronting American Indian Youth. Oversight Hearing before the Committee on Indian Affairs. United States Senate, One Hundred Fourth Congress, First Session. Part 1. The Senate Committee on Indian Affairs received testimony from American Indian youth about the problems confronting Indian young people on reservations and in urban areas and about their own personal experiences with such problems. Witnesses included college and high school students representing various youth councils and youth organizations at a conference of United National Indian Tribal Youth (UNITY). Statements were also received from senators and from representatives of philanthropic foundations that provide funding to Indian youth programs. Included in the testimony and written statements are the following topics: (1) the efforts of tribal youth councils to involve young people in educational and cultural activities and activities helpful to their communities; (2) high rates of alcohol abuse and unemployment among Native Americans; (3) the need for Native American students attending public schools to be taught about their languages, cultures, and history; (4) the need for an American Indian university providing a full range of graduate degrees; (5) the importance of strong cultural identity and spirituality in preventing social problems and individual despair; (6) community programs to fight alcohol and drug abuse; (7) the involvement of urban Indian youth in gang violence; (8) the importance of positive role models for Indian youth; (9) water rights and traditional natural resources; (10) teen pregnancy; (11) the national youth agenda developed by UNITY; (12) youth leadership development programs, such as Running Strong for American Indian Youth; (13) programs for Native American children and youth funded by the W. K. Kellogg Foundation and the Carnegie Corporation; and (14) juvenile justice needs. [More] Descriptors: American Indian Education, American Indian Reservations, American Indians, College Students
(2000). Issues in the Education of American Indian and Alaska Native Students with Disabilities. ERIC Digest. Over 10 percent of American Indian and Alaska Native (AI/AN) students in public schools and more than 18 percent of AI/AN students in Bureau of Indian Affairs and tribal schools are eligible for or placed in special education programs. This digest addresses four selected issues in the education of AI/AN students with disabilities. First, the 1997 amendments to the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) provide for the awarding of personnel preparation grants to colleges and universities; some grants have been awarded specifically for training special educators to work with AI/AN students. Grant recipients include a program on the Navajo Reservation that trains both Indian and non-Indian service providers, programs aimed at AI/AN college students, and grants to tribal colleges. Second, IDEA guarantees parents certain rights concerning their involvement in their child's education. Suggestions are offered for facilitating the involvement of AI/AN parents. Third, IDEA mandates that all students be evaluated using nondiscriminatory evaluations and multiple forms of assessment and using their native language. Suggestions for culturally and linguistically appropriate assessments are offered. Finally, IDEA requires education in the least restrictive environment. The inclusive model of education adopted by Kayenta Unified School District (Arizona) is briefly described. (Contains 13 references.) [More] Descriptors: Alaska Natives, American Indian Education, American Indian Students, Disabilities
(1972). All They Do is Run Away!, Civil Rights Digest. Discusses the experiences of a family including several white children, a six-year-old Asian (Filipino) girl, an eight-year-old American Indian (Chippewa) girl, and a black four-year-old boy with a voluntarily desegregated Northern school. Descriptors: Elementary School Students, Minority Group Children, Peer Groups, Racial Attitudes
(1973). The Federal Executive Branch and the First Americans, Civil Rights Digest. A statement of the administration's position on Indian affairs, discussing budget; the Bureau of Indian Affairs; such programs as Indian health, the Office of Minority Business Enterprise, and OEO/HEW Community Action; the American Indian National Bank; Indian personnel and participation in BIA; Alaska claims; and other topics. Descriptors: Administrative Policy, American Indian Reservations, American Indians, Civil Rights
(1972). The Employment of American Indians in New Mexico and Arizona. Staff Report #3. The document describes the employment patterns of reservation and nonreservation American Indians in New Mexico and Arizona. Topics cover (1) reservation characteristics; (2) 5 selected reservations; (3) Federal government employment; (4) state and local government employment; (5) public school employment; and (6) private employment. Discussion topics are further detailed in the tables at the end of the document. [More] Descriptors: American Indian Reservations, American Indians, Comparative Analysis, Employers
(1976). The Omaha Indians, Indian Historian. Briefly recounting the history of the Omaha American Indians, this article makes a plea for relocation of the Bureau of Indian Affairs local Agency in Macy near the Omaha reservation, suggesting that the Returned Students movement is a response to this need for the Agency's relocation. [More] Descriptors: Activism, Agency Role, American Indians, Civil Rights
