Federal lawmakers from Kansas have introduced a bill that would shift control of Haskell away from the federal government to its board of regents.
Kansas Republican congressional representatives Sen. Jerry Moran and Rep. Tracey Mann first proposed the bill in December.
The legislation would wrest control of Haskell away from the Department of the Interior’s Bureau of Indian Education. The bill would reclassify Haskell as a federally chartered corporation that would continue to receive federal funding.
Proponents of the bill have said it would strengthen Haskell by removing it from the control of the federal government. Opponents say it is a way for the government to shirk its responsibility to support Native American education and could affect Haskell’s culture.
Read more about the Haskell community’s reaction to the legislation at this link.
The bill is in early stages, and most legislation introduced in Congress doesn’t even receive a full vote. The bill, dubbed the “Haskell Indian Nations University Improvement Act,” says the BIE has failed to fulfill the educational mission of the university.
Haskell has endured a turbulent few months.
About three dozen Haskell employees were fired in February due to action from the Trump administration gutting the federal workforce. Many of the fired employees have since been reinstated.
Nearly a year ago, allegations of misconduct at the university were aired during a congressional hearing where some congresspeople focused on Haskell’s alleged failures to respond to reports of sexual violence and decried its outdated infrastructure and technology.
And Haskell’s former president Frank Arpan announced his resignation in late May. Mackie Moore, dean of Haskell’s College of Business, has been named as interim president.
In the House, the bill was introduced by Mann and cosponsored by Kansas Rep. Derek Schmidt. In the Senate, the bill was introduced by Moran and cosponsored by Kansas Sen. Roger Marshall and Oklahoma Sen. Markwayne Mullin.
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Cuyler Dunn (he/him), staff reporter, has worked with The Lawrence Times since April 2022. He can be reached at [email protected].
Read his complete bio at this link. Read more of his work for the Times at this link.
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