President Donald Trump released his fiscal year 2026 budget on Monday, June 2, proposing the elimination of funding for the Institute of American Indian Arts (IAIA). The IAIA board of trustees and administration reject this ill-conceived and extremely harmful proposal. In a single budget, Trump is proposing to erase nearly 63 years of progress in American Indian and Alaska Native higher education, artistic expression, and decades of congressional support for IAIA, the only institution of its kind in the world. 

Trump’s proposal calls for the complete removal of IAIA’s federal funding beginning October 1, 2025, reducing annual congressional appropriation from $13.482 million to zero. If enacted, this would mark the first time in nearly 40 years that IAIA would not receive federal support under its longstanding enabling legislation, Public Law 99-498, Title XV.

IAIA has reached out to the New Mexico congressional delegation to join in convincing the chairs and ranking members of the House and Senate Interior Appropriations subcommittees and full committees to continue the important work started by Congress in 1987 and fund IAIA at a minimum of $13.482 million in FY 2026, which would be level funding as it has been for the past three years. New Mexico’s congressional delegation is solidly supportive of IAIA and institute leaders are confident they will do everything possible to restore IAIA funding in the upcoming fiscal year.

The institute acknowledges potential future challenges, including ongoing political uncertainty and potential budgetary pressures in the coming fiscal years. With continued support from the American Indian Higher Education Consortium (AIHEC), other Indigenous organizations, and the New Mexico congressional delegation, IAIA leaders will closely monitor potential adverse impacts proposed by this administration and proactively work to protect IAIA. The IAIA board of trustees, officers, and administration have engaged in numerous meetings with the New Mexico congressional delegation and other government officials to ensure that their voices and priorities are heard.

IAIA has received tremendous support from both the private and public sectors, all of which recognize the institute’s impact on Indigenous communities and the broader fields of art and scholarship. Now more than ever, IAIA’s mission and programs have had a profound effect on educating the next generation of Indigenous artists, filmmakers, writers, scholars, museum professionals, performing artists, and leaders.

IAIA alumna heather ahtone, PhD (Choctaw and Chickasaw Nations), director of curatorial affairs at the First Americans Museum in Oklahoma City, recently reflected on her transformative experiences at IAIA.  She said that “critical skills, faith in my vision, and willingness to take risks were cultivated and rooted in my experiences at IAIA. IAIA exists because so many people believe in the value of Native creatives. It’s a place where students are encouraged to manifest their best ideas, explore their potential, and contribute meaningfully to their communities.”

IAIA is an integral part of the legacy of our ancestors, who sacrificed and signed treaties in which they relinquished precious land in exchange for access to education. This is the reason that IAIA exists.  More than 4,000 graduates have taken advantage of the educational opportunities at IAIA, resulting in increased opportunities to share our cultures, histories, and stories through the arts, filmmaking, creative writing, performing arts, scholarship, and leadership.

IAIA remains resilient and focused on its mission to empower creativity and leadership in Indigenous arts and cultures, regardless of the political shifts occurring in Washington, DC.