The Bureau of Indian Affairs is the U.S. goverment institution whose purpose is "to encourage and support tribal efforts to govern their own reservation communities." The General Accounting Office issued reports in the 1970's and in 1980 which suggested that the Bureau should not be administering education services to Indians. Total enrollment of Indian children in all schools has increased over the last 20 years; however, enrollment in Bureau schools has decreased to its second lowest point in history as more and more tribes contract to control their own schools. The past policy and current policy of the Bureau are discussed as well as future options involving issues of resetting funding priorities and practices, improving the quality of teaching, applying new measures for achievement, and rethinking the role of the BIA. Many educators are optimistic about the future of Indian education because the next generation will be raised by more educated parents and because they expect that Indian education will receive new attention and improvement in the next decade due to new leadership in the Bureau of Indian Affairs. 11 footnotes