Advancing its commitment to equity, meaningful consultation, and relief for Tribal Nations, the U.S. Department of Education has announced approximately $20 million in grants available to Tribal Educational Agencies (TEAs) through the American Rescue Plan (ARP) to meet the urgent needs of students in response to the coronavirus pandemic. The American Indian Resilience in Education (AIRE) grant program will fund culturally relevant projects designed to assist and encourage Indian children and youth to enter, remain in, or reenter school at any grade level from Pre-K through grade 12. This grant program is a one-time discretionary grant competition to make sure students from across our country have the resources needed to be successful and can come out of the COVID-19 pandemic stronger than ever.
The Department affirmed its commitment to engage in regular and meaningful consultation and collaboration by conducting a virtual Tribal consultation session regarding the ARP-AIRE program on April 26, 2021. Consistent with the Department’s trust responsibility to Tribes and its Tribal Consultation Policy, the Department consulted with elected officials of federally recognized Tribes to ensure that their views inform the Department’s policy decisions related to the priorities, requirements, and definitions that govern this one-time opportunity available under the American Rescue Plan. The total available funds under ARP-AIRE is $19.8 million and we estimate size of awards ranging from $300,000 to $500,000 for each 12-month budget period.
The total available funds under ARP-AIRE is $19.8 million and we estimate size of awards ranging from $300,000 to $500,000 for each 12-month budget period.
- Estimated average size of awards is $400,000 and we estimate a total of 16 awards, each with 36-month (3-year) project periods.
- Notice Inviting Applications (NIA) includes a 60-day application period to provide prospective applicants a generous timeline to develop high-quality applications.
- The Department’s Office of Indian Education will host a pre-application webinar on July 28, 2021 to support and encourage high quality applications. Individuals interested in attending this webinar for prospective applicants are encouraged to pre-register by emailing their name, organization, and contact information with the subject heading “ARP-AIRE GRANTS PRE-APPLICATION WEBINAR” to shahla.ortega@ed.gov. There is no registration fee to attend this session. Information regarding the pre-application webinar is available by accessing the website: https://oese.ed.gov/offices/office-of-indian-education/.
For more information about this grant competition visit https://oese.ed.gov/offices/american-rescue-plan/american-rescue-plan-american-indian-resilience-in-education-arp-aire/.