(2012). Life on the Hardened Border, American Indian Culture and Research Journal. The many Coast Salish groups distributed on both sides of the United States-Canada border on the Pacific coast today face significant obstacles to cross the international border, and in some cases are denied passage or intimidated into not attempting to cross. The current situation regarding travel by Aboriginal people reflects the "hardening" of the border by United States officials following the events of "9-11." A bureaucratic environment has become increasingly hostile to the interests of Aboriginal groups in favor of security. In addition, the problems encountered by individual Aboriginal travelers at the border reflect a transformed American impression of Canada, now commonly treated politically and administratively as a state from which enemies of America are positioned to harm American interests. These new perceptions create an environment that enables Homeland Security officers to regard Aboriginal peoples who seek to cross the border as suspect, although they do so under legal conventions that allow passage of Aboriginal peoples. Officers then act on their own received, stereotypical notions of what a "real Indian" looks like, and deny passage to those they consider to be fakes. These border issues reflect a larger pattern of the denial of Aboriginal rights and challenges to tribal sovereignty by the American state and its citizenry. Data for this work comes from interviews with Coast Salish people and the case of a Coast Salish man who was detained and prosecuted for attempting to cross the border. A justice summit held in 2003 provides direct insight into official American approaches to the border as they concern Aboriginal people, while reporting by the Seattle Times reveals local responses to 9-11. [More] Descriptors: Foreign Countries, Canada Natives, Barriers, Mobility
(1976). A Tri-centennial Portrait. Minorities and Women 100 Years Later, Civil Rights Digest. Suggests that during the next 100 years, progress for women, blacks, the Spanish surnamed, American Indians, and all other minorities–including the poor and the elderly–will depend on how willing they are to coalesce with each other. Descriptors: Blacks, Comparative Analysis, Economic Factors, Ethnic Status
(1972). Minority Groups in Medicine: Selected Bibliography. Listing materials on the problems of black, Spanish-surname American, American Indian, and other minorities as they relate to the health professions, the bibliography is offered as an introduction to a challenge in medical education. Indexed alphabetically by author, the 146-item listing includes periodical articles, special reports, books, and government documents and publications. [More] Descriptors: Allied Health Occupations Education, Bibliographies, Civil Rights, Equal Education
(2012). Caught in the Crisis: Students of Color and Native Students in U.S. High Schools. Nationally, millions of students in grades 7-12 are at risk of dropping out of high school because of low literacy skills, poor attendance, and class failure. The absence of a college- and career-ready education for these students is a civil rights and social justice issue that the federal government cannot ignore. Unfortunately, many of these students come from groups that are underserved and underrepresented, therefore failing to ensure that they receive a high quality education will continue a cycle of poverty and disenfranchisement that the education system itself is intended to disrupt. This fact sheet provides information and policy issues for high school students of color and Native students in the United States, a group that makes up a significant portion of high school dropouts each year. [More] Descriptors: Academic Achievement, Dropouts, Social Justice, Educational Quality
(1977). Indians in American Economy and Governmental Policy, Englisch. As an aid in teaching ESL (English as a second language) area studies, this article presents information on American Indians, including economic aspects, original Indian attitudes toward land and property, the Indian Wars, and the ambiguous policy of the government toward Indian protection and assimilation. Descriptors: American Indian Culture, American Indians, Area Studies, Civil Rights
(2010). The Growth of the Native American Gaming Industry: What Has the Past Provided, and What Does the Future Hold?, American Indian Quarterly. This article presents a review which embodies a general inquiry about the growth of the Native American gaming industry and possibilities the future may hold for America's indigenous people. Tribal gaming is different from other forms of gaming. It is conducted by Native American governments as a way to carry out their natural self-governing rights as independent nations. In 1995, prior to the explosive development of Native American gaming, some tribal leaders were cautious, even skeptical about the impact such development would have on the Indian community. Most leaders had expressed both professional and personal concerns about the impact that gaming expansion would have on the quality of life for tribal members. By 2000 the fears of negative effects on the Indian way of life were no longer as apparent. Tribal leaders became more positive about the addition of gaming to the community. By 2001 gaming had become one fastest-growing sectors of the U.S. tourism industry, with $63.3 billion wagered in casinos, lotteries, race tracks, and bingo halls. Besides experiencing major positive social impacts, some tribes with gaming have experienced modest positive socioeconomic impacts. However, despite the gains made by tribal governments for the indigenous families since the beginning of Indian gaming, the challenges to health, welfare, and hope in Indian Country remain profound. [More] Descriptors: Tourism, American Indians, Quality of Life, Tribes
(2004). One Man, Two Languages: Confessions of a Freedom-Loving Bilingual, Tribal College Journal of American Indian Higher Education. When the movement for "English Only" began some years ago, the author told participants at a bilingual education workshop that he was against it. He was rendered momentarily mute because he had thought that the English Only proponents could not curtail the freedom of expression guaranteed by the U.S. Constitution. The way he understood them, the framers of the Constitution guaranteed freedom of expression. He has often questioned the direction this country takes in regards to civil rights, human rights, and especially the freedom to express ourselves. The ideals propounded in the Declaration of Independence, the Constitution, and the Bill of Rights are excellent. [More] Descriptors: Freedom of Speech, Constitutional Law, Civil Rights, Bilingualism
(1991). The Challenge of Teaching Minority Students: An American Indian Example, Teaching Education. Current teacher education programs do not provide appropriate knowledge for teaching minority students. The article focuses on American Indian students as an example. It discusses the value of using students' home language and culture at school, particularly in the early years, and stresses the value of responsive teaching methods. Descriptors: American Indians, Biculturalism, Bilingual Education, Bilingual Students