Red Owl, Sherry

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St. John's University School of Law

Journal of Civil Rights and Economic Development Volume 7 Issue 2 Volume 7, Spring 1993, Issue 2 Article 6 March 1992 Tribal Education: The Missing Link Sherry Red Owl Follow this and additional works at: https://scholarship.law.stjohns.edu/jcred Recommended Citation Red Owl, Sherry (1992) "Tribal Education: The Missing Link," Journal of Civil Rights and Economic Development: Vol. 7 : Iss. 2 , Article 6. Available at: https://scholarship.law.stjohns.edu/jcred/vol7/iss2/6 This Symposium is brought to you for free and open access by the Journals at St. John's Law Scholarship Repository. It has been accepted for inclusion in Journal of Civil Rights and Economic Development by an authorized editor of St. John's Law Scholarship Repository. For more information, please contact selbyc@stjohns.edu. TRIBAL EDUCATION: THE MISSING LINKSHERRY RED OWL*The cultural onslaught that began with the arrival of Columbuscame close to nearly eradicating indigenous cultures. Five centu-ries later, native peoples throughout the hemisphere are strug-gling to restore their heritage. A principal instrument of this revi-val has been education of the younger generations. Tribalparticipation in education has recently come to the forefront as aviable means of ensuring maximum allocation of reservation re-sources into education services. Tribes are beginning to realizethe value of direct regulation of their children's education as ameans of protecting, preserving, and perpetuating tribal lifestylesand homelands. Tribes have seen a value in asserting their sover-eign authority in the area of education. One of the tribes in theforefront of this movement is the Rosebud Sioux Tribe in SouthDakota.Historically, tribes were compelled to turn over control of theirchildren's formal education to the federal government, state gov-ernment, and various churches. The tribes later came to view for-mal education as a means of genocide employed by governmentsand Christian churches in an attempt to "civilize" and "christian-ize" native peoples. Assimilation was the primary goal of this for-mal education which would allow the native people to fully partici-pate in the "Great American Dream."1 In Sioux country, formaleducation has been a dismal failure even though the Lakota peo-ple value education as a means of survival for their tribes.'* Sherry Red Owl is Director of Education for the Sioux Rosebud Tribe located inRosebud, South Dakota.' ROBERT J. HAVIGHURST, THE NATIONAl. STUDY OF AMERICAN INDIAN EDUCATION. EDUCA-"nON OF YOUTH. SUMMARY REPORT AND RECOMMENDATIONS 1 (1970).' See INDIAN NATIONS AT RISK TASK FORCE, U.S. DEP'T OF EDUC., INDIAN NATIONS AT RISK:AN EDUCATIONAL STRATEGY FOR ACTION I (1991) [hereinafter TASK FORCE] (examples offailure of formal education include high attrition rates, negative attitudes towards school,and declining interest in Native languages and cultures); see also CHRISTINE BOLT. AMERICANINDIAN POLICY AND AMERICAN REFORM 249 (1987). The Indian Education Act of 1972 aideddevelopment of Indian-controlled schools by allocating funds and setting up an Office ofIndian Education. Id. In 1975, the American Indian Policy Review Commission recom-Journal of Legal CommentaryTribes have seen more and more evidence of the failure ofschool systems to meet the needs of native students.' As a result,tribal governments are seeking ways of making schools accounta-ble for the education of their young people and for monitoringthe success of schools in meeting their children's educationalneeds.' Tribes are beginning to provide guidance in the identifica-tion of what Indian education is, and which tribal values and tradi-tions can be enhanced by formal education.In 1987, the Rosebud Sioux Tribal Education Committee con-tacted the Native American Rights Fund in Boulder, Colorado,with a request for assistance in the development of a Tribal Codeof Education. The Native American Rights Fund accepted thecase and began to research the Tribe's authority over education.The Native American Rights Fund's staff attorney gave the tribe alegal opinion substantiating the Tribe's right to assert such au-thority, and the Tribe decided to pursue the development of aCode of Education.The Rosebud Sioux Tribe identified problem areas that neededto be addressed. These areas were high drop-out rates, lowachievement scores on nationally normed tests, extensive sub-stance abuse, parental passivity, lack of Native personnel in educa-tion programs, and culturally irrelevant curriculum.The Rosebud Sioux Tribe Code of Education was drafted andreviewed by the Tribal Education Committee. Following numer-ous revisions and reviews, the committee decided that further in-put from schools, local education agencies, parents, students, andother tribal members was needed in order to develop the Codemended that control of Indian education be placed in the hands of the tribe, rather thanthe state and local governments, with an emphasis on providing for the study of Indianhistory, culture, and language. Id. at 250.' See Boi.T, supra note 2, at 5-10. Native American children must overcome many educa-tional barriers including unfriendly school climate, limited library and learning resources,low expectations, lack of parental and community participation, loss of Native languageability, teachers lacking skills necessary to teach Native children, limited funding for col-lege, and extremely high attrition rates. Id.: see also Rhonda Lankford & James D. Riley,Native American Reading Disability, J OF AM. INDIAN EDuC., May 1986, at 1, 1 (discussing"high rate of reading failure" for Native American children).' TASK FORCE, supra note 2, at 11-13 (discussing progress made in Native education, not-ing increase in number of Indian-controlled public schools, increase in number of Nativestudents attending college, and development of curriculum materials with Nativeperspective).592Vol. 7: 591, 1992The Missing Linkinto a working document that would indeed fulfill its pur-pose-educational reform which would lead to culturally appro-priate, quality education for young people. In January 1990, theTribal Education Department was