US Senator John Thune is attaching two amendments to the education bill in order to help tackle the high rate of teen suicide on South Dakota's Native American reservations.

Thune's amendments would require the Secretary of Education to coordinate with other federal agencies to report on efforts to address youth suicides and expand the use of funds to include preventative efforts against youth suicide and other school violence.

On Wednesday Senator Thune went into detail on what the amendments mean for South Dakota. 

"It also included a couple of amendments that I had attached to it when it passed through the Senate that deals with the suicide crisis we're seeing on our Indian Reservations….. to prevent teen suicide for being eligible for funding," said Senator Thune.

Schools on the Pine Ridge Reservation have received grant funds in the past, but this amendment would allow all grantees more flexibility in creating prevention programs.

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