PINE RIDGE INDIAN RESERVATION, S.D. — The Bush Foundation has withdrawn grant money for a project to revitalize the Lakota language on Pine Ridge.
Peter Hill lost his funding after it was discovered that his physical address is in Nebraska and not on the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation.
Bush Fellows must live in North Dakota, South Dakota, or Minnesota, or one of the 23 native nations that share the same geographic region.
Vice President of Grant-Making for the Bush Foundation, Anita Patel, says that the P.O. Box was included in the application, but the physical address is what counts.
“I know there’s lots of folks who have an impact throughout the Bush Foundation region, but the first piece of a fellowship is living within the region,” Patel said.
Because the next-round of grant applications opens in early August, Patel says the Foundation will not select another fellow, but will return the money to the foundations grant pool.
