U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan will visit Pablo, Montana, Saturday where he will deliver a commencement address and participate in a youth basketball camp.
At 10 a.m., the secretary will join local youth for a basketball camp at Two Eagle River School hosted by Nike's N7 Fund. The N7 Fund is committed to creating early positive experiences in sports and physical activity for Native American and aboriginal youth in North America.
Duncan played varsity basketball while attending Harvard University and later professional basketball in Australia.
At noon, Duncan will deliver the commencement address at Salish Kootenai College, a tribal institution primarily serving American Indian students both locally and from across the country. About three-fourths of Salish Kootenai's students are Native American. The graduation exercises will take place in the Joe McDonald Health and Fitness Center on the Salish Kootenai campus.
Tribal colleges and universities like Salish Kootenai play a vital role in Indian Country because they help maintain, preserve and restore Native languages, history and culture, and provide a high-quality education for tribal families and communities. Duncan has visited Indian Country several times and wanted to visit again to celebrate the successes of Native students at Salish Kootenai.