Schools Need More Assistance to Provide Distance Learning (GAO-21-492T)

Summary

GAO testimony, GAO-21-492T, before the Senate Committee on Indian Affairs on April 28, 2021, the statement of Melissa Emrey-Arras, Director, Education, Workforce, and Income Security, on Indian education. It notes that the Bureau of Indian Education (BIE) serves approximately 41,000 students at 183 schools it funds on or near Indian reservations in 23 states. GAO states that BIE, within the Department of the Interior, has not provided BIE-funded schools with comprehensive guidance on distance learning during the COVID-19 pandemic. In March 2020 BIE issued a short memo directing schools to deliver flexible instruction and teach content. Its title states that schools need more assistance.

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United States Government Accountability Office
Testimony
Before the Committee on Indian Affairs,
U.S. Senate

INDIAN EDUCATION
For Release on Delivery
Expected at 2:30 p.m. ET
Wednesday, April 28, 2021

Schools Need More
Assistance to Provide
Distance Learning
Statement of Melissa Emrey-Arras, Director
Education, Workforce, and Income Security

GAO-21-492T
April 2021

INDIAN EDUCATION
Schools Need More Assistance to Provide Distance
Learning
Highlights of GAO-21-492T, a testimony
before the Committee on Indian Affairs, U.S.
Senate

Why GAO Did This Study What GAO Found
BIE’s mission is to provide quality The Bureau of Indian Education (BIE), within the Department of the Interior
education to approximately 41,000 (Interior), has not provided BIE-funded schools with comprehensive guidance on
students at 183 schools it funds on or distance learning during the COVID-19 pandemic. In March 2020, BIE issued a
near Indian reservations in 23 states. short memo directing schools to “deliver flexible instruction” and “teach content,”
About two-thirds of these schools are but did not offer specific guidance on how to do so. In July 2020, 13 of the 25
operated by tribes and the remaining schools that responded to GAO’s survey said they wanted BIE to provide
third are operated by BIE. In March information on developing and implementing distance learning programs. In
2020, all BIE schools closed their addition, 12 schools responded that they wanted information on distance learning
buildings in response to the COVID-19
methods for areas without broadband internet access. In August 2020, after
pandemic. GAO reviewed distance
some schools had already begun the school year, BIE issued a re-opening guide
learning at BIE schools as part of its
oversight responsibilities under the
for the 2020-2021 school year. BIE’s guidance focused primarily on preparations
CARES Act. for in-person instruction at schools, although nearly all schools provided distance
learning during the fall of 2020. The guidance contained little information on
This testimony examines the extent to distance learning. Providing schools with comprehensive distance learning
which (1) BIE has provided schools guidance will help them better navigate the current pandemic as well as potential
with guidance to develop and future emergencies that lead to school building closures.
implement distance learning programs
during the COVID-19 pandemic, and BIE helped improve internet access for students at BIE-operated schools during
(2) students have had the technology the pandemic, but many students had not received laptops to access online
they need to participate in such learning by the end of fall 2020. BIE and other Interior offices provided over
programs. GAO analyzed the guidance 7,000 hotspots to students to improve home internet access, but they did not
BIE provided to schools on distance order laptops for most students until September 2020. Interior officials said a
learning, examined BIE’s provision of nationwide IT supply shortage contributed to the delayed order for about 10,000
technology to schools and students, laptops. GAO found, however, that delays were also caused in part by BIE not
surveyed a non-generalizable sample having complete and accurate information on schools’ IT needs. Most schools
of 30 schools—including 19 operated received laptops from late October 2020 to early January 2021, although some
by tribes and 11 operated by BIE— laptops still had not been delivered as of late March 2021. Once laptops were
with 25 schools responding, selected delivered, however, schools also faced challenges configuring them, leading to
for geographic diversity and level of
further delays in distributing them to students. BIE officials told GAO that to
community broadband access, among
address schools’ challenges with configuring laptops, they are assessing
other criteria, reviewed relevant federal
statutes, regulations, and agency
schools’ IT workforce needs. Most BIE students did not receive laptops until
documentation, and interviewed BIE months after the school year began, according to GAO’s analysis of Interior
and school officials. information. Specifically,

What GAO Recommends • none of the laptops Interior ordered in early September 2020 arrived in time
to distribute to students by the start of the school year in mid-September;
GAO is making two recommendations • by the end of December 2020, schools had not distributed over 80 percent of
to BIE to (1) provide comprehensive the student laptops Interior ordered; and
guidance to schools on distance • as of late March 2021, schools had not distributed about 20 percent of the
learning; and (2) establish policies and student laptops Interior ordered.
procedures to ensure it has complete,
accurate, and up-to-date information Without accurate, complete, and up-to-date information on schools’ IT needs,
on schools’ technology needs. BIE was unable to ensure that students received laptops when they needed
them. Establishing policies and procedures for assessing schools’ IT needs
would help guide the agency’s IT purchases now and in the future, and position
View GAO-21-492T. For more information,
schools to integrate technology into their everyday curricula.
contact Melissa Emrey-Arras (617) 788-0534
or emreyarrasm@gao.gov.

United States Government Accountability Office
Letter Letter

Chair Schatz, Vice Chair Murkowski, and Members of the Committee:

Thank you for the opportunity today to discuss our review of distance
learning at Bureau of Indian Education (BIE) schools. BIE’s mission is to
provide quality education to approximately 41,000 students at 183
schools it funds on or near Indian reservations in 23 states. 1 About two-
thirds of these schools are operated by tribes and the remaining third are
operated by BIE. In March 2020, all BIE schools closed their buildings in
response to the COVID-19 pandemic. Since that time, concerns have
been raised that many BIE schools have struggled to develop and deliver
distance learning programs and that schools and surrounding
communities often lack the technology and broadband internet access
needed to ensure continued learning during extended school building
closures. Many BIE school communities are located in remote, rural areas
of the country where broadband internet access has historically been
limited.

