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The Cooperative State Research, Education, and Extension Service (CSREES) unites the research, higher education, and extension education and outreach resources of USDA with land-grant institutions in each State, territory and the District of Columbia; over 130 colleges of agriculture; 59 agricultural experiment stations with over 9,500 scientists conducting research; 57 cooperative extension services with over 9,600 local extension agents working in 3,150 counties; 63 schools of forestry; 16 1890 Historically Black Land-Grant Institutions and Tuskegee University; 27 colleges of veterinary medicine; 42 schools and colleges of family and consumer sciences; 190 Hispanic-Serving Institutions and 29 designated Land-Grant Tribal Colleges.
| The 29 Land-Grant Tribal Colleges are: |
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| Bay Mills Community College (Michigan), Blackfeet Community College (Montana), Cankdeska Cikana Community College (North Dakota), Cheyenne River Community College (South Dakota), College of the Menominee Nation (Wisconsin), Crownpoint Institute of Technology (New Mexico), D-Q University (California), Dine Community College (Arizona), Dull Knife Memorial College ((Montana), Fond du Lac Community College (Minnesota), Fort Belknap College (Montana), Fort Berthold Community College (North Dakota ), Fort Peck Community College (Montana), Haskell Indian Nations University (Kansas), Institute of American Indian Arts (New Mexico), Lac Courte Oreilles Ojibwa Community College (Wisconsin), Leech Lake Tribal College (Minnesota), Little Big Horn College (Montana), Nebraska Indian Community College (Nebraska), Northwest Indian College (Washington), Oglala Lakota College (South Dakota), Salish Kootenai College (Montana), Sinte Gleska University (South Dakota), Sisseton Wahpeton Community College (South Dakota), Sitting Bull College (North Dakota), Southwest Indian Polytechnic Institute (New Mexico), Stone Child Community College (Montana), Turtle Mountain Community College (North Dakota), and United Tribes Technical College (North Dakota). |
The CSREES mission is to achieve significant and equitable improvements in domestic and global economic, environmental, and social conditions by advancing creative and integrated research, education, and extension programs in food, agricultural, and related sciences in partnership with both the public and private sectors.
CSREES has programs in Plant and Animal Systems; Natural Resources and Environment; Economic and Community Systems; Families, 4-H, and Nutrition; Partnerships; Competitive Research Grants and Awards Management; Science and Education Resources Development; and Communications, Technology, and Distance Education.
Nature and Purpose: The Extension Indian Reservation Program (EIRP) focuses on agriculture and agriculture-related youth programs. It emphasizes training and employment of local people in positions such as program aides, master gardeners, and volunteers. Local advisory committees are involved in determining programs and priorities. Projects address livestock production, alternative crops, vegetable gardening, improved diet and nutrition, and a broad spectrum of 4-H and youth activities. Although EIRP is administered by CSREES, the Indian Extension Agents are employees of, and administratively responsible to, the Cooperative Extension Service of the State where the reservation is located. The Navajo Reservation agents are administered by the University of Arizona in cooperation with Utah State University and New Mexico State University. Agents often live on the reservations, sharing daily experiences with their neighbors. Agents meet annually to discuss their successes and share program ideas and to investigate additional sources of program support.
Eligibility Requirements: The 1862 land-grant institutions in States where Indian reservations or tribal jurisdictions are located are eligible to apply for the EIRP.
Printed Information Available: Printed information includes Extension Indian Reservation Program Reservation Extension Projects FY 1997.
Authorizing Legislation: The program is authorized by Section 1677 of the Food, Agriculture, Conservation and Trade Act of 1990, Public Law 101-624, as amended, and the funding is provided under the Smith-Lever Act, Section 3(d).
Administering Agency: Cooperative State Research, Education, and Extension Service (CSREES).
Available Assistance: Agents are involved in a wide range of programs, from introducing new crops to establishing nutrition classes, school lunch programs, county fairs, and farmers markets. They provide educational programs from the State land-grant universities and from their own knowledge and experience, to help their neighbors achieve better living conditions.
