Back to School 2022
By Assistant Chief Jack Austin Jr.
August 1, 2022
Time has truly flown by. It’s time to start back-to-school shopping for clothes and school supplies. And in fact, if you live in Oklahoma, Texas or Arkansas, you can take advantage of the tax-free days, August 5-7, 2022.
Another thing that I love about this time of the year is how committed the Choctaw Nation is to education for tribal members, regardless of where they are on their educational journey.
The Partnership of Summer School Education (POSSE) program is geared towards students in pre-K through second grade. Its main goal is to close the gap by reteaching content that students have previously failed in a culturally enriched, safe and positive atmosphere. The program expanded to include fourth grade in the Summer Learning Program. I’m proud to share that students showed a 3.8% improvement in reading skills and 6.4% improvement in Math skills.
Our high school students from grades 9-12 can participate in the High School Student Services (HSSS) Program. Through the Chahta Achvffa portal, HSSS added 785 students to its services. The HSSS goal is to assist students with academic information to promote education and/or a career path beyond high school.
The Nation’s Higher Education Program (HEP), which began in 1984, is a scholarship and grant program designed to provide tuition assistance to enrolled Choctaw tribal members attending an accredited college, technical school or university. The program has had an increase of 14% in scholarship applications over the past five years, with 11,767 total scholarships funded for January 1 – December 31, 2021.
The Career Development Program, which was established in 2007, assists more than 3,500 students each year. Its goal is to enhance the lives of Choctaw tribal members by providing education and training opportunities, that lead to industry-recognized certifications or licenses and self-sustaining employment.
As the back-to-school season begins, I pray that all of our students have a fun, safe, and rewarding school year. If you have any questions about any of our services related to education, please contact 800-522-6170.
God bless.