My statement today is based on work we conducted as part of GAO’s
COVID-19 monitoring and oversight responsibilities under the
Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act. 2
Specifically, we examined the extent to which (1) BIE has provided
schools with guidance to develop and implement distance learning
programs during the COVID-19 pandemic, and (2) students have had the
technology they need to participate in such programs.

To examine the extent to which BIE has provided schools with guidance
to develop and implement distance learning programs during the COVID-
19 pandemic, we analyzed agency guidance documents and interviewed
agency officials about support for distance learning at schools. We
compared the information we collected with BIE’s goals and requirements
to support schools’ instructional programs, including its communication
plan and relevant federal internal control standards.

1For the purposes of this statement, we consider bureau-funded elementary, middle, and
high schools that are located at the same site as single schools. In our prior work, we
reported such co-located schools separately.
2Pub. L. No. 116-136, § 19010, 134 Stat. 281, 579-81 (2020). We regularly issue
government-wide reports on the federal response to COVID-19. For the latest report, see
GAO, COVID-19: Sustained Federal Action Is Crucial as Pandemic Enters Its Second
Year, GAO-21-387 (Washington, D.C.: Mar. 31, 2021). Our next government-wide report
will be issued in July 2021 and will be available on GAO’s website at
https://www.gao.gov/coronavirus.

Page 1 GAO-21-492T
To examine the extent to which BIE students have had the technology
they need to participate in distance learning programs, we analyzed BIE’s
national information on schools’ distance learning programs and provision
of information technology (IT) to schools and students, including
information on student and teacher IT devices—such as laptops and
tablets—that were purchased and delivered to schools. We interviewed
agency officials about how they gathered this information and what
procedures they followed to ensure its accuracy and completeness and
determined that it was reliable for the purposes of our work. We also
examined the roles and responsibilities of other offices under the
Assistant Secretary-Indian Affairs (Indian Affairs), including the Office of
Information Management Technology and the Division of Acquisitions, in
supporting BIE schools in providing distance learning by purchasing and
distributing IT equipment and devices to schools. We compared the
information we collected with BIE’s goals and requirements to support
schools’ instructional programs, including its strategic plan and relevant
federal internal control standards.

For both research objectives, we surveyed a non-generalizable sample of
30 BIE schools that were selected for geographic diversity, level of
community broadband access, whether the school was operated by BIE
or a tribe, and the school’s tribal affiliation, among others. The sample
included 19 schools operated by tribes and 11 operated by BIE. The
survey covered several areas related to distance learning, including
distance learning methods and readiness for the 2020-2021 school year,
challenges to providing distance learning to students, and BIE’s guidance
on distance learning, among other areas. We conducted the survey in
July 2020 and received responses from 25 schools. The responses
provided illustrative information about schools’ distance learning practices
and areas in which additional support from BIE was needed. We also
interviewed officials from 10 of the surveyed schools in fall 2020 about
their distance learning practices and the extent to which BIE provided
guidance and technology needed to develop and implement distance
learning programs. We selected school officials to interview based on
whether or not the school was operated by BIE or a tribe, level of
community broadband access, school enrollment size, and school tribal
affiliation, among other criteria. We also reviewed relevant federal
statutes and regulations, and met with several organizations focused on
Indian education.

We shared our findings and recommendations with BIE and incorporated
their comments as appropriate.

Page 2 GAO-21-492T
We conducted this performance audit from May 2020 to April 2021 in
accordance with generally accepted government auditing standards.
Those standards require that we plan and perform the audit to obtain
sufficient, appropriate evidence to provide a reasonable basis for our
findings and conclusions based on our audit objectives. We believe that
the evidence obtained provides a reasonable basis for our findings and
conclusions based on our audit objectives.

Background
Funding to Support Annual funding from the Department of the Interior’s (Interior) Indian
Distance Learning School Equalization Program and various programs under the
Department of Education provide BIE with support for acquiring and
Services at BIE Schools
upgrading educational technology for schools and students, including
equipment to expand broadband internet access for students, according
to agency officials. 3 In addition to these annual funds, BIE also received
more than $220 million under the CARES Act. 4 BIE used about 69
percent of these funds to support tribally controlled and bureau-operated
schools’ response to the pandemic (see fig. 1).

3The Indian School Equalization Program provides for the uniform direct funding of BIE
schools. 25 C.F.R. Part 39.
4The CARES Act appropriated $69 million to BIE to prevent, prepare for, and respond to
coronavirus. Pub. L. No. 116-136, 134 Stat. at 547. BIE also received an allocation of
$154 million for programs operated or funded by BIE from funds appropriated to the
Department of Education for the Education Stabilization Fund. Id., § 18001(a)(2), 134 Stat.
at 564. Subsequently, additional funds were appropriated that BIE may use to respond to
the COVID-19 pandemic, including more than $400 million allocated for programs
operated or funded by BIE from funds appropriated in the Consolidated Appropriations
Act, 2021 to the Department of Education for the Education Stabilization Fund, and more
than $850 million appropriated to BIE in the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021. See Pub.
L. No. 116-260, Div. M, tit. III, § 311(a)(2), 134 Stat. 1182, 1924; Pub. L. No. 117-2, §
11005, 135 Stat. 4, 244. Reviewing BIE’s use of these additional funds was outside the
scope of our work.

