AASB Board of Directors in partnership with State Tribal Education Compact (STEC) Pilot Tribes
To better understand the impact of HB 59 and to continue to support local governance of education, the AASB is featuring a monthly Question & Answer series in partnership with the State Tribal Education Compact (STEC) / Alaska Native Tribal Education Consortium.
Each month, we address specific questions submitted by our school board members at our annual conference. These are direct responses from the proposed Pilot Tribes. We value this collaborative effort to build a shared understanding of Tribal Compacting for Education in Alaska.
Can a municipal government compact with a tribal government?
- HB 59 authorizes compacts only between the State of Alaska and federally recognized tribes.
- Municipalities are political subdivisions of the state, not sovereign governments.
- Tribes may collaborate with municipalities through grants and/or MOUs, but not compacts.
I’ve heard a couple of times that we could model tribal compacting after health systems. Could you briefly outline what that means or what that looks like?
- Tribal health compacts use government‑to‑government agreements in which tribes assume responsibility for federal obligations and the funding to provide the services.
- Tribal compacting in health is a proven model of efficiency, innovation, and improved outcomes. HB 59 will be the mechanism for state education to begin the same transformative process in partnership with tribes.
- HB 59 mirrors this structure: the State and Tribes negotiate Education Service Compact Agreements that define roles, funding, accountability, and services.
- Unlike the Indian Health Service compact, which receives a block of funding based on federal appropriations, education funding follows the State foundation formula using the BSA calculation to determine the set amount of funding the pilot compact school will receive. The State Tribal Compacted Public Schools would be treated as REAAs for funding purposes because tribes, like REAAs, lack taxing authority.
Would the tribe be able to draft their own curriculum based on village life and survival?
- Yes. Tribes would follow state requirements (ie: graduation requirements; content standards), and tribes would function as a school district and could draft and use their own curriculum just like any existing district can.
- Tribes would have the same ability as any other school district to choose their curriculum and implement place-based frameworks that include language, culture, and ways of being. Tribes determine the instructional approach, delivery model, and cultural integration as long as state requirements are met.
- Many schools have already successfully developed similar curricula. We know kids learn best when instruction is meaningful, relevant, and rooted in real experiences and the Alaska Cultural Standards set clear expectations for a culturally responsive curriculum. This gives tribal schools a strong foundation to develop curricula that are focused on meeting standards by teaching through a culturally relevant approach.
How will tribal compacting secure impact aid at the federal level?
- HB 59 designates Tribal compact schools as public schools and treats them as local education agencies under state and federal law, thereby preserving their eligibility for Impact Aid and all other federal public school funding options. Tribal‑run schools under ISDEAA and the Tribally Controlled Schools Act already receive Impact Aid.
- Tribes operating compact schools would continue to document federally connected students, just as REAAs do now, and will remain eligible as long as they meet federal reporting requirements.
How can Tribes compact with school districts and what programs can be included in the compact?
- Compacts are between tribes, sovereign governments, and the state.
- Tribally compacted schools can partner with any school district to leverage funds and services; however, compacting is a government-to-government agreement between the state and the tribe. Compacts are between sovereign entities in the United States (ie: Federal, State, and Tribes). HB 59 only authorizes state–tribal compacts, not district–tribal compacts, since school districts are political subdivisions of the state.
- HB 59 compact agreement does not restrict Tribes and Districts from entering into shared services agreements for transportation, food service, special education, extracurricular activities, or facilities.
- Examples of programs that can be included in a state-tribal education compact agreement: PK–12 instruction, language immersion, CTE, land‑based learning, behavioral health supports, attendance programs, family engagement, etc.