From Indianz.com, here. An excerpt:
The Interior Department has transferred nearly $1 million into the Cobell scholarship fund.
The $3.4 billion Cobell trust fund settlement established a $1.9 billion land consolidation program. A portion of every sale from the Land Buy-Back Program for Tribal Nations goes to the scholarship fund.
“As we developed the Buy-Back Program in partnership with Cobell plaintiffs, we sought not only to right the wrongs of the past, but to provide for future generations of Native American youth,” Hilary Tompkins, a member of the Navajo Nation who serves as Solicitor at DOI, said in a press release. “This program is a rare opportunity to shape the future course of Indian Country and this investment in our next generation of tribal leaders will create a lasting, living legacy for Indian nations.”
With the latest transfer, the fund now boasts a balance of more than $5 million. The scholarships are being administered by the American Indian College Fund.
A board of trustees — which recently added David Gipp, the president of the United Tribes Technical College, as a member — oversees the fund. Under the terms of the settlement, up to $60 million in scholarships will be disbursed.
0 responses to “DOI puts nearly $1M from land sales into Cobell scholarship fund”