Appropriations for Fiscal Year 1997: Current funding is $1.7 million per year.
Washington Contact: For further information, contact Fred Swader, EIRP Coordinator, at (202) 205-5853 or fswader@reeusda.gov.
Nature and Purpose: The Extension Services at the 1994 Institutions program provide competitive grants to address a wide range of agricultural issues, including crop and animal production, farm business management, marketing techniques, decisionmaking skills, and environmental considerations. This program can also be used to enhance community resource and economic development; family development and resource management; 4-H and youth development; leadership and volunteer development; natural resources and environment; and nutrition, diet, and health.
Eligibility Requirements: Extension programs at the 29 Land-Grant Tribal Colleges are available through a competitive application process, to be conducted through cooperative agreements with the 1862 Land-Grant University in their State. Matching funds are not required.
Authorizing Legislation: The Extension work at the 29 Land-Grant Tribal Colleges program is authorized under section 3(b)(3) of the Smith-Lever Act as added by section 534(b) of the Equity in Educational Land-Grant Status Act of 1994. (P.L. 103-382).
Administering Agency: Cooperative State Research, Education, and Extension Service (CSREES).
Available Assistance: Myriad problems can be addressed through the broad range of Extension programs authorized under the Smith-Lever Act, including the following:
Appropriations for Fiscal Year 1997: Current funding is $2 million per year.
Washington Contact: For further information, contact Joan F. Gill at (202) 720-6487 or jgill@reeusda.gov.
Nature and Purpose: The Tribal Colleges Endowment Fund distributes interest earned by an endowment established for the 29 Land-Grant Tribal Colleges to those colleges on a formula basis to enhance education in agricultural sciences and related areas for American Indians.
Eligibility Requirements: The 29 Land-Grant Tribal Colleges listed above.
Authorizing Legislation: The Tribal Colleges Endowment Fund is authorized under section 533 of the Equity in Educational Land-Grant Status Act of 1994 (P.L. 103-382).
Administering Agency: The Cooperative State Research, Education, and Extension Service (CSREES).
Available Assistance: The fund can be used to build educational capacity at the 29 Land-Grant Tribal Colleges in the areas of curriculum design and materials development, faculty development and preparation for teaching, instruction delivery systems, experiential learning, equipment and instrumentations for teaching, and student recruitment and retention.
Appropriations for Fiscal Year 1997: $4.6 million for FY 1997. This amount represents the second installment of the $23 million authorized for the Fund ($4.6 million for each fiscal year 1996 through 2000).
Washington Contact: For further information, contact Jeff Gilmore at (202) 720-1973 or jgilmore@reeusda.gov.
Nature and Purpose: The Tribal Colleges Education Equity Grants Program is designed to strengthen higher education instruction in the food and agricultural sciences at the 29 Land-Grant Tribal Colleges.
Eligibility Requirements: The 29 Land-Grant Tribal Colleges listed above.
Authorizing Legislation: The Tribal Colleges Education Equity Grants Program is authorized under section 534(a) of the Equity in Educational Land-Grant Status Act of 1994 (P.L. 103-382).
Administering Agency: Cooperative State Research, Education, and Extension Service (CSREES).
Available Assistance: Funding is distributed through a formula grants program in the areas of curricula design and materials development, faculty development and preparation for teaching, instruction delivery systems, experiential learning, equipment and instrumentations for teaching, and student recruitment and retention.
Appropriations for Fiscal Year 1997: Current funding provides $50,000 to each Land-Grant Tribal College. Total appropriation is $1,450,000.
Washington Contact: For further information, contact Jeff Gilmore at (202) 720-1973 or jgilmore@reeusda.gov. For general information contact the Cooperative State Research, Education, and Extension Service, U.S. Department of Agriculture, Washington, DC 20250- 0900. Telephone: (202) 720-3029; Fax: (202) 690-0289; Internet: csrees@reeusda.gov or World Wide Web: http://www.reeusda.gov
Local Contacts: For general information, contact your local county extension office (offices are listed under local government in the telephone directory) or a land-grant university.
