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Phoenix Indian School
The Phoenix Indian School, or Phoenix Indian High School in its later years, was a Bureau of Indian Affairs-operated school in Encanto Village, in the heart of Phoenix, Arizona. It served lower grades also from 1891 to 1935, and then served as a high school thereafter. It opened in 1891 and closed in 1990 on the orders of the federal government. During its existence, it was the only non-reservation BIA school in Arizona. The Phoenix Indian School Historic District is a three-acre (1.2 ha) portion of the 160-acre (65 ha) campus that contains some of the most historic buildings and became part of the National Register of Historic Places in 2001.
After a year-long search for a school site, the Indian School opened in 1891 on 160 acres (65 ha) of land. Up until 1931, the federal "assimilation" policy that sought to regimentalize and culturally assimilate Native American students was in place.
Physical growth was the major theme in the 1890s as the school opened. Growth in students was quick to come under superintendents Wellington Rich and Harwood Hall. By 1896 there were 380 students, in comparison to just 100 at its 1891 founding. It had twelve buildings, including a "girls building" designed by prominent local architect J.M. Creighton (built 1892) and a Victorian-style hospital (built mid-1890s). However, the focus on growing the school didn't mean that the assimilation was occurring or meeting federal expectations. Some students did learn to speak English, however there were only four academic teachers by 1897.
Vocational training was instead the emphasis: boys learned business skills and girls domestic skills. To that end, officials instituted the "outing system," which was loosely modeled after the outing program Richard Henry Pratt had instituted at Carlisle Indian Industrial School; students worked at off-campus jobs to gain experience and earn money, as well as to help assimilate them. However, unlike Carlisle, the students did not live with one particular family, but were instead cheap contract labor. Due to several incidents and the abuses that would later be critical in changing the course of PIS's history, the idea of assimilation through employment quickly went out the window at PIS as it became a way for white Phoenix employers to procure cheap Native American labor.
In 1897, another new superintendent took the role at PIS, Samuel McCowan. He continued an emphasis on increasing enrollment but also realized that academics had to improve. He diversified the student body, recruiting Mojaves and Hopis from all over the southwest. The aggressive recruitment that closed the 1890s made PIS the second largest school in the federal system, with over 700 students. Overcrowding accompanied the rapid growth, and during McCowan's tenure, he built new dormitories and employee residences.
A Mission Revival style auditorium was designed in 1901 and constructed the next year. As increasing enrollment made it clear to administrators that a dining hall was needed, the design modifications to turn the auditorium into one were performed in 1903 and a kitchen was built in 1904. The Dining Hall is the oldest extant building on the PIS campus.
1902 brought another new superintendent, Charles Goodman. He inherited a stable school with 56 employees (12 of whom were teachers) and a 24-building campus surrounded by 240 acres (97 ha) of farm land. A series of major events took place in his tenure (which lasted until 1915), including a major tuberculosis outbreak, but Goodman's time as superintendent was also characterized with the first real progress in graduating students. By 1914, a total of 168 students had received diplomas from the PIS – none had done so before 1901 This was just under five percent of the student body, but it proved from a federal perspective that assimilation was finally occurring.
During this time period in PIS's history, various techniques were used to attempt better assimilation – new students were organized into military companies, given a uniform and work clothes, and marched to and from classes after starting at 5am.
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Phoenix Indian School
The Phoenix Indian School, or Phoenix Indian High School in its later years, was a Bureau of Indian Affairs-operated school in Encanto Village, in the heart of Phoenix, Arizona. It served lower grades also from 1891 to 1935, and then served as a high school thereafter. It opened in 1891 and closed in 1990 on the orders of the federal government. During its existence, it was the only non-reservation BIA school in Arizona. The Phoenix Indian School Historic District is a three-acre (1.2 ha) portion of the 160-acre (65 ha) campus that contains some of the most historic buildings and became part of the National Register of Historic Places in 2001.
After a year-long search for a school site, the Indian School opened in 1891 on 160 acres (65 ha) of land. Up until 1931, the federal "assimilation" policy that sought to regimentalize and culturally assimilate Native American students was in place.
Physical growth was the major theme in the 1890s as the school opened. Growth in students was quick to come under superintendents Wellington Rich and Harwood Hall. By 1896 there were 380 students, in comparison to just 100 at its 1891 founding. It had twelve buildings, including a "girls building" designed by prominent local architect J.M. Creighton (built 1892) and a Victorian-style hospital (built mid-1890s). However, the focus on growing the school didn't mean that the assimilation was occurring or meeting federal expectations. Some students did learn to speak English, however there were only four academic teachers by 1897.
Vocational training was instead the emphasis: boys learned business skills and girls domestic skills. To that end, officials instituted the "outing system," which was loosely modeled after the outing program Richard Henry Pratt had instituted at Carlisle Indian Industrial School; students worked at off-campus jobs to gain experience and earn money, as well as to help assimilate them. However, unlike Carlisle, the students did not live with one particular family, but were instead cheap contract labor. Due to several incidents and the abuses that would later be critical in changing the course of PIS's history, the idea of assimilation through employment quickly went out the window at PIS as it became a way for white Phoenix employers to procure cheap Native American labor.
In 1897, another new superintendent took the role at PIS, Samuel McCowan. He continued an emphasis on increasing enrollment but also realized that academics had to improve. He diversified the student body, recruiting Mojaves and Hopis from all over the southwest. The aggressive recruitment that closed the 1890s made PIS the second largest school in the federal system, with over 700 students. Overcrowding accompanied the rapid growth, and during McCowan's tenure, he built new dormitories and employee residences.
A Mission Revival style auditorium was designed in 1901 and constructed the next year. As increasing enrollment made it clear to administrators that a dining hall was needed, the design modifications to turn the auditorium into one were performed in 1903 and a kitchen was built in 1904. The Dining Hall is the oldest extant building on the PIS campus.
1902 brought another new superintendent, Charles Goodman. He inherited a stable school with 56 employees (12 of whom were teachers) and a 24-building campus surrounded by 240 acres (97 ha) of farm land. A series of major events took place in his tenure (which lasted until 1915), including a major tuberculosis outbreak, but Goodman's time as superintendent was also characterized with the first real progress in graduating students. By 1914, a total of 168 students had received diplomas from the PIS – none had done so before 1901 This was just under five percent of the student body, but it proved from a federal perspective that assimilation was finally occurring.
During this time period in PIS's history, various techniques were used to attempt better assimilation – new students were organized into military companies, given a uniform and work clothes, and marched to and from classes after starting at 5am.