Celebrating an Isleta Pueblo school's transition to tribal leadership

U.S. Secretary of the Interior Sally Jewell, Assistant Secretary for Indian Affairs Kevin Washburn and Bureau of Indian Education (BIE) Director Dr. Charles ‘Monty’ Roessel today joined U.S. Senator Martin Heinrich and Isleta Pueblo Governor Edward Paul Torres Sr. to celebrate the landmark transfer of the pueblo’s elementary school to full tribal control. The transition is the first enabled by the Obama Administration’s Blueprint for Reform promoting educational self-determination for tribal communities and the President’s Generation Indigenous (Gen-I) initiative to improve the lives of Native youth by removing barriers to their success.

“I commend Governor Torres and Isleta Pueblo’s Tribal Council for their vision, courage and initiative in taking over the operation and management of Isleta Elementary School, which can serve as an example for other tribes seeking educational self-determination,” said Secretary Jewell, who chairs the White House Council on Native American Affairs, which launched the Blueprint for Reform. “All of Isleta Pueblo’s leaders, including the new School Board and Pueblo administration staff, worked closely with our Bureau of Indian Education throughout this landmark transition, setting a standard for how we hope to work with other tribal governments in the future.”