Nature and Purpose: The Children, Youth, and Families at Risk Initiative provides funding, research-based educational materials, and technical support to American Indians and Alaska Natives and other underserved populations for a broad spectrum of prevention-oriented education programs that strengthen individuals and families with children, prenatal to late teens. The goal of this national initiative is to empower the whole family to enable those at risk to develop necessary life skills and become strong, productive adults.
Eligibility Requirements: State and Territory Cooperative Extension Services for community- based projects.
Printed Information Available: Fact sheet entitled, “Children, Youth, and Families at Risk National Initiative.”
Authorizing Legislation: National initiatives are a special-focus commitment made by CSREES and the Cooperative Extension System to address significant and complex issues. Funding is provided under section 3(d) of the Smith-Lever Act.
Administering Agency: Cooperative State Research, Education, and Extension Service (CSREES).
Available Assistance: Competitive grants to fund research-based strategic planning for local programs; volunteer training and recruitment; Internet communication networks; community organizational collaborations; and the expanded resources of the nationwide land-grant university system.
Appropriations for Fiscal Year 1997: $9.554 million.
Washington Contact: Sharon Wright, CSREES, telephone (202) 720-5075, swright@reeusda.gov
The Agricultural Research Service is the main in-house research arm of the U.S. Department of Agriculture and one of the four agencies that make up the Research, Education, and Economics mission area of USDA.
The Agricultural Research Service is committed to providing access to agricultural information and developing new knowledge and technology needed to solve technical agricultural problems of broad scope and high national priority. This is done to ensure adequate availability of high-quality, safe food, and other agricultural products to meet the nutritional needs of all consumers, including American Indians and Alaska Natives; to sustain a viable and competitive food and agricultural economy; and to maintain a high-quality environment and natural resource base.
ARS research targets specific problems threatening the Nation’s food and fiber supplies, contributes to rural revitalization and increases knowledge of human nutrition. ARS research also lays the foundation for future commercial development beneficial to all consumers.
The Agricultural Research Service operates research facilities strategically located in major farm and rangeland ecosystems throughout the United States. This enables ARS to bring research expertise to bear on agricultural production and utilization problems of national scope from many different geographic vantages.
As the primary resource for agricultural information in the United States, the National Agricultural Library (NAL) is committed to making important information broadly available to research scientists and administrators, educators, agricultural practitioners, and consumers. This mission is accomplished through various means including national networks of information resources involving the land-grant institutions.
NAL has the most extensive collection of agricultural information in the Nation and produces a representative database, AGRICOLA, of its holdings. Reference services, including services from a number of specialized information centers at NAL, are also provided, as well as many publications of the various units of the Library which accelerate access to information. For example, NAL’s Food and Nutrition Information Center (FNIC) helps users to locate information on food and nutrition topics, including nutrition education, food service, and food borne illness. Through FNIC, NAL provides expanded technical assistance and lending service to persons working in the Food Distribution Program on Indian Reservations (FDPIR), Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC), and other nutrition education programs administered by the Food and Consumer Service (FCS). FCS provides funding for these expanded services for FDPIR, WIC, and other FCS program staff.
Universal access to NAL's products and services is available through the Library's World Wide Web site at: http://nal.usda.gov. This site provides information on all the available NAL services as well as sources to contact for additional information. For example, the FNIC web site (http://www.nal.usda.gov/fnic) is available through the NAL home page and FNIC users can find nutrition information, FNIC publications, and searchable FNIC databases. Persons working with the FDPIR, WIC, and other FCS programs can also contact FNIC for help in finding answers to food and nutrition questions, literature searches, and lists of materials available for loan.
NAL provides free, direct lending of materials and photocopies of articles to staff of the FCS programs listed above. Materials, such as books and audiovisuals, may be borrowed for up to 30 days. Also, twice each year FNIC sends a packet of materials, including new FNIC publications, to State and regional nutrition education contacts of the FDPIR and WIC programs. NAL has provided a bibliography, “Native Americans: A Resource Guide 1992-97,” which appears at the end of this Guide.
