Tribal Contract Schools Eligible for Grant Funding – Key Takeaways FY26-27 Minnesota Education

What’s proposed:
Update Minnesota law so Tribal contract schools are explicitly eligible for all state education grants that school districts and charter schools can apply for.
How it’s done:
Direct the Revisor of Statutes to replace language like: “school districts and charter schools”
with
“school districts, charter schools, and Tribal contract schools”
across all legislatively created grant programs.
Cost:
No fiscal impact — this change does not add new funding, it only expands eligibility.
Why this is needed:
- Tribal contract schools are often excluded unintentionally because statutes don’t name them.
- This has already caused failed grant applications, including for programs like Native Language Revitalization grants.
- Tribal leaders and the Tribal Nations Education Committee identified this as a persistent equity issue.
What changes in practice:
- MDE can immediately consider Tribal contract school applications for competitive grants.
- Tribal schools compete on the same footing as districts and charters.
Who it affects:
- Tribal contract schools affiliated with:
  - Mille Lacs Band of Ojibwe
  - White Earth Nation
  - Leech Lake Band of Ojibwe
  - Fond du Lac Band of Lake Superior Ojibwe
Impact on students and families:
- Improves access to educational resources within Tribal communities.
- Helps close opportunity gaps without creating new bureaucracy or costs.
Bottom line:
This is a technical statutory fix that removes an exclusionary wording problem so Tribal contract schools are treated like other public schools for grant eligibility.

Elizabeth Hanke for Mankato School Board

Tribal Contract Schools Eligible for Grant Funding – Key Takeaways FY26-27 Minnesota Education

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