Hearing focuses on ways to boost graduation rate for Indian students

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Hearing focuses on ways to boost graduation rate for Indian students
By JANE RIDER of the Missoulian

With an American Indian graduation rate just over 50 percent, what can the state's public schools do to help these students stay in school and graduate?

That was the main question posed to participants at a hearing held Saturday by members of the Montana State Tribal Affairs Legislative Committee as part of a joint study they are completing with the Office of Public Instruction on the Indian dropout rate in Montana.

Final study results will be presented to the 2005 Legislature.

The committee heard more than 2 1/2 hours of testimony from Indian educators, parents and community members. The meeting was folded into a variety of activities planned throughout the three-day 23rd Annual Indian Education Conference in Missoula at the Holiday Inn Parkside, which drew more than 300 educators, parents and students from across the state.

More at the Missoulian