Page 3 GAO-21-492T
Figure 1: Bureau of Indian Education’s Allocation of Funds Provided by the CARES
Act

Notes:
This figure combines funding from two CARES Act appropriations: an appropriation of $69 million to
Bureau of Indian Education (BIE) to prevent, prepare for, and respond to coronavirus, and an
allocation of about $154 million for programs operated or funded by BIE from funds appropriated to
the Department of Education for the Education Stabilization Fund.
BIE officials stated that the bureau’s CARES Act reserve funds were used to support its
administrative and emergency response functions during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Indian Affairs Offices Several offices under Interior’s Assistant Secretary-Indian Affairs (Indian
Responsible for Affairs) are responsible for supporting distance learning at BIE schools
(see fig. 2). 5
Supporting Distance
Learning at BIE Schools

5The information we present on Indian Affairs offices that support schools with education
technology and distance learning services was gathered from Interior’s public documents,
and interviews with or written responses from agency officials.

Page 4 GAO-21-492T
Figure 2: Indian Affairs Offices that Support Schools with Education Technology and Distance Learning Services

Bureau of Indian Education BIE is responsible for ensuring that all schools have guidance and
support to implement their academic programs, including school
programs that provide students with distance learning opportunities
during school closures. In addition, it has an obligation to ensure that
schools continue to provide education to students when school buildings
are closed due to the COVID-19 pandemic, according to agency
documentation. The following offices have specific responsibilities for
supporting distance learning, including educational technology.

• BIE’s Deputy Bureau Director-School Operations Division and Chief
Academic Officer are both responsible for working together to provide
BIE personnel with guidance and direction on supporting educational
technology and distance learning at schools. These officials are also

Page 5 GAO-21-492T
responsible for coordinating with managers in the two offices under
the Deputy Assistant Secretary-Management to assess and address
BIE schools’ IT needs.
• Staff in 16 agency field offices, called Education Resource Centers
and located across the BIE school system, work in close collaboration
with their respective Associate Deputy Directors and the Chief
Academic Officer on distance education and school IT matters.
Education Resource Center staff are responsible for working directly
with schools to identify IT and distance education needs.
The Deputy Assistant • The Office of Information Management Technology (OIMT) is
Secretary-Management responsible for supporting IT across Indian Affairs, including BIE.
OIMT includes staff responsible for assisting BIE-operated schools
with their technology needs, including providing technical assistance
with configuring and operating electronic devices for students and
teachers to support distance learning.
• The Division of Acquisitions, under the Chief Financial Officer, is
responsible for handling major procurements—including technology—
for BIE and other offices under Indian Affairs. 6

Longstanding Challenges Many BIE schools are located in communities on tribal lands that have
to Technology Access on faced longstanding challenges with technology, including access to
broadband internet. For example, the Federal Communications
Tribal Lands
Commission (FCC) reported that as of 2018, an estimated 28 percent of
Americans living on tribal lands lacked access to broadband services,
compared to 6 percent of all Americans. 7 Similarly, there is a gap in
broadband access between rural areas and rural tribal lands. FCC
reported that as of 2018, about 47 percent of Americans living on rural
tribal lands nationwide lack fixed broadband and mobile access,
compared to about 23 percent of rural Americans overall. 8 However, as

6For the purposes of this statement, we refer to the Division of Acquisitions as
Acquisitions.
72020 Broadband Deployment Report, 2020 WL 2013309 at *34 para. 94, FCC 20-50. For
purposes of its report, FCC aggregated federally-recognized tribal lands into four
categories: The Lower 48 States, Tribal Statistical Areas, Alaskan Villages, and Hawaiian
Homelands. For additional information on the availability of broadband on tribal lands, see
GAO, Telecommunications: FCC Should Enhance Performance Goals and Measures for
Its Program to Support Broadband Service in High-Cost Areas, GAO-21-24 (Washington,
D.C.: Oct. 1, 2020).
82020 Broadband Deployment Report, 2020 WL 2013309 at *19 para. 47, FCC 20-50. For
more information, see GAO-21-24.

Page 6 GAO-21-492T
we have told this Committee, the manner in which FCC collected data for
these estimates led to overstatements of fixed broadband availability on
tribal lands. 9

Other federal data provide an expanded picture of the technology
challenges faced by BIE school communities. For example, recent data
from the U.S. Census’s American Community Survey show that many BIE
schools are located in areas of the country where the rates of broadband
internet subscription have historically been limited (see fig. 3).

9FCC has noted that overstatements of broadband availability can be particularly
problematic in rural areas, where census blocks cover larger areas. For more information,
see GAO, Tribal Broadband: FCC’s Data Overstate Access, and Tribes Face Barriers
Accessing Funding, GAO-19-134T (Washington, D.C.: Oct. 3, 2018).

Page 7 GAO-21-492T
Figure 3: Locations of Bureau of Indian Education Schools and Broadband Subscription Rates of Local Communities (U.S.
Census’s American Community Survey, 2015 – 2019)

Page 8 GAO-21-492T
In nearly half of all BIE school communities for which ACS data were
available, less than 50 percent of households had access to broadband
prior to the COVID-19 pandemic.

American Community Survey data also show access to technology
overall has been especially limited on certain American Indian
reservations. 10 For example, an estimated 70 percent of households on
the Navajo Nation Reservation lacked access to the internet and 51
percent did not have a computer, compared to the national averages of
14 and 10 percent, respectively (see fig. 4). Over a third of all BIE schools
are located in Navajo Nation.

