A $2.5 million supplemental appropriation for the Bureau of Indian Affairs will make it possible for some 3,000 Indian youth to receive scholarship grants enabling them to begin or continue their education in 1973 at the college level.
In making the announcement, Secretary of the Interior Rogers C.B. Morton said the additional funds will enable the Bureau to meet the needs of all eligible Indian applicants. The 3,000 youths are in addition to the record high of 11,009 students already receiving higher education assistance under the Bureau's regular appropriation.
"About 14,000 applications for scholarship grants were received this summer," Secretary Morton said. "This supplemental appropriation will make it possible to provide grants for the spring semester for those students we could not previously help because of a lack of funds. These students should immediately contact their agency or BIA Area Office to reactivate their applications for assistance," he added.
The 14,000 Indian students expected to be receiving college scholarship aid in 1973 is a dramatic increase over past years. It is almost 20 times the number receiving assistance ten years ago and about five times the number assisted four years ago. More than 100 students receiving assistance are in law school and approximately 100 more are in other post-graduate programs.
"This is an indication that our Native American youth are deeply interested in seeking a professional level of education. The rapidly increasing number of applications also reflects the desire of Indians to achieve the necessary education to attain the self-determination advocated in President Nixon's 1970 Message to Congress, “Secretary Morton said.
The supplemental appropriation, which has been allocated to the Bureau's Area Offices for distribution, brings the total provided through the Bureau of Indian Affairs for Indian higher education to $20.9 million in fiscal year 1973.