Contact the National Agricultural Library, Information Desk, 10301 Baltimore Avenue, Beltsville, MD 20705-5719, (301) 504-5575. FAX (301) 504-6927. TDD/TTY (301) 504-6856. E-Mail agref@nal.usda.gov Internet: http://www.nal.usda.gov
The mission of USDA’s Economic Research Service (ERS) is to provide economic information and analysis for public and private decisions on agriculture, food, natural resources, and rural America. ERS was established in 1961 by Secretary’s Memorandum No. 1446 under the authority of the Agricultural Marketing Act of 1946 (7 U.S.C. 1621-1627).
ERS produces information and analysis for use by the general public and to help executive and legislative branches develop, administer, and evaluate agricultural and rural policies and programs. ERS publications cover a wide variety of topics, including policies that affect farmers and the population of rural America. In addition to studies on rural America as a whole, ERS has focused on American Indian and Alaska Native demography, the state of American Indian farming, and the history of American Indian contributions to American agriculture.
The mission of USDA’s National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS) is to serve the United States, its agriculture, and its rural communities by providing meaningful, accurate, and objective statistical information and services. NASS’s program of current official estimates and the Census of Agriculture is complemented by its statistical research and service program. NASS also performs important reimbursable survey work for other Federal, State, and private organizations, and provides technical assistance for agricultural statistics programs in developing countries.
NASS State Statistical Offices regularly survey thousands of operators of farms, ranches, and agribusinesses who provide information on a confidential basis. These scientifically designed surveys provide the basis for developing estimates of production, supply, price, and other aspects of the agricultural economy. Official USDA national, State, and county estimates and reports are issued relating to acreage, types, and production of farm crops; number of livestock on farms and of livestock products; stocks of agricultural commodities; value and utilization of farm products; farm labor; prices received and paid by farmers; agricultural chemical use; and other subjects as needed. State offices forward the estimates to NASS headquarters where they are combined and released at scheduled times to the media and public through the Agricultural Statistics Board. Annually, NASS publishes over 400 national reports which cover more than 120 crop and 45 livestock items, and which are complemented by additional State reports. These basic and unbiased data are necessary to maintain an orderly association between the consumption, supply, marketing, and input sectors of agriculture.
The Census of Agriculture is taken every 5 years and provides comprehensive data on the agricultural economy including: data on the number of farms, land use, production expenses, farm product values, value of land and buildings, farm size and characteristics of farm operators, market value of agricultural production sold, acreage of major crops, inventory of livestock and poultry, and farm irrigation practices. Effective October 1, 1996, the National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS) received program responsibility for the census of agriculture, previously conducted by the Department of Commerce, Bureau of the Census.
The next agricultural census will be conducted beginning in January 1998 for the calendar year 1997 and will provide national, State, and county data as well as selected data for Puerto Rico, Guam, the Virgin Islands, and the Northern Mariana Islands.
NASS has done considerable list building to increase census coverage of American Indian farmers and ranchers that operate land off reservations. Beginning with the 1997 Census of Agriculture, NASS will implement special procedures to account for American Indian farm and ranch operators on tribal lands. In addition to collecting total agricultural production information data from the reservation headquarters, NASS will also collect data on the number of individual farm operations that are on the reservation. This new count of American Indian farms will be published by State and for the U.S. in a new data table in Volume 1, Geographic Data Series, for the 1997 Census of Agriculture, to be released in the spring of 1999.
Previously, the census of agriculture included data showing only the number of American Indians operating farms and ranches located off the reservations. Each reservation was normally counted as a single-farm operation. Thus, the count of American Indian operators has traditionally been seriously understated. The new procedures for the 1997 Census of Agriculture will be the beginning of efforts to provide more complete agricultural statistics on American Indian farms and ranches so that for the 2002 Census of Agriculture, all American Indians engaged in agriculture will be fully accounted for in the census.
For more information contact the NASS Customer Service Center:
NASS-USDA
1-800-727-9540
fax: (202) 690-2090
Room 5805-South Bldg.
Washington, DC 20250
e-mail: nass@nass.usda.gov
NASS Home Page: http://www.usda.gov/nas
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