Figure 4: American Indian Reservations with Limited Access to Technology (U.S. Census’s American Community Survey,
2015 – 2019)

Note: GAO analysis included American Indian reservations with populations of 1,000 or more and
household rates of no access to a computer and internet above the average for all reservations.

10The American Community Survey defines federal American Indian reservations as areas
that have been set aside by the United States for the use of tribes, the exterior boundaries
of which are more particularly defined in final tribal treaties, agreements, executive orders,
federal statutes, secretarial orders, or judicial determination.

Page 9 GAO-21-492T
As we have recently reported, those without broadband access are
especially disadvantaged during COVID-19 because efforts to limit the
spread of the disease have resulted in many care systems, government
entities, businesses, educational institutions, restaurants, and other
merchants transitioning some or all operations online. 11

Federal Efforts to Increase In recent years, the federal government has undertaken a variety of
Broadband Internet efforts to address limited access to broadband on tribal lands, including at
BIE schools.
Access on Tribal Lands
• BIE has participated in FCC’s E-rate program 12, providing BIE with
additional funding to increase internet bandwidth at schools. 13 In
addition, Indian Affairs’ Office of Indian Energy and Economic
Development began partnering with the National Telecommunications
and Information Administration on its National Broadband Availability
Map Program in August 2020 to analyze and map broadband
availability on tribal lands, including BIE school communities,
according to information from agency officials. 14
• In January 2021, Indian Affairs released its National Tribal Broadband
Strategy, developed in collaboration with the White House Council on
Native American Affairs, to guide federal government and private
sector coordination to expand broadband internet access on tribal

11GAO-21-24.

12Since 1998, FCC’s E-rate program has been a significant source of technology funding
for schools and libraries to obtain affordable broadband and telecommunications services.
E-rate program funds can be used for internet access, internal connections, managed
internal broadband services, basic maintenance of internal connections,
telecommunications, and telecommunications services. Internal connections are
products—such as routers, switches, hubs, and wiring—needed to bring broadband into,
and provide it throughout, schools and libraries. For more information, see GAO,
Telecommunications: FCC Should Take Action to Better Manage Persistent Fraud Risks
in the Schools and Libraries Program, GAO-20-606 (Washington, D.C.: Sept. 16, 2020).
13BIE officials responded to us that expanding broadband services at BIE schools would
not, by itself, be sufficient to provide online learning for all of its students because the
same broadband barriers exist for teachers, students, and parents at their homes. The
officials also noted that increasing the availability of home internet services alone also
would not address the challenge of families in BIE school communities being able to afford
such home broadband service.
14The National Broadband Availability Map, administered by the National
Telecommunications and Information Administration, is a platform for sharing information
compiled from federal, state, and commercially available data sources to better inform
broadband projects and decision-making.

Page 10 GAO-21-492T
lands. Among the activities identified in the strategy, Indian Affairs
plans to conduct an assessment of barriers to broadband access in
communities on tribal lands and increase funding for grants to support
tribal broadband planning efforts, according to information from
agency officials.
• FCC has prioritized tribal lands in administering its Rural Digital
Opportunity Fund by targeting tribal areas lacking access to high
speed internet service. FCC also established a tribal priority window
for tribes in rural areas to obtain unassigned 2.5 GHz spectrum
licenses prior to the spectrum being put up for competitive bidding.
This spectrum is suitable for both mobile and fixed point-to-point
coverage, and is currently used to provide broadband service by
legacy educational licensees and commercial providers that lease the
spectrum. 15
• The American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 appropriated more than $7
billion for the establishment of an Emergency Connectivity Fund, for
which FCC has the responsibility for distributing funding to eligible
schools or libraries. 16 This fund will support distance learning during
the COVID-19 pandemic by helping schools and libraries purchase
Wi-Fi hotspots, routers, and connected devices necessary for
students to get online. Schools funded by BIE would be eligible for
support through the Emergency Connectivity Fund.

Prior GAO Work on BIE Our prior work on Indian education found numerous weaknesses in BIE’s
Schools management and oversight of BIE schools, including problems with
monitoring school spending and conducting annual safety and health
inspections of school facilities. 17 As a result of these and other systemic
problems with BIE’s administration of Indian education programs, we
added Indian education to our High Risk List in February 2017. In our
2021 High Risk update, we found that BIE had made some progress in
addressing weaknesses in some areas of supporting and overseeing BIE
schools but needed to take actions in other areas, such as developing a
comprehensive, long-term capital asset plan to inform its allocation of

15Federal Communications Commission, 2.5 GHz Rural Tribal Window, accessed Mar. 22,
2021, https://www.fcc.gov/25-ghz-rural-tribal-window.
16Pub. L. No. 117-2, tit. III, subt. D, § 7402(c), 135 Stat. 4,109.

17GAO, Indian Affairs: Bureau of Indian Education Needs to Improve Oversight of School
Spending, GAO-15-121 (Washington, D.C.: Nov. 13, 2014); GAO, Indian Affairs: Key
Actions Needed to Ensure Safety and Health at Indian School Facilities, GAO-16-313
(Washington, D.C.: Mar. 10, 2016).

