BIE provides funding on the same terms to  tribally-operated schools as it does to BIE-operated schools based on the  number of students attending the schools, among other factors. BIE Students Score Consistently Below Indian Students in Public Schools on National Assessments and Have Relatively Low Graduation Rates

Students in BIE schools have performed consistently below Indian  students enrolled in public schools on national assessments administered  by the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) between  2005 and 2011. For example, in 2011, 4th grade estimated average  reading scores were 22 points lower for BIE students than for Indian  students attending public schools. Figure 1 shows the trend in the estimated average 4th grade reading and  math scores for students in BIE schools as compared to Indian students  in public schools and the national average for non-Indian students. Specifically, the graduation rate for BIE  students for the 2010-2011 school year was 61 percent—placing BIE  students in the bottom half among graduation rates for Indian students in  states where BIE schools are located. BIE Has Difficulty Complying with Various Assessment Requirements and Collaborating with Education, but is Working to Address Certain Challenges

BIE’s administrative and internal control weaknesses have resulted in  difficulty assessing the academic progress of its students and AYP for its  schools as required under ESEA. As a result of BIE’s guidance, 21 of BIE’s 42 schools in New  Mexico administered an alternative assessment that Education was  unable to use to hold schools accountable for student performance under  ESEA. Under an Interior regulation, BIE schools are  generally required to administer the same academic assessments used  by the 23 respective states where the schools are located. In addition to not obtaining Education’s approval of  the assessment, BIE made this critical decision without the appropriate  level of review by the Secretary of the Interior or his designee. BIE Did Not Inform Schools about Adequate Yearly Progress in a Timely Manner

BIE did not notify schools of their AYP status for the 2011-12 school year  before the start of the 2012-13 school year. BIE Faces Fragmented Administrative Services

Until July 2013, Indian Affairs’ DAS-M was responsible for BIE’s  administrative functions, including handling school contracting needs,  facilities, and budget issues. In addition, there is a lack of  communication between Indian Affairs’ leadership and schools. Indian Affairs’ recent realignment—approved by the cognizant  congressional committees in late May 2013—is intended to improve  efficiency in the delivery of services to Indian Affairs stakeholders,  including BIE schools. Indian Affairs officials acknowledged that the office has not established a  strategic plan with specific goals and measures for itself or for BIE or a  strategy for communicating with stakeholders. planning include: (1) aligning an organization’s human capital program  with its current and emerging mission and programmatic goals and (2)  developing long-term strategies for acquiring, developing, and retaining  staff to achieve programmatic goals. However, the  extent to which Interior is effectively meeting its responsibilities is  questionable considering students’ relatively poor academic performance  and BIE’s myriad administrative and management challenges. Also, given the significant  challenges BIE and Indian schools face in improving student academic  performance, it is critical that Interior leverage existing resources and  opportunities to improve communication. Unless BIE collaborates with partner agencies and provides  schools information that affects student instruction in a timely and  consistent manner, it will be difficult for BIE to be well-positioned to  improve student academic performance in the future. While Indian Affairs has undertaken another realignment of its  administrative functions, it is unclear to what extent, if at all, the changes  will result in improved services for BIE and schools. In addition, it has not updated its workforce plan or assessed  Indian Affairs’ realignment and its impact on BIE to ensure it has the right  people in place with the right skills to effectively meet the needs of BIE  schools. Recommendations for Executive Action

We recommend that the Secretary of the Interior direct the Assistant  Secretary-Indian Affairs to take the following five actions:
Develop and implement decision-making procedures for BIE that  specify who should be involved in the decision-making process for key  decisions that affect BIE and its schools to ensure that BIE has  effective management controls, is accountable for the use of federal  funds, and comports with federal laws and regulations. Interior concurred with all of our recommendations. In response to our recommendation that BIE develop a strategic plan,  Interior stated that it has established a committee—composed of key  Indian Affairs offices—to develop a comprehensive communication plan  for BIE.
Why GAO Did This Study

In 2012, the federal government provided over $850 million to 185 BIE schools that serve about 41,000 Indian students living on or near reservations. BIE is part of Indian Affairs within the Department of the Interior, and BIE's director is responsible for managing education functions at all BIE schools. BIE's mission is to provide quality education opportunities to Indian students.
GAO was asked to study the extent to which BIE is achieving its mission. GAO examined (1) how student performance at BIE schools compares to that of public school students; (2) what challenges, if any, BIE schools face assessing student performance; and (3) what management challenges, if any, affect BIE and its mission.
For this work, GAO reviewed agency documents and relevant federal laws and regulations; analyzed student assessment data from 2005-2011; and conducted site visits to BIE schools and nearby public schools in four states based on location, school and tribal size, and other factors.

What GAO Found

Students in Bureau of Indian Education (BIE) schools perform consistently below Indian students in public schools on national and state assessments. For example, based on estimates from a 2011 study using national assessment data, in 4th grade, BIE students on average scored 22 points lower for reading and 14 points lower for math than Indian students attending public schools. The gap in scores is even wider when the average for BIE students is compared to the national average for non-Indian students. Additionally, the high school graduation rate for BIE students in 2011 was 61 percent, placing BIE in the bottom half among graduation rates for Indian students attending public schools in states where BIE schools are located.
BIE's administrative weaknesses have resulted in it experiencing difficulty assessing the academic progress of its students and adequate yearly progress (AYP) for its schools as required by federal law. Department of the Interior (Interior) regulations generally require BIE schools to administer the same academic assessments used by the 23 respective states where the schools are located. However, in the 2011-12 school year, at the direction of BIE officials, 21 schools did not administer their state assessment. These schools administered an alternative assessment that had not been approved for assessing AYP. BIE made this critical decision without the appropriate level of review at Interior or the Department of Education (Education) because it does not have procedures specifying who should be involved in making key decisions. Further, BIE did not provide its schools their AYP status for the 2011-12 school year prior to the start of the next school year, hindering school officials' ability to develop appropriate strategies to improve student performance. Unless BIE provides schools information that affects student instruction in a timely and consistent manner, it will be difficult for BIE to be well-positioned to improve student academic performance in the future.
Fragmented administrative services and a lack of clear roles for BIE and Indian Affairs' Office of the Deputy Assistant Secretary for Management (DAS-M)--that until July 2013 was responsible for BIE's administrative functions--contributed to delays in schools acquiring needed materials, such as textbooks. In July, Indian Affairs underwent a realignment, which assigned another office in Indian Affairs the responsibility for most of BIE's administrative functions. The realignment is intended to improve efficiency in delivering services to Indian Affairs stakeholders, including BIE schools. However, it is unclear to what extent, if at all, the changes will result in improved services for BIE schools. For example, Indian Affairs had not conducted a recent analysis before implementing the realignment to determine if it has the right people in place with the right skills doing the right jobs. Such workforce planning is critical given Indian Affairs' recent realignment and employee buy-out and early-out initiatives. Similarly, Indian Affairs has not developed a strategic plan with specific goals and measures for itself or BIE, or a strategy for communicating with stakeholders. Such a strategic workforce plan and performance measures could help improve operations and align the organization's human capital program with its current and emerging mission and programmatic goals.

What GAO Recommends

Among other things, GAO recommends that Indian Affairs develop and implement decision-making procedures and a communications protocol to ensure that BIE has effective management controls and comports with federal laws and regulations. To improve BIE's management of its schools, GAO also recommends that Indian Affairs develop a strategic plan that includes goals and measures for BIE and a revised strategic workforce plan. Interior concurred with all of our recommendations.