American Indian College Fund to Celebrate 40 Years of Tribal Colleges and Honor Choctaw...

American Indian College Fund to Celebrate 40 Years of Tribal Colleges and
Honor Choctaw Nation of Oklahoma

DALLAS, April 10 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The American Indian College Fund
(the Fund) will host a special event in Dallas, Texas to celebrate 40 years of
tribal colleges. The Fund will also honor the Choctaw Nation of Oklahoma by
repatriating $25,000 worth of historical artifacts it received from a private
donor.

Business leaders, American Indian educators, and donors are invited to gather
with the Fund on May 1, 2008 at the Nasher Sculpture Center in Dallas, Texas.
The Fund and Fund board members, Steve Denson of the Edwin L. Cox School of
Business at Southern Methodist University and Chuck Hensley of Williams
Financial Group, are co-hosting the event.

Denson said, "I'm excited both as a Chickasaw and as the diversity officer for
the Cox School to participate in this event. By cooperating with and
listening to tribal leadership, we better position ourselves as one of the top
business schools in the nation to train and educate American Indian MBAs.
Many graduates will return to their tribes to join in and create the next wave
of tribal economic development to further the interests and welfare of their
people."

"The Choctaw nation is honored to be the recipient of these valuable items
from our past. Tribal history is very important to all generations, and
having the opportunity to display these letters, telegrams, Bible and other
items in our Capitol Museum is incredibly exciting," said Chief Gregory E.
Pyle. "The Council, Choctaw People and I are very thankful that the American
Indian College Fund has ensured the return of these artifacts to the great
Choctaw nation."

The tribal college movement began in 1968 when the Navajo nation founded the
first tribal college, Dine College, in Tsaile, Arizona in 1968. "We are
delighted that our board members, Chuck Hensley and Steve Denson, have
combined their efforts with Dallas area supporters to raise awareness of the
tribal college movement and the nation's 32 tribal colleges and universities,"
said Richard B. Williams, Fund president and CEO. "Tribal colleges are
transforming Indian Country through education, and we are grateful to Dine
College. It pioneered the tribal college movement, which embodies self
determination and preservation of culture as part of education, and we would
not be here today without their leadership. As part of preserving culture and
tradition, the Fund is delighted to honor the Choctaw nation of Oklahoma by
returning historical documents and other national artifacts, which the Fund
received as a gift from one of its supporters," Williams said.

All proceeds from the event will benefit scholarships for American Indian
students.

About the American Indian College Fund
With its credo "Educating the Mind and Spirit," the Fund is the nation's
largest provider of private scholarships for American Indian students,
providing 5,000 scholarships annually for students seeking to better their
lives and communities through education. For more information about American
Indian College Fund please visit www.collegefund.org.

SOURCE American Indian College Fund

Lucia Novara of American Indian College Fund, +1-303-430-5323,
lnovara@collegefund.org