Page 11 GAO-21-492T
school facility construction funds. 18 We also added seven
recommendations on Indian education from a May 2020 report to our
2021 High Risk update. These recommendations address weaknesses in
BIE’s support for and oversight of special education services at schools. 19

BIE Provided Schools
with Some Support
but Limited Guidance
for Distance Learning
BIE Gave Some Support In March 2020, all schools funded by BIE closed their buildings in
to Schools Providing response to the COVID-19 pandemic, and BIE directed them to continue
to provide learning opportunities. These closures affected approximately
Distance Learning
41,000 students enrolled at 183 schools on or near Indian reservations in
23 states. Many schools provided learning opportunities while their school
buildings were closed. For example, officials from 23 of the 25 schools
that responded to our July 2020 survey reported that their school
provided distance learning online or through paper instructional packets. 20

Eighteen of the 25 school officials who completed our survey reported
they had received some support from BIE, including from field office staff,
related to distance learning during spring 2020. For example, an official
from one school said BIE provided a presentation on online instruction
and equity. A senior BIE official told us that in the spring BIE provided
schools with links to free distance learning resources that covered topics
such as behavioral health, math, reading, science, and social studies. In
addition, some links were to online materials on curricula and support for
distance learning provided by the Public Broadcasting Service and the
National Science Institute. BIE officials said its field office staff shared
18GAO, High Risk Series: Dedicated Leadership Needed to Address Limited Progress in
Most High-Risk Areas, GAO-21-119SP (Washington, D.C.: Mar. 2, 2021).
19GAO, Indian Education: Actions Needed to Ensure Students with Disabilities Receive
Special Education Services, GAO-20-358 (Washington, D.C.: May 22, 2020).
20Our survey results are not generalizable to the entire population of BIE schools. Some
officials we interviewed told us the school delivered and picked up paper instructional
packets from students’ homes on a regular basis. Of the two schools that responded in the
negative, an official from one school said the school sent packets home to students but
did not require them to be returned, and did not consider that to be distance learning. The
remaining school responded that it did not provide distance learning.

Page 12 GAO-21-492T
additional information with schools, such as a webinar on complying with
the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act while in a distance learning
environment. 21 Field office staff also provided individualized support as
needed to schools, according to BIE officials.

To prepare for the 2020-2021 school year, when most schools provided
distance learning, BIE officials reported providing support materials and
training on a rolling basis to schools. BIE officials said that the materials
and training included topics such as blended learning practices, best
practices on mobile devices, teaching with tablets, and digital learning
strategies. Training continued throughout the school year. Different field
offices provided different trainings to schools in their jurisdiction.

However, school officials we surveyed and interviewed said BIE’s
distance learning support was insufficient. For example, one school
official responding to our survey reported that BIE’s support on virtual
tools was “severely lacking.” Another respondent reported that school
officials felt they had to determine on their own how to deliver distance
learning to students. In addition, officials we interviewed from five schools
noted the limited nature of the support intended to help schools prepare
for the 2020-2021 school year. For example, officials from one school
said that while BIE provided a presentation on academic assessments,
the presentation did not explain how to administer the tests. Another
official said the field office offered to provide help when asked, but
provided no specific assistance.

BIE Did Not Release
Comprehensive Distance
Learning Guidance,
Although Most Schools
Provided Distance
Learning During the
Pandemic
Guidance in Spring 2020 In March 2020, BIE issued a short guidance memorandum regarding the
provision of distance learning that included one page of guidelines and
guiding principles. The memorandum directed schools to, for example,

21The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act ensures a free appropriate public
education to eligible children with disabilities and governs how states and public agencies
provide early intervention, special education, and related services to these children.

Page 13 GAO-21-492T
“deliver flexible instruction” and to “teach content,” but did not offer
specific information on how to accomplish those objectives. A senior BIE
official said BIE provided no additional distance learning guidance to
schools in the spring, despite all school buildings closing in March.

Guide for 2020-2021 School BIE’s guide for the 2020-2021 school year—”Return to Learn!”—was
Year released in late August 2020 and included little information related to
distance learning. BIE created the document primarily as an in-person
schooling instruction guide. At the start of the 2020-2021 school year,
however, most BIE schools exclusively provided distance learning,
according to BIE information. For example, of the 54 BIE-operated
schools, 53 opened the 2020-2021 school year exclusively providing
distance learning and the remaining school used a combination of
distance and in-person learning. Of the 129 tribally controlled schools,
100 started the school year exclusively providing distance learning, and
16 used a combination of distance and in-person learning.

The Return to Learn! guide’s distance learning section mainly describes
how schools can temporarily pivot to distance learning from in-person
instruction. The 76-page guide devotes about seven pages to distance
learning. Some relevant topics included are eligibility for distance
learning, grading principles, and providing services to students with
disabilities. Half of the seven pages discuss the roles and responsibilities
of teachers and administrators within BIE and the schools.

Some school officials who responded to our July survey said they wanted
information that was not included in the guide. 22 For example, 13 of the
25 responding school officials indicated they wanted information from BIE
on how to develop and implement a distance learning program that
addresses students’ learning needs. This information is not provided in
the guide. Additionally, 12 of 25 respondents to our survey reported they
wanted information on distance learning delivery methods for areas
without broadband. BIE’s guide provides half a page of information on
what schools should provide for students who are unable to access the
internet. The section lists what a school should include in a plan for
students without internet access—ensuring students have access to
instructional materials, for example. However, it does not describe how
schools can or should practically provide these items to students.

22Respondents completed the survey prior to the release of BIE’s Return to Learn! guide
and therefore their responses relate to what they wanted to see in the guidance, rather
than what the document actually included.

