Educating Navajo Students at Chemawa Indian Boarding School, 1946-1957

THE NAVAJO SPECIAL PROGRAM IN THE PACIFIC NORTHWEST: EDUCATING NAVAJO STUDENTS AT CHEMAWA INDIAN BOARDING SCHOOL, 1946-1957 By RACHAEL RENEE JOHNSON A thesis submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of MASTER OF ARTS IN HISTORY WASHINGTON STATE UNIVERSITY Department of History August 2010 To the Faculty of Washington State University: The members of the committee appointed to examine the thesis of RACHAEL RENEE JOHNSON find it satisfactory and recommend that it be accepted. ________________________________ Orlan J. Svingen, Ph.D., Chair ________________________________ Robert McCoy, Ph.D. ________________________________ Jennifer Thigpen, Ph.D. ii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS I would like to thank many people for their guidance and continuous support throughout the process of completing my thesis. First, I want to express my gratitude to the chair of my committee, Dr. Orlan Svingen who worked tirelessly to help perfect my thesis. His extensive knowledge of American Indian history was invaluable to the foundation to my argument and his work with American Indian policy added another dimension to the relevance of my research. I consider it a badge of honor to say that I have survived a thesis under the direction of Dr. Svingen. Next, I wish to recognize the other members of my committee, Dr. Rob McCoy and Dr. Jennifer Thigpen who worked diligently to assist my research. Dr. McCoy’s knowledge of American Indian history, specifically with the Navajo stock reduction program, was particularly beneficial to my argument. His insights contributed to the completion of this work. Dr. Jenny Thigpen was always encouraging, whether it was during a meeting or just quick words of wisdom while passing each other in the hall. Her unwavering support bolstered my spirits in the darkest hours. She pushed me to develop a deeper analysis of my sources, ultimately creating a stronger thesis. There were several other scholars that helped me throughout my academic career that need mentioning. Dr. John W.W. Mann, my former mentor, played an important part in helping me complete this project. Without his early faith in my ability and pushing me to achieve a higher level in my education, I would not have been at Washington State University. Patty McNamee at the National Archives and Records Administration at the Pacific and Alaska Regional Branch in Seattle, Washington deserve special mention. When I travelled to Seattle on iii a research trip her knowledge of Record Group 75, specifically BIA education files on the Chemawa Indian School and the Navajo Special Program, were instrumental in discovering the sources for my project. Her assistance in navigating through the overwhelming RG 75 files was the reason my research trip was a success. Early in my time at WSU, Dr. Svingen advised me to contact Dr. Cary Collins as a resource about the history of American Indian education. Dr. Collins received his Ph.D. from WSU and wrote his dissertation about the early school administrators of the Chemawa Indian School. He was the first to suggest that I investigate the presence of the NSP at Chemawa. I want to thank him for his willingness to listen to my ideas and his help in defining my argument. I especially want to acknowledge how thankful I am to my personal support network. My fellow graduate students were consistently there to listen to my frustration and fears as I endeavored to finish my most challenging academic feat to date. Finally, I would not have achieved all that I have without the unfaltering support of my family. My mother, Rita Stegall, has never let me doubt myself or my ability to meet this challenge, without her there would be no thesis to acknowledge. Lastly I wish to recognize the important role that my father’s memory continues to play in my life; I know he would be proud. iv THE NAVAJO SPECIAL PROGRAM IN THE PACIFIC NORTHWEST: EDUCATING NAVAJO STUDENTS AT THE CHEMAWA INDIAN BOARDING SCHOOL, 1946-1957 Abstract By Rachael Renee Johnson, M.A. Washington State University August 2010 Chair: Orlan J. Svingen In 1868, the Navajo tribe and United States government negotiated a treaty that, among other things, obligated the federal government to educate Navajo children. The Dawes Act of 1887 and its assimilationist policy form the background to this study, as do Indian boarding schools that had their beginnings in the 1880s. The Meriam Report of 1928, the Johnson- O’Malley Act and the Indian Reorganization Act, both passed in 1934, dramatically altered American Indian Education. World War II created a severe funding deficit for Navajo education, and the Navajo Special Program (NSP) established in 1946 aimed to mitigate the educational short falls on the Navajo Indian Reservation. Inaugurated at the Sherman Institute at Riverside, California, the NSP expanded to eleven schools