It is responsible for the line direction and management of all BIE education functions, including the formation of policies and procedures, the supervision of all program activities, and the approval of the expenditure of funds appropriated for BIE education functions.

[1] It is one of two U.S. federal government school systems, along with the Department of Defense Education Activity (DoDEA).

[2] In the area of post-secondary education, the BIE provides support to 24 tribal colleges and universities across the U.S. serving over 25,000 students.

[3] Additionally, the BIE operates higher education scholarship programs for American Indians and Alaska Natives.

[1] Alden Woods of The Arizona Republic wrote in 2020 that the BIE is "an overlooked and often criticized agency".

[4] Circa 1990 the Hopi tribe began the process of taking BIA schools in their territory into tribal control.

[7] The federal government funds schools for Native Americans under the treaties it established for reservations and trust lands.

In the early years, the government authorized religious missions to establish schools and churches on reservations.

At the end of the 19th and early 20th centuries, Congress authorized the government to establish numerous Indian boarding schools for a more concerted program of assimilation of Native American children.

[10] By the beginning of the 21st century, education expenses of the BIE represented 35% of the BIA budget.

Severns wrote that the various sources of authority made school accountability difficult.

[13] Members of some tribes have moved to cities, and many states have increased coverage of reservation and tribal lands through their public school districts.

[10] As of 2021[update] the BIE schools are located in many isolated areas with some of the lowest incomes in the United States.

Citing this statistic, that year President of the United States Richard Nixon criticized BIA schools.

[10] In 1988 a Department of Interior report blamed all levels of leadership for substandard test scores.

BIA students also score considerably below national averages on college admissions tests.

"[15] Bill Clinton, George W. Bush, and Barack Obama made attempts to improve BIE schools.

In 2015 Maggie Severns of Politico wrote that BIE students "have some of the lowest test scores and graduation rates in the country".

[26] In addition to Cove, the school has students from Mitten Rock, Oak Springs, and Red Valley.

The previous buildings scheduled for demolition had a total of 78,626 square feet (7,304.6 m2) of space.

[33] The school provides transportation for students between Baby Rocks and Mexican Water, and asks families living outside of that area and/or distant from the highway to have their children stay at the dormitory.

[39] In addition to Red Valley, it has students from Cove, Mitten Rock, and Oak Springs.

[41] Additionally, by that year it had a forked stick hogan in which it held some classes taught by Navajo senior citizens.

Alden Woods of The Arizona Republic stated "One former student described it as a refuge from a rural community struggling through generations of trauma", stating that the school provides room and board to children with no other reliable source of food and lodging.

In 1963 there were plans to build 17 additional classrooms as well as a cafeteria, two dormitories, and a multipurpose room, and housing for employees.

[64] In 2015 the Minneapolis Star-Tribune editorial board wrote that American Horse had poor insulation, had too many students relative to building capacity, has tile flooring in poor repair and using asbestos, and "lacks the electrical and communications infrastructure needed to support the technology used in modern education.

The Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) built a new school, which began operations in 1978, to replace the former facility.

Principal Arthur Ben personally recruited teachers, including some who were previously retired.

Additionally the cafeteria was at times unusable; the school took students to a restaurant so they could eat there.

In March 2022 the high school building was no longer in use due to foundation problems that resulted from frequent flooding in the area.