Page 14 GAO-21-492T
The distance learning section in the guide states that schools would
receive a “technology package with a toolkit” at an unspecified later date,
but some school officials we interviewed were unaware of the toolkit.
According to the Return to Learn! guide, the toolkit would support
distance learning efforts with information on future technology
procurements, instructions on connectivity and device installations, and
user support. A senior BIE official said the toolkit can be found on BIE’s
website. However, the technology toolkit posted to BIE’s Return to Learn!
website consists solely of user agreements for students and parents who
receive school-issued equipment. We asked nine school officials whether
they had received a toolkit from BIE. None had received it and some said
they were unaware of its existence.

BIE issued its reopening guide on August 21, 2020, and some school
officials said the release was too late to greatly influence their fall
planning. Seven of the 10 school officials we interviewed in fall 2020 said
they thought BIE’s late summer release limited the guide’s usefulness, as
they had already started their planning for the academic year. For
example, while one official said she reviewed the guide to ensure the
school would be compliant, the school’s plans were largely complete by
the time BIE released it. Additionally, 42 tribally controlled schools began
their school year prior to the release of Return to Learn!, and all BIE-
operated schools began the year less than one month later, on
September 16, 2020. A senior BIE official explained that BIE needed to
hold tribal consultations before it could finalize and release the guide.
Those consultations occurred on July 9 and 10, 2020. BIE also had to
gather formal comments after these consultations. These comments were
gathered under an expedited 15-day period, rather than the typical 30-day
period.

Officials we spoke with from six schools said that in the absence of BIE
guidance on distance learning, they used guidance created by other state
educational agencies. For example, officials from two schools said they
used Arizona’s guidance, which included many topics on distance
learning, including distributing technology, meeting the needs of special
education students, delivering meals to students, and providing
professional learning for staff.

BIE has not provided comprehensive guidance to all BIE schools on
distance learning, although there are clear current and potential future
needs. BIE’s communication plan states that it is important to regularly
inform schools and key stakeholders of critical developments and key

Page 15 GAO-21-492T
information that impacts instruction. 23 In addition, federal standards for
internal control state that management should identify, analyze, and
respond to risks related to achieving defined objectives and externally
communicate the necessary quality information to achieve those
objectives. 24 By providing schools with comprehensive guidance in this
area, BIE would better position them to develop and implement distance
learning programs both during the current pandemic and in the event of
future school building closures.

BIE Helped Improve
Students’ Internet
Access, but Many Did
not Have Laptops at
the Start of the 2020-
2021 School Year
BIE Helped Improve BIE helped improve both community and at-home internet access for
Students’ Internet Access, students for the 2020-2021 school year. Many BIE students live in areas
of the country where internet access has been historically low, and BIE
Especially in Remote,
officials said in April 2020 that distance learning had been challenging for
Rural Communities BIE schools to provide during the pandemic because of limited
connectivity on tribal lands. Officials from 13 of the 25 schools that
responded to our July survey—including officials from seven of the 10
BIE-operated schools—reported that fewer than 50 percent of students
had access to broadband internet at home. 25 To help address these
issues, BIE and Indian Affairs Division of Acquisitions (Acquisitions) used
CARES Act and other funds to purchase and distribute over 7,000 Wi-Fi
hotspots to students enrolled at BIE-operated schools during the
pandemic. With these hotspots, students could access the internet in their
homes for education-related purposes. Additionally, BIE reported

23U.S. Department of the Interior, Bureau of Indian Education Communications Plan
(Washington, D.C.: Sept. 2015).
24GAO, Standards for Internal Control in the Federal Government, GAO-14-704G
(Washington, D.C.: Sept. 2014).
25BIE officials stated that the agency does not have the authority to compel students or
families to provide information on home access to broadband. As such, the information
may in some cases serve as estimates of student internet access.

Page 16 GAO-21-492T
completing a pilot program in 2020 to install Wi-Fi on 25 school buses,
and BIE officials said schools parked these buses in remote tribal housing
communities to serve as hubs for internet access for students and
families. 26 BIE also provided CARES Act funds to tribally controlled
schools, which allowed some schools to improve Wi-Fi access for
students (see text box).

Tribally Controlled Schools Used CARES Act Funds to Improve Wi-Fi Access for
Students
Officials at some tribally controlled schools funded by the Bureau of
Indian Education (BIE) said they used CARES Act funds distributed
by BIE to increase home internet access for students by purchasing
Wi-Fi hotspots. For example, an official at one school said that about
90 percent of students were able to consistently access online
distance learning, up from 25-49 percent of students before CARES
Act funding became available. Similarly, an official at another tribally controlled school
reported increasing home Wi-Fi access for students from 50-74 percent over the summer
to over 95 percent by fall 2020 due to CARES Act funding.
Source: GAO analysis of statements from BIE school officials. | GAO-21-492T

Most Students Did Not Most students at BIE-operated schools lacked devices to access online
Have Laptops to Begin the distance learning until months after the 2020-2021 school year began
because BIE and Acquisitions did not provide these students school-
2020-2021 School Year,
issued laptops in a timely manner. In April 2020, BIE officials said that
Partly Because BIE Did many students were unable to participate in online distance learning
Not Have Complete and during the spring because they did not have computers or laptops at
Accurate Information on home. Additionally, when we surveyed BIE schools over the summer,
Schools’ IT Needs officials from eight of the 10 BIE-operated schools that responded stated
that students lacked devices to participate in online distance learning.

BIE began collecting information on school IT needs as schools closed in
the spring. In June 2020, BIE officials said that the agency planned to use
the majority of its CARES Act funding to purchase IT equipment, and in
July, Interior’s Office of the Inspector General issued a report stating that
BIE planned to use its CARES Act funds to target immediate hardware
and software needs to facilitate student access to online learning

26In July 2020, a senior BIE official testified before Congress that the agency hopes to
equip more buses beyond the initial 25 in order to improve Wi-Fi accessibility for more
students and tribal communities. Preparing to Head Back to Class: Addressing How to
Safely Reopen Bureau of Indian Education Schools, Hearing Before the S. Comm. On
Indian Affairs, 116th Cong. 4 (2020) statement of Tony L. Dearman, Director, Bureau of
Indian Education.

