COBELL EDUCATION SCHOLARSHIP (http://www.collegefund.org/Cobell) 1. What is the Indian Education Scholarship Holding Fund? The $60 million holding fund for the Indian Education Scholarship Holding Fund was designated as part of the $3.4 billion Cobell settlement through the vision and leadership of the late Elouise Cobell, a member of the Blackfeet Nation in Montana. Mrs. Cobell initiated a class action lawsuit in 1996 on behalf of American Indians whose trust land funds had been mismanaged by the federal government on behalf of individual Indian land owners for decades. Before her passing, Cobell, the lead plaintiff in the case, said the set-aside of funds from the settlement for higher education would “mean a great deal… to the Indian youth whose dreams for a better life including the possibility of one day attending college can now be realized.” For detailed information about the settlement and the land buyback program that will fund the Cobell Scholarships, visit http://www.indiantrust.com/ 2. Who Will Administer the Cobell Education Scholarship Fund? The Cobell v. Salazar settlement agreement provides that a qualified non-profit organization would be selected to administer the Cobell Education Scholarship Fund. The American Indian College Fund (the College Fund) was named by the U.S. Department of the Interior and the plaintiffs of Cobell v. Salazar to administer the Cobell Education Scholarship Fund. In addition, the American Indian Graduate Center (AIGC) was named by the U.S. Department of the Interior and the plaintiffs of Cobell v. Salazar to distribute graduate student scholarships. Graduate student scholarships will comprise 20% of the annual awards.
3. Who Is the American Indian College Fund? The American Indian College Fund is the nation’s largest private provider of scholarships for American Indian students. Founded in 1989 and headquartered in Denver, Colorado, the College Fund has been “Educating the Mind and Spirit” of American Indian and Alaska Native people for nearly 25 years and provides an average of 6,000 scholarships annually. The College Fund also supports the nation’s 34 accredited tribal colleges and universities located on or near Indian reservations. The College Fund consistently receives top ratings from independent charity evaluators. For more information, please visit www.collegefund.org. The College Fund is not organizationally affiliated with the AIGC or any individual college or university. 4. Who Is the American Indian Graduate Center? The American Indian Graduate Center is a national, non-profit scholarship administrator located in Albuquerque, New Mexico, and operates under Director P. Sam Deloria. For