SANTA CLARA — After the Washington County School District held a public informational meeting April 27 about the Indian Education Program, some in attendance departed wondering if the program is underfunded.
“We are limited in what we have access to,” English as a Second Language Coordinator Randy Richardson said.
The program is funded by a grant through the U.S. Department of Education and coordinated through the Utah State Board of Education – American Indian Education.
The Title VI Program requires public feedback on the program.
The meeting was held at the Utah Online School and Professional Development Center in Santa Clara with several ESL personnel and parents in attendance.
Title VI paraprofessional Charlene John directed the event and helped the public understand what the program entails. This included the statistics of tribal identification, students who qualified for the program and the budget.
The Indian Parent Advisory Committee must approve the proposal and then submit it to the regional federal auditor who approves it or sends it back for changes.
“We will not lose the money if it comes back as long as we make the changes needed,” said ESL Secondary Specialist Mike Grisenti, adding they have only had to make changes to their proposal once before.
The curriculum and program are planned out by such personnel as John with help from the IPA Committee.
Some 600 students district-wide benefit from the program. And overall there are 773 American Indian/Alaska Native students who qualify for services from the program, but John said not all utilize it.
The total amount for the program’s budget for a full academic year is $134,720.
Out of that amount, there is a need for $124,949 for personnel, including teachers and directors. This accounts for 92.75% of the funds. The rest — $9,771 — is split between supplies and travel, contractual and indirect costs.
These budgeted amounts are for the whole academic year.
While the committee unanimously approved the budget, with each member signing it, Grisenti said, “$134,00 is basically nothing.”
He said they are very grateful for the grant monies as it keeps the program going, but the amount does not hold up much for such a valuable program.
The activities offered through the Indian Education Program include classes in Navajo Government, Navajo Language and Paiute Language as well as Family Nights, which involve activities designed to preserve the culture and help form family bonds. These include basket weaving, drum-making and other cultural events.
Family Night is for all qualified students and their families.
John said there has been a push lately by tribes to preserve their language and culture. However, there are still challenges. among them, the preservation of Iroquois and Apache languages thought to be extinct.
John said this shows the need is more than financial.
“We need more parents to get involved,” John said, adding they are always looking for volunteers to assist.
Grisenti said the state Title VI Director Chuck Foster offers mini-grants, but finances are limited.
The school district’s foundation is their other source of funds as well as physical donations such as supplies, including cultural craft supplies like beads, feathers and more.
Grisenti emphasized that financial donations are best to be made to the foundation with instructions for it to be used for Title VI Indian Education Program. Item donations can be dropped off with the foundation at the district administrative offices.
Meanwhile in the Iron County School District, Communications and Foundation Coordinator Shauna Lund said they receive between $52,000-$60,000 annually to run their program and services 170 students.
Copyright St. George News, SaintGeorgeUtah.com LLC, 2023, all rights reserved.