Page 17 GAO-21-492T
resources. 27 A senior BIE official also testified before Congress in July
2020 and stated that the agency was working collectively with its schools
to maximize purchasing power to ensure schools have the IT equipment
necessary to help their students achieve academically during the
pandemic. 28

BIE and Acquisitions, however, faced delays with the order for the
laptops. Acquisitions did not order the majority of laptops for BIE-operated
schools until September 2020. In September, Acquisitions ordered nearly
10,000 laptops for students at BIE schools, according to Interior
information. 29 BIE officials said that some schools submitted orders for
laptops over the summer but were told the orders would take over 6
months to fill due to nationwide IT shortages. As a result, BIE and
Acquisitions officials decided to order laptops for schools in bulk to
achieve cost savings and ensure all schools were purchasing approved
computers. Officials from Acquisitions said they negotiated with the
vendor to order a laptop model that could be delivered in a quicker
timeframe. In total, Acquisitions used about $13.5 million of CARES Act
funding to order laptops for students at BIE schools in September 2020.
Specifically, Acquisitions placed orders for about 8,600 laptops for
students at 46 BIE-operated schools on September 3 and 4, and about
1,000 additional laptops for BIE-operated schools during the rest of the
month. 30

BIE also experienced delays with delivery of the laptops. At the time BIE-
operated schools reopened on September 16, none of the laptops
ordered in early September had been delivered to schools, according to
Interior information. In contrast, Acquisitions ordered laptops for two
schools during spring 2020, each of which received laptops before the
school year began. 31 While most of the laptops ordered in September
were delivered to schools in late October or November, none were

27U.S. Department of the Interior, Office of Inspector General, CARES Act Flash Report:
Bureau of Indian Education Snapshot, No. 2020-FIN-050 (Washington, D.C.: July 2020).
28Hearing, supra note 26, at 4, statement of Tony L. Dearman, Director, Bureau of Indian
Education.
29For the purposes of this report, we use the word “order” to indicate a purchase order to a
vendor.
30Acquisitions, along with BIE schools, also purchased over 1,600 laptops for teachers at
BIE-operated schools, according to Interior information.
31According to Interior information, Acquisitions ordered 500 laptops during the spring for
the two BIE-operated schools.

Page 18 GAO-21-492T
delivered to schools until more than a month after the school year began,
and some deliveries were delayed until January 2021 (see fig. 5). As of
the end of March 2021, one school still had not received 100 laptops from
the vendor, according to Interior information.

Figure 5: Timeline of Delivery of Laptops to Schools Operated by the Bureau of Indian Education (BIE) during 2020-2021

Notes:
As of March 2021, 100 of the 10,157 laptops Interior ordered had not yet been delivered to a BIE-
operated school, according to Interior information.
In instances where Interior provided a range of dates for a school’s receipt of laptops, GAO reports
delivery using the end date of the range because it indicates when all of the school’s laptops were
received.

In addition, schools faced delays distributing laptops to students. By the
end of December 2020—more than 3 months after the school year
began—over 80 percent of the laptops ordered in September had not
been distributed to students, according to Interior information. 32 As of
March 26, 2021—the date of the most recent information Interior

32In instances where Interior provided a range of dates for a school’s distribution of laptops
to students, we report distribution using the end date of the range because it indicates
when all of the school’s laptops were distributed.

Page 19 GAO-21-492T
provided—nearly 20 percent of the laptops ordered in September had not
yet been distributed to students (see fig. 6).

Figure 6: Timeline of Distribution of Laptops to Students at Schools Operated by
the Bureau of Indian Education during 2020-2021

Notes:
Schools reported tagging and placing in reserve over 1,200 laptops, in addition to the laptops they
reported tagging and distributing to students, according to Interior information.
In instances where Interior provided a range of dates for a school’s distribution of laptops to students,
GAO reports distribution using the end date of the range because it indicates when all of the school’s
laptops were distributed.

In addition to delays stemming from nationwide IT shortages, two other
factors primarily delayed the order, delivery, and distribution of laptops to
students: incomplete information on schools’ IT needs and insufficient IT
expertise and capacity at some schools.

• Incomplete information on schools’ IT needs: BIE officials said
that while the agency had been collecting information on schools’ IT
needs since early 2020, it did not have complete information to place
the bulk laptop order prior to September. Although Interior officials
stated that a contractor had conducted an IT inventory of BIE-

Page 20 GAO-21-492T
operated schools in February 2020, this inventory was not provided to
BIE until March 2021. Even if this inventory had been provided earlier,
Interior officials noted that it would have been of limited use in
assessing schools’ IT needs for distance learning because the
information was gathered before the pandemic. Interior officials stated
that one of the lessons learned was the necessity for accurate and up-
to-date information on school IT needs to guide technology
purchases.
Without accurate, complete, and up-to-date information on schools’ IT
needs, BIE and Acquisitions were unable to identify discrepancies
between enrollment counts and the number of laptops needed when
in July 2020 BIE-operated schools submitted spending plans for
CARES Act funds that included requests for laptops. Officials from
Acquisitions said that some schools provided incomplete or
inconsistent information that required further review. For example,
some schools requested fewer laptops than their number of enrolled
students, which led to confusion and delays in the ordering process as
officials from Acquisitions and BIE worked to reconcile the
information.

