The South Dakota Indian Education Council has put forward three major recommendations in its latest annual report. This report, mandated by state law, is directed to the governor’s office and the State-Tribal Relations Committee in the Legislature. The primary focus is to address the persistent academic disparities faced by American Indian students in comparison to their peers statewide.
Key Recommendations and Their Implications
The council’s first recommendation is to acquire detailed data from the South Dakota Department of Education’s Science of Reading initiative, specifically segmented to reflect the academic performance of Native American students. The Science of Reading program, funded through a substantial $54 million federal grant, is set to run for five years. The council emphasized the need for regular updates from the department throughout this period to monitor progress and outcomes.
The second recommendation revisits a suggestion from the council’s 2023 report: continued collection of absenteeism and attendance data by the Department of Education. The significance of this stems from efforts over the last two years where federally funded grants were allocated to select school districts to address chronic absenteeism—a challenge that escalated during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Funding Concerns for Attendance Initiatives
Joe Graves, State Education Secretary and council member, highlighted the imminent end of federal support for these attendance grants, which will cease after the 2025-26 academic year. Discussions with Brian Wagner, Education Director of the Lower Brule Sioux Tribe, underscored the potential for state legislative funding or resource reallocation based on the quality of data collected.
“If we can collect strong data, there’s a possibility of securing additional state support,” Wagner noted. This insight reflects a broader need for consistent monitoring and funding to maintain and improve student attendance rates.
Call for Renewed Wellness Survey Efforts
The council’s third recommendation focuses on re-administering a wellness survey conducted earlier this year, facilitated by the South Dakota Office of Indian Education and Region 8 Comprehensive Center. Fred Osborn, the head of the Office of Indian Education, revealed that only 30 schools responded to the initial survey, a number deemed insufficient for making significant policy decisions.
Rosemary Clairmont, Education Director for the Rosebud Sioux Tribe, voiced her concern, emphasizing the importance of gathering more comprehensive data to draw effective conclusions. “A response rate of thirty is too limited to guide impactful decisions,” she said, advocating for another round of the survey to improve participation and data accuracy.
Conclusion
The South Dakota Indian Education Council’s latest recommendations underscore a concerted effort to bridge the academic gap for Native American students. Emphasizing detailed data collection, sustainable funding for attendance initiatives, and renewed wellness surveys, the council seeks to align state education policies more closely with the needs of the communities they serve.
