State of Michigan Fully Funds Michigan Indian Tuition Waiver with $12.7 Million

Wenona Singel addressing Michigan Indian tirbal leaders at the United Tribes of Michigan on Mackinac Island. Native News Online photographs by Levi Rickert

Published October 3, 2019

MACKINAC ISLAND, Mich. — Michigan Indian tribal leaders convening on Mackinac Island received great news on Thursday during their meeting of the United Tribes of Michigan $12.7 million has been earmarked in State of Michigan’s 2019-2020 budget to fully fund the Michigan Indian Tuition Waiver (MITW) program.

Wenona Singel (Little Traverse Bay Bands of the Odawa Indians), deputy legal counsel serving in Office of the Governor, State of Michigan, announced Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer signed the budget that signed the state budget on October 1, 2019 to fund the Michigan Indian Tuition Waiver.

United Tribes of Michigan Executive Director Frank Ettawageshik.

The MITW is a program enacted by Public Act 174 of 1976, which waives the tuition costs for eligible Native Americans in public community colleges or universities within Michigan. Up until 1995, the MITW was fully funded so that public state institutions will be reimbursed by the State of Michigan for tuition for Native American students who fulfilled the requirements. In 1995, then Michigan Governor John Engler sought to eliminate the program, but the state legislature overrode the governor’s decision with inadquate funding.

Tribal leaders have fought since the mid-1990s to have the program fully funded. After her election last November, Governor Whitmer made a commitment to tribal leaders she would put the MITW in her budget. She did so when she submitted her budget in February and the state legislature kept the line item to fund MITW in the budget.

Aaron Payment, president of United Tribes of Michigan and tribal chairperson of the Sault Ste. Marie Tribe of Chippewa Indians.

“The Governor recognizes the importance of the Michigan Indian Tuition Waiver to Native students.” Singel told tribal leaders at Thursday’s meeting.

The Michigan state budget is $59 billion.

Below are MITW requirements for Native American students:

ELIGIBILITY

To be eligible for the MITW, you must meet the following criteria:

• Qualify for admission at one of Michigan’s public colleges or universities AND
• Be ¼ or more Native American blood quantum as certified by your Tribal Enrollment Department AND
• Are an enrolled citizen of a U.S. Federally Recognized Tribe as certified by your Tribal Enrollment Department AND
• Be a legal resident of the state of Michigan for not less than 12 consecutive months.

DOCUMENTATION 
You must provide the following with your MITW application.

• A photocopy of your Michigan Driver’s License or state-issued Michigan Identification Card;
• A photocopy of your Tribal ID.

PROOF OF RESIDENCY – Your MITW residency status does not determine your residency status at your institution. Your institution may require additional documentation as proof of residency or to determine your length of residency in Michigan.

TRIBAL CERTIFICATION
You must submit this application to your Tribal Enrollment Department for certification and signature.

The Tribal Enrollment Department is certifying that the you, the student, are ¼ or more Native American blood quantum and an enrolled citizen of a U.S. Federally Recognized Tribe. The Tribal Enrollment Department may submit this form and accompanying documents on your behalf to Michigan Department of Civil Rights (MDCR) for verification.

STUDENT STATUS

The statute does not limit tuition waiver eligibility based upon full/part-time status, degree track, academic performance, or similar criteria – and such information will not affect MDCR verification.