Having up-to-date information on BIE schools’ IT needs is essential
for schools’ readiness to deliver distance learning and requires
policies and procedures to gather information from schools and verify
its completeness and accuracy. However, BIE lacks such policies and
procedures and as a result was unable to place the laptop order in a
timely fashion. Federal internal control standards state that agencies
should collect reliable and quality information in a timely manner to
inform decision-making. 33 Furthermore, BIE’s strategic plan states
that BIE will work collaboratively with schools to continuously improve
the quality of education by prioritizing needs and making data-driven
decisions, among other factors. 34 Establishing policies and
procedures to gather information on schools’ IT needs and verify its
completeness and accuracy would help BIE ensure it has the
information it needs to guide IT purchases now and in the future.

• Insufficient IT expertise and capacity: BIE officials said that a lack
of IT expertise and staff capacity at schools contributed to delays in
distributing laptops to students. Once laptops reached schools, school

33GAO-14-704G.

34U.S. Department of the Interior, Bureau of Indian Education Strategic Direction 2018-
2023, (Washington, D.C.: Aug. 2018).

Page 21 GAO-21-492T
officials tagged, configured, and distributed the laptops to students.
However, BIE officials said students at some schools received laptops
later than they otherwise would have because schools did not have
personnel with the IT expertise needed to tag and configure the
laptops. Officials said that the laptop tagging and configuration
process was time-consuming and, in some cases, confusing for staff
who lack IT training. BIE officials stated in March 2021 that OIMT had
contracted for an IT workforce assessment and was developing a
workforce plan to support the IT needs of BIE in all its major IT
functions. 35
The delayed order, delivery, and distribution of laptops to some students
put them at risk of falling behind their peers. An official at one BIE-
operated school said that the school lost 15 percent of its students
because, unlike local public schools, it was unable to provide online
distance learning to students in the fall. 36 Additionally, thousands of
students in BIE-operated schools participated in distance learning
programs without online learning during fall 2020 because they had not
received a laptop or other device to access the internet, and some
schools relied primarily on providing packets to students, according to BIE
information. As of March 2021, 25 BIE-operated schools were still
providing instructional packets to approximately 1,400 students, some of
whom have continuing connectivity issues, according to Interior officials.

BIE officials said that as Interior plans to purchase laptops and other
devices for students and teachers on an ongoing basis, BIE will continue
to need accurate and up-to-date information on schools’ IT needs. For
example, in addition to the laptops ordered in September, Acquisitions,
along with some BIE schools, purchased over 1,300 iPads for students
and over 1,600 laptops for teachers between February and September
2020, according to Interior information. Further, BIE officials said BIE
plans to provide students with laptops and other devices even if schools
are not operating in a distance learning environment because schools will
begin to integrate technology into their everyday curricula. As IT devices
become damaged or obsolete and school enrollment numbers change,
officials will need up-to-date information on schools’ IT needs. Having

35BIE officials stated that as of March 2021, OIMT had not yet completed the
documentation regarding this assessment and workforce plan, so we were unable to
review this documentation during the course of our audit work.
36This school official stated that in many cases these students withdrew from the BIE-
operated school and enrolled at a local public school.

Page 22 GAO-21-492T
policies and procedures to collect and verify this information will be
essential to guide these IT purchases.

BIE has an obligation to ensure schools continue to provide education to
Conclusions students when school buildings are closed due to the COVID-19
pandemic, according to agency documentation. To that end, the CARES
Act provided BIE with more than $220 million and subsequent legislation
provided significantly more funds to help BIE and its schools respond to
the pandemic. BIE took some steps to support schools’ online distance
learning programs and used CARES Act funds to buy laptops and invest
in IT infrastructure so that students can participate in these programs
online from their homes or in their communities. However, BIE’s limited
guidance on distance learning for schools and the lack of policies and
procedures for assessing schools’ technology needs have impeded the
agency’s ability to ensure that schools can provide online distance
learning when their buildings are closed to students. Addressing these
areas would better position BIE to ensure that schools have the
information they need to deliver distance learning programs and students
have the technology to participate in those programs now and in the
future.

We are making the following two recommendations to BIE:
Recommendations for
Executive Action The Director of BIE should provide comprehensive guidance to schools
on distance learning to ensure they have the information to create and
maintain effective distance learning programs during extended school
building closures. (Recommendation 1)

The Director of BIE should work with Indian Affairs’ Office of Information
Management Technology to develop and implement written policies and
procedures for collecting timely information on BIE-operated schools’
technology needs. (Recommendation 2)

Chair Schatz, Vice Chair Murkowski, and Members of the Committee, this
completes my prepared statement. I would be pleased to respond to any
questions that you may have at this time.

If you or your staff have any questions about this testimony, please
GAO Contact contact Melissa Emrey-Arras, Director, Education, Workforce, and
and Staff Income Security, at (617) 788-0534 or emreyarrasm@gao.gov. Contact
points for our Offices of Congressional Relations and Public Affairs may
Acknowledgments be found on the last page of this statement.

Page 23 GAO-21-492T
GAO staff who made key contributions to this testimony are Elizabeth
Sirois (Assistant Director), Edward Bodine (Analyst-in-Charge), Kelsey
Kreider, Jon Muchin, and Alexander Shura. Also contributing to this
testimony were James Bennett, Ted Burik, Gina Hoover, John Mingus,
James Rebbe, Anjali Tekchandani, Kathleen van Gelder, and John Yee.

(104342)
Page 24 GAO-21-492T
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