The U.S. is betting on Native American youth to help save its forests, one wildfire season at a time

A new path from school to wildfire careers

The Department of the Interior announced a new program on Feb. 3, 2026, that puts tribal students on a direct track to wildland firefighting careers.

The Native Youth Firefighter Training Program pairs the Bureau of Indian Affairs and the Bureau of Indian Education to give high school and college students hands-on instruction, mentorship, and technical training.

The goal is to prepare them for seasonal and permanent jobs with tribal, federal, and state fire programs.

Six schools across four states join up

The program currently runs at six schools. Three are in South Dakota: Pine Ridge School, Cheyenne Eagle Butte School, and St. Francis Indian School.

Two Eagle River School in Pablo, Mont. is also part of the group, along with Northwest High School in New Mexico and Sequoyah High School in Oklahoma.

Officials are studying a possible expansion to Southwestern Indian Polytechnic Institute, a federally funded tribal college in Albuquerque, N.M., but that has not been confirmed.

Virtual tools connect classrooms to real careers

The program blends school-based support with remote instruction from BIA fire training staff. Students use the Wildland Fire Learning Portal and other web-based tools, while BIE schools handle daily oversight.

Assistant Secretary for Indian Affairs Billy Kirkland said the program links tribal schools with high-demand public service careers.

Secretary of the Interior Doug Burgum said it invests in Native youth and builds a skilled workforce for the future.

Tribal firefighters have served for over a century

Tribal communities have played a central role in wildland firefighting for a long time. The BIA created its Division of Forestry in 1910, just five years after the U.S. Forest Service was launched.

Today, the BIA’s Division of Wildland Fire Management oversees fire programs across about 69 million acres of Indian Country.

In December 2025, the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians held an eco-cultural wildland fire training in North Carolina, blending traditional knowledge with modern firefighting methods.

BIA fire programs cover millions of acres

The scale of BIA fire operations is significant. In 2024, BIA and tribal fire programs had about 2,915 firefighters and support staff, including 935 on-call firefighters and 924 tribally hired firefighters.

That year, about 3,830 wildfires started on or near BIA-protected lands, burning roughly 316,000 acres. The BIA sponsors seven Interagency Hotshot Crews, four managed by tribes and three by the BIA itself.

Fire operations are headquartered at the National Interagency Fire Center in Boise, Idaho.

Congress made firefighter pay raises permanent

In March 2025, Congress passed, and President Trump signed a law that made pay reform permanent for federal and tribal wildland firefighters.

The legislation set new salary levels for firefighters at all levels, including seasonal and temporary workers. It also created Incident Response Premium Pay for extended deployments to qualifying wildfire incidents.

Before the law passed, pay increases had been funded through temporary supplements for four years. The change means these jobs now offer competitive wages and retirement benefits.

Interior launched a new Wildland Fire Service

The Interior Department took another major step in January 2026 when it officially launched the U.S. Wildland Fire Service.

The new service brings together fire programs from the BIA, Bureau of Land Management, Fish and Wildlife Service, National Park Service, and other Interior offices.

Brian Fennessy, former chief of the San Diego Fire-Rescue Department, now leads the effort.

The U.S. Forest Service, which manages more than two-thirds of federal firefighting resources, is not currently part of the new service.

Wildfires keep growing in size and cost

The threat driving all of this is getting worse. In 2024, about 64,900 wildfires burned nearly 8.9 million acres across the United States, according to the National Interagency Fire Center.

Tribal trust lands face particular risks because these areas carry deep spiritual, cultural, and economic importance for tribal communities.

The Interior Department said the new training program is part of its broader push to strengthen tribal communities and build the next generation of fire professionals.

The federal fire workforce needs more people

The Interior Department employed about 5,780 federal wildland fire personnel in 2024, with roughly 900 additional tribal personnel through Interior programs.

As of that year, 75% of the department’s wildland fire personnel held permanent positions, up 22% from five years earlier.

The department has been working to shift from a seasonal workforce to one that can handle wildfire threats year-round.

Longer fire seasons and growing risks have made hiring and keeping skilled firefighters a national challenge.

Tribes can run their own fire programs

The new training program fits into a long-standing framework built on tribal self-determination. Under Public Law 93-638, tribes can operate federal wildland fire management programs on their own terms.

The BIA currently supports 34 tribal government fire management programs and 46 BIA agency fire programs across the country.

Wildfire prevention programs reach 988 communities, with 22 of the 36 programs tribally managed. The new training pathway adds a clear entry point for young tribal members who want to join those programs.

Rural tribal students get a direct shot at stable jobs

The program targets young people in rural tribal communities where stable jobs can be hard to find. Wildland firefighting offers real career depth, with 126 different position types involved in fire incidents.

Combined with the permanent pay reform, these careers now offer a reliable wage and benefits.

Whether the program grows beyond its six starting schools will depend on funding and how the first round of students progresses. No timeline for expansion has been announced.

Where the federal fire push stands now

The training program sits alongside several other federal fire efforts, including the new Wildland Fire Service, permanent pay reform, and up to $20 million in grants for local wildfire response.

Together, they reflect a broad push to modernize how the country handles wildfire.

For tribal communities, the combination of workforce training, self-determination, and better pay could help build long-term fire resilience.

The Interior Department said the program reflects its commitment to preparing the next generation of wildland fire professionals.

This article was created with AI assistance and human editing.

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