Three tribal nations along with five Native American students have initiated a lawsuit, asserting that the Trump administration has not upheld its legal commitments to tribal communities by reducing staff at schools managed by the Bureau of Indian Education (BIE).
This legal action is a response to layoffs at two institutions as part of broader federal agency budget reductions. The cuts, reportedly backed by Elon Musk, have led to hazardous conditions, disrupted classes, and postponed financial aid for the affected students and staff, as claimed in the lawsuit.
The lawsuit, filed in federal court in Washington, D.C. by attorneys from the Native American Rights Fund, is directed at the leadership of the Interior Department, the Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA), and the Office of Indian Education Programs. It represents the interests of the Pueblo of Isleta, the Prairie Band Potawatomi Nation, and the Cheyenne and Arapaho Tribes, emphasizing their exclusion from the decision-making process when several employees across these colleges were dismissed under the BIE’s governance.
Specifically, the lawsuit highlights that nearly a quarter of the personnel, including nine faculty members, at the Southwestern Indian Polytechnic Institute (SIPI) in Albuquerque, New Mexico, were terminated or coerced into resignation in February. This reduction in staff reportedly resulted in a lack of campus safety, exemplified by unresolved power outages, attributed to shortcomings in essential services and maintenance.
Kaiya Brown, a SIPI student cited in the legal documents, described experiencing a power outage in her dormitory lasting 13 hours, forcing her to relocate temporarily to complete her assignments.
At Haskell Indian Nations University in Kansas, the lawsuit notes the dismissal of over a quarter of its staff, including key positions such as the Dean of Students, faculty members, and support staff like tutors and residential advisors. The institution also lost its sole bus driver, impacting student transportation. Furthermore, services like the student center have been closed, and significant delays in financial aid disbursement have been reported by students.
Reports from students detailed issues such as reduced meal portions and inadequate sanitation supplies, alongside classes being conducted by less qualified deans after the departure of expert professors.
Despite some rehiring efforts at both institutions, the BIE reportedly informed staff that these positions might only be temporary, with the possibility of future layoffs.
Due to department policy, the BIA offered no comment on ongoing legal proceedings, while a representative from the Interior Department similarly declined to comment.
The BIE is tasked with delivering educational opportunities to Native American and Alaska Native students nationally, as part of the federal government’s trust responsibilities, which include safeguarding and fulfilling treaty obligations along with relevant legal measures for tribes. Currently, the BIE oversees 183 schools on 64 reservations across 23 states, serving approximately 42,000 Native American students, according to their official website. This includes 55 BIE-operated schools and 128 managed by tribes.
The U.S. Government Accountability Office has consistently pointed out significant staffing shortages within the BIE, which weaken its capability to effectively monitor and support these educational institutions.
Hershel Gorham, lieutenant governor of the Cheyenne and Arapaho Tribes, emphasized the federal government’s duty to engage in substantial consultation with tribal nations before implementing actions potentially detrimental to them. He revealed that no such consultation was conducted regarding the staffing cuts impacting both Haskell and SIPI, asserting that broader federal policies appear to lack substantial input from tribal governments.
While recent reversals of cuts in the Departments of the Interior and Health and Human Services might indicate a recognition of their obligations to tribal citizens on the part of department heads Doug Burgum and Robert F. Kennedy Jr., Gorham expressed concerns about the autonomy these leaders possess in safeguarding Native American rights.
He suggested that the apparent failure to prevent severe staffing reductions illustrates a systemic inadequacy in protecting tribal interests, citing the significant cuts experienced by Haskell, SIPI, and broader BIE institutions as proof of this ongoing shortfall.