Great American Outdoors Act - Monthly Focus

At Wounded Knee District Schools in South Dakota, which serves students in grades K – 8, A GAOA Legacy Restoration Fund (LRF) project will replace the current deteriorating Wounded Knee campus with new academic facilities. Once completed, it will give students and staff access to high-quality education facilities, enabling Native students to succeed.

Thanks to the Great American Outdoors Act Legacy Restoration Fund (GAOA LRF), the Bureau of Indian Education is planning to modernize the current school campus and housing at Shonto Preparatory School. The GAOA LRF-funded project will replace the current Shonto campus, which consists of seven major buildings and several smaller support structures, as well as staff housing and related utility infrastructure. This investment will provide a safe learning environment for both teachers and students for many generations to come.

Last year, the Great American Outdoors Act Legacy Restoration Fund (GAOA LRF) enabled the Bureau of Indian Education to clear outdated buildings at numerous school campuses across the Navajo Nation. This GAOA LRF project demolished over 173,000 square feet of excess and aging structures at six schools in Arizona and New Mexico: Pinon Community School, Nenahnezad Boarding School, Red Rock Day School, Greyhills Academy High School, Tonalea (Red Lake) Day School, and Atsa Biyaazh Community School. Demolition projects make school campuses safer, empower students, and set them up for academic success.

Last year, the Bureau of Indian Education completed improvements at two schools in Arizona with funding from the Great American Outdoors Act Legacy Restoration Fund. This GAOA LRF project demolished over 16,700 square feet of buildings that were no longer safe or operational at Hotevilla-Bacavi Community School and Santa Rosa Ranch School. The removal of these structures improves the safety and condition of these school campuses, which will support student experience and academic performance as students finish their school year.

Thanks to the Great American Outdoors Act Legacy Restoration Fund, the Bureau of Indian Education is planning housing improvements at Wounded Knee District School in Lakota Sioux Nation. The GAOA LRF project will replace or renovate housing and related utility infrastructure. This project will provide much needed housing options for school staff, helping with staff recruitment and retention, improving safety, and reducing costs related to ongoing maintenance.

Thanks to funding from the Great American Outdoors Act, a new academic campus is under construction at Many Farms High School in Navajo Nation. It will feature improved athletic facilities that will benefit student-athletes, coaches, fans, and physical education classes.

The Great American Outdoors Act Legacy Restoration Fund continues to make important safety improvements at Bureau of Indian Education-funded schools. GAOA LRF project work recently removed more than 9,600 square feet of deteriorating buildings in New Mexico at Ohkay Owingeh Community School, Haak’U Community Academy and San Felipe Pueblo Elementary School. These structures were no longer safe or suitable for use, and their removal eliminates potential hazards while opening opportunities for future campus improvements.

Ensuring a safe and supportive learning environment is a priority for BIE. GAOA LRF investments provide necessary repairs, renovations, and replacements for aging or outdated school infrastructure. By removing excess and deteriorating buildings, this project helps create clean, functional, and accessible spaces where students and staff can focus on education.

Through GAOA LRF, BIE continues to modernize school facilities nationwide, addressing critical needs and making long-term improvements. These projects help ensure that students have access to high-quality learning environments that will support their success for future generations.

In 2025, BIE will continue investing in transformational improvements to academic facilities through the Great American Outdoors Act Legacy Restoration Fund. Later this year, work will begin on a new, modernized campus for Shonto Preparatory School. This GAOA-funded project will replace the current campus—consisting of seven major buildings and several smaller structures—with state-of-the-art facilities. It will also include upgraded athletic fields and new water distribution and sewer systems to replace infrastructure that has been in place for 60 years.

These enhancements will create a safe, accessible, and modern learning environment for students for generations to come.