VOA慢速英语: 奥巴马宣布提高美国印第安人的教育

Obama Announces Initiative to Lift Up Young Native Americans

奥巴马宣布提高美国印第安人的教育

This is the VOA Learning English Education Report.

这里是美国之音慢速英语的经济报道。

Getting a good education and good jobs have long been issues for Native Americans, many of whom live in poverty.

长期以来，接受良好的教育，找到一份不错的工作是很多印第安人面临的问题，他们很多人生活贫困。

Now president Barack Obama has announced a plan to better prepare young American Indians for colleges and careers. The announcement came as part of the recent White House Tribal Nations Conference in Washington.

奥巴马总统宣布一项方案，让年轻的印第安人能够为上大学和找工作做准备。这项议案是最近在华盛顿白宫召开的部落会议的一部分。

In June, Mr. Obama and his wife Michelle visited the Standing Rock Indian Reservation in North Dakota. The new plan is called the Generation Indigenous initiative.

六月，奥巴马和他的妻子米歇尔去参观访问北达科他州的岩印第安保留区，这项新方案叫做Generation Indigenous的倡议。

It calls for the Department of the Interior to provide $1.2 million to help six more tribes establish school systems run by the tribes. It also increases programs for teaching science, technology, engineering and mathematics, and efforts to keep native languages from dying out.

方案呼吁内政部提供120万美元来帮助六个部落来确立由他们部落运行的学校体系。同时还要增加教授科学、技术、工程和数学的项目，此外还要努力保留他们的本土语言，免于消亡。

More than 30 percent of Americans have graduated from college. At the same time, only about 10 percent of American Indians are college graduates.

大概有30%多的美国人从大学毕业，然而，大学毕业的土著印第安人却只有10%。

Louis Walking Elk, however, is studying for a master degree in environmental science at Sitting Bull College in North Dakota. He wants to use the degree to help people who live on his reservation. He is one of the first in his family to go to college.

Louis Walking Elk在北达科他州的希亭布尔学院修读环境科学硕士学位。他想利用需所学的知识帮之他们那个保留地的居民。他是家族中最先上大学中的一个。

"My dad especially. He didn't finish high school and he was always like, 'you have to do something,'" said Walking Elk.

Walking Elk说：“我爸爸很特别，他没有上完高中，不过‘你得学点什么’。”

SittingBull College is one of more than 30 tribal colleges in the United States. About 300 students are completing their higher education at the school.

希亭布尔学院是美国30多个部落学院中的一个，大概有300名学生在这个学院完成高等教育。

The federal government provides support for the program. Sitting Bull College president Laurel Vermillion says the goal of making sure students finish their college studies is all important to her.

联邦政府为对个项目给予支持。希亭布尔学院的院长劳拉尔·维尔米琳说，确保学生能够完成大学课程是非常重要的目标。

"A huge majority are first generation students, college students, who don't have a lot of experience. They don't have parents who can tell them or talk about college. And so when they leave the reservation and go onto these big, mainstream campuses, they are lost," said Vermillion.

维尔密林说：“绝大部分大学生是第一代土著居民学生，他们没有很多的经验，没有家长能够告诉他们在大学会做些什么或者说什么。因此，当他们离开保留地，加入到这个大校园中，他们就迷茫了。

Ms. Vermillion says many young Native Americans, especially men, are looking for direction and a sense of purpose. Today, 30 percent of students are male, and 70 percent are female.

维尔米琳说很多年轻的土著居民，特别是男生，在寻找方向和一种目标。现今，大学生中30%是男生，70%是女生。

SittingBull Collegeis trying to appeal to more men by offering a technical program. Classes include welding and oil drilling.

希亭布尔学院通过提供一些技术项目来试图吸引更多的男生。这些课程包括焊接和石油勘探。

Scott Davis leads the North Dakota Indian Affairs Commission. He also works to gain more male college students. He helps tribal colleges to get millions of dollars to start programs that develop young men for the workforce.

斯格特·戴维斯是北达科他州印第安事务委员会主席。他致力于增加更多男大学生的努力。他帮助部落学院取得数百万美元的项目资金，用来培养年轻人成为劳动力。

Mr. Davis calls tribal colleges a shining beacon on reservations, giving hope to young Native Americans of a life of possibilities, and an escape from poverty.

戴维斯称这种部落学院是这些保留地的灯塔，给土著印第安年轻人带来生活希望——摆脱贫困的希望。

And that's the VOA Learning English Education Report for today. I'm Jeri Watson.

这里是美国之音慢速英语的教育报道，我是杰瑞·瓦特森。