established by the RosebudSioux Tribal Council.5 The Department did not begin operationuntil September 1990 because of the difficulty it had finding aqualified director for the program, which the Tribe believed wasessential to the success of the project.The Tribal Council designed a process to facilitate the final de-velopment of the Code of Education for the Rosebud Sioux. Theprocess incorporated strategic planning methods involvingnetworking and collaboration among all the schools; state, federal,and tribal agencies; parents and students. Sinte Gleska University,the Rosebud Sioux tribal college, took a leadership role in facili-tating the process.The Rosebud Sioux Tribal Code of Education was enacted bythe Rosebud Sioux Tribal Council as Ordinance No. 91-04 in Oc-tober 1991.6 The Code of Education established the legal author-ity for the regulation of education on the Rosebud Sioux Reserva-tion. The Code provides a framework for establishing tribaleducation standards, developing tribal curriculum requirements,maintaining an Indian preference in hiring and certifying profes-sional education staff, creating tribe-approved substance-abuse ed-ucation for students and parents, and establishing a process fortribal monitoring of all aspects of the education of tribalmembers.'On the Rosebud Sioux Reservation, tribal regulation of educa-tion came about because of a dire need for preservation, perpetu-ation, and protection of the tribal language, cultural values, landsand spiritual beliefs. However, there are many other roles whichtribes can assume to meet educational goals. Tribes have the au-thority and ability to pull together all of the educational systemswithin their reservations to address common concerns of allRosebud Sioux Tribal Council, Ordinance 91-04 (Oct. 9, 1991).Id. Ordinance No. 91-04 regulates reservation education and coordinates resources toimprove student opportunities, while maintaining the cultural identity of the Sioux Tribe.Id., ROSEBUD Sioux TRIBE. CODE OF EDUCATION §§ 401-402, 501, 601 (1991).593Journal of Legal Commentary Vol. 7: 591, 1992schools, and work with the schools and existing tribal resources toidentify and solve problems. Tribal education departments canserve as lead agencies in developing long range education plans,identifying appropriate evaluation models for Native Americanstudents, and setting educational priorities.Tribes have the resources available to enhance the total devel-opment of their tribal members. Today, we are looking to holisticeducation as the most viable method of attaining meaningfullearning. We look to providing this education within the complexenvironment of tribal life. There is a need in schools for sources,other than normal education resources, to address the physical,emotional and spiritual well-being, as well as the intellectual devel-opment of our student population. 8 Tribal education departmentswould have the ability to access resources and to mobilize otheragencies and organizations in support of the basic education pro-cess. In addition, tribes have the authority as nations to influencethe education of citizens who reside off the reservation, and mayutilize their education departments and codes to effectuate thatinfluence.In addition to working with education systems, tribal educationdepartments can work effectively with parents and communities.Research demonstrates that in order for schools to succeed intheir mission, they must re-link with communities and families.9Tribal education departments can be designed to work with andencourage parental involvement and community support. Positiveand effective parental participation in the education process is aprimary factor in the success of a child in school. Family and com-munity expectations provide validity for education processes. Pub-lic tribal positions on education can also provide this validity. Tri-bal education departments can provide the missing link betweenschools, communities and tribes.Within most tribes the well-being of the child is of primary sig-nificance. It is the responsibility of tribal education departmentsto ensure that schools are structured to provide tribal members,' See TASK FORCE, supra note 2, at 13 (noting that "restructuring models" and "alterna-tive assessment methodologies" should be used to address needs of Native students).' NORTHwEsT REGIONAL LIBRARY. EFFECTIVE SCHOOLING PRACTICES: A RESEARCH SYNTHESIS1990 UPDATE 1.594The Missing Linkwith quality education and programs which are culturally appro-priate and have a child-centered approach. Education goals andexpected student outcomes must be consistent with tribal lifestylesand insure that tribal members can be productive members of thesociety in which they live.Tribal education departments should be charged with the re-sponsibility of reviewing school evaluations, applications for fund-ing, program plans, annual budgets, and the philosophy of eachlocal school serving tribal members. This process would ensurethat overall education goals of the tribes are being given appropri-ate weight, and that Indian students are being treated equally bypublic school districts. This review promotes accountability andstrengthens tribal sovereignty. Tribal education departments canalso facilitate potential consolidation of education funds. Tribaleducation codes provide the legal basis for standards for Indianeducation. They serve as guides, which are enforceable throughthe courts, and greatly enhance local control of Indian educationprocesses and programs.Tribes have fought a constant battle for five hundred years toprotect their native homelands and retain their status as sovereignnations. A commitment by tribes to protect, preserve, and perpet-uate their land, culture, and language must be made now. Lawsmust be developed by tribes to provide a legal basis for regulationof all facets of tribal life. It is the belief of tribal educators thatformal education is the missing link that would insure the survivalof tribal lifestyles and the protection of tribal homelands.100 See TASK FORCE, supra note 2, at 32-33 (stressing that partnerships between schoolsand Native communities must be of highest priority).595

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