Morgan Gray (Chickasaw Nation) serves as the Senior Research & Policy Analyst at the American Indian Policy Institute, where she leads AIPI’s policy and research agenda. As an attorney and former Tribal government employee, she is deeply committed to advancing research on emerging issues at the intersection of law and policy that impact Tribal communities.
This brief follows up on the recent AIPI Policy Explainer: Federal Trust Responsibility and Higher Education, which clarified the status of programs supporting American Indian students in higher education in response to recent legal and policy developments by explaining that Federal relationships with Tribal Nations and their citizens/members are based on political distinctions rather than racial classifications.
This explainer clarifies the status of programs supporting American Indian students in higher education in response to recent legal and policy developments. Federal relationships with Tribal Nations and their citizens/members are based on political distinctions rather than racial classifications. The framework outlined in this document reflects the federal government’s unique relationship with and obligations to Tribal Nations.
Legal Framework
Kennedy Satterfield (Choctaw Nation) is a strategic communicator, digital strategist, and policy advocate whose work sits at the intersection of technology, communications, and Indigenous self-determination. She currently serves as the Communication and Digital Strategy Specialist at the American Indian Policy Institute (AIPI) at Arizona State University, where she leads digital initiatives that amplify Indigenous voices, support tribal leaders, and advance understanding of digital sovereignty, broadband access, and emerging technologies in Indian Country.