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  2. American Indian and Alaska Native (AI/AN) Youth
  3. Workforce Development/Employment

Workforce Development/Employment

Native Americans have a higher poverty and unemployment rate, compared with the national average.1 In 2007, 12 percent of AI/ANs aged 16 and older were unemployed, a rate much higher than other population groups in the U.S.2 More than one in three AI/AN children live in poverty.3

The U.S. Department of Labor administers the Division of Indian and Native American Programs to maximize the federal commitment to support the growth and development of Native American people and communities as determined by representatives of these communities. The funding from the Workforce Investment Act, reauthorized in 2014 as the Workforce and Innovation Opportunity Act, improves the academic, occupational, and literacy skills of Indian, Alaska Native, and Hawaiian adults and youth, making them more competitive in the workforce.4

The Indian and Native American Supplemental Youth Services Program (PDF, 1 page) provides summer and year-round employment and training activities for AI/AN youth between the ages of 14 and 21. Program resources are targeted to at-risk youth who face substantial barriers to education and employment success, including youth who have dropped out of high school and youth who lack basic skills.5

Resources

Division of Indian and Native American Programs
This website has been designed primarily to provide general information and assistance to Workforce Investment Act (WIA) Section 166 Indian and Native American (INA) grantees and others interested in economic self-sufficiency through employment and job training for Native Americans.

Indian and Native American Summer Youth Employment Initiatives and the 2009 Recovery Act (PDF, 66 pages)
This report describes funding granted to Indian and Native American (INA) youth from the 2009 American Recovery and Reinvestment Act and how funds were used to serve INA youth.

The Center for Native American Youth at the Aspen Institute
This website provides an in-depth list of resources around fellowships and internships for youth.

The National Congress of American Indians
The National Congress of American Indians provides several channels to support Native youth, including internships and fellowships, the NCAI Youth Commission, the National Native Youth Cabinet, and NDN Spark.

References

1 One-in-four Native Americans and Alaska Natives are living in poverty; whereas the national poverty rate is 16 percent; United States Census Bureau, 2014
2 U.S. Census Bureau, 2008
3 2014 Native Youth Report, 2014
4 U.S. Department of Labor, 2014
5 U.S. Department of Labor, 2013

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