Montana tribal colleges have ‘baseline funding’ after uncertainty

Tribal colleges in Montana will receive more federal dollars for the 2025 fiscal year after initial “confusion” and “uncertainty” around funding.

“We were freaking out,” said Stone Child College President Cory Sangrey-Billy.

Montana has seven tribal colleges out of the 35 in the country — the most of any state.

The schools together are estimated to receive $108 million, or roughly double last year’s allocation, said Sangrey-Billy.

“It’s quite a significant jump,” she said.

Now, budget planning is underway at Stone Child in Box Elder and other tribal colleges in Montana.

And tribal education leaders in Montana are touting the results of an economic impact study that shows the federal investment pays dividends to taxpayers.

The report, from the American Indian Higher Education Cons