throughout the nation, among which was the Chemawa Indian Boarding School in Salem, Oregon. Chemawa’s first Navajo students arrived in 1948 and by 1957 it discontinued its non- Navajo program and became an all Navajo Indian boarding school. Its polytechnic educational framework stood in contrast to the traditional academic schooling. Chemawa remained a vocationally-driven school until the 1960s when it began to accept non-Navajo students, which corresponded with the steady decrease in the Navajo student v population. Advancements in the education system on the Navajo Reservation allowed more Navajo children to attend school closer to home. In 1966 the Navajo Nation opened the Rough Rock Demonstration School in Chinle, Arizona, becoming the first Indian tribe to operate an Indian-controlled school on a reservation. The Navajo Community College opened in 1968 and solidified the Navajo Nation as a leader in Indian-controlled education. The primary documents that distinguish this work are from collections found at the National Archive and Records Administration at its Pacific and Alaska Division located Seattle, Washington. Specifically they include materials from the Chemawa School-Navajo Program, Education Administrative files; the Navajo Program Files from the Decimal Files 1924-1955; and the Chemawa-General 1950-1951, Tribal Operations General files. vi TABLE OF CONTENTS Page Acknowledgements……………………………………………………………………….iii Abstract…………………………………………………………………………………....v List of Illustrations………………………………………………………………………...viii Introduction……………………………………………………………………………......1 Chapters 1) The Historical Background to the Bureau of Indian Affairs Navajo Special Program, 1868 to 1947…………………………..…………....7 2) Chemawa Indian Boarding School: From an Assimilationist Boarding School to a Polytechnic Institution, 1885-1948…………………….38 3) Adjusting to a New Way of Life for NSP Students and Chemawa, 1948-1957………………………………………………………….72 4) Conclusion…………………………………………………………………….109 Appendices A) Bi-Lingual Curriculum Par One, For Adult Navaho Beginners……………...120 B) Specific Goals of the Navajo Special Program……………………………….146 C) Guidelines for Classgroup Work……………………………………………...166 D) Principles and Features of the Navajo Special Program……………………....169 Bibliography……………………………………………………………………………….174 vii LIST OF ILLUSTRATION 1) Figure 1: A typical classroom for the Navajo Special Program………………………. 28 2) Figure 2: Example of NSP bank at the Phoenix Indian School……………………….. 31 3) Figure 3: Main Entrance of Chemawa Indian School, circa 1933……………………...42 4) Figure 4: Navajo students loading bus for off-reservation schools…………………….76 5) Figure 5: Fifth year Navajo Students outside of Chemawa…………………………….103 viii 1 Introduction In the span of a few decades, the Navajo tribe transformed itself from a tribe lacking in educational opportunities to one that was a leader in tribally controlled education. The tribe’s journey was complex and it reflected a change in federal Indian education philosophy and, on a larger scale, federal Indian policy. Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) educational leaders stepped forward to help revive the struggling educational system found on the reservation, but their solution was not easily accepted by Navajo parents. At the end of WWII, most federal Indian boarding schools began closing in favor of local public schools or reservation day schools. In contrast to this trend, Navajo parents began sending their children to numerous boarding schools across the west to participate in a newly developed system of education. The Navajo Special Program (NSP) began in 1946, and it marked a new approach to education undertaken by the BIA. Navajo children represented a unique challenge to the BIA education division. Most of the children in need of education were between the ages 12-to-18- years-old, well past the standard age of enrollment, and many could not speak English. The NSP became a case study of how to create a bi-lingual system of education to support an accelerated course of study. The appearance of the NSP and its impact on the Navajo tribe and the boarding schools it was implemented in, raise a number of questions. What sparked the establishment of the Navajo Special Program? What was its impact on the Navajo children who attended NSP schools such as Chemawa Indian Boarding School in Salem, Oregon, and how did Chemawa change in response? Finally, what lasting changes occurred because of the NSP at Chemawa and within the Navajo tribe? 2 The Navajo Indians entered into a contractual relationship with the federal government on June 1, 1868, when they signed the Navajo Treaty. With the ratification of this treaty the traditional homeland of the Navajo tribe was severely reduced, and in return, the treaty guaranteed certain provisions as compensation for the tribe. One of these provisions dealt with integration of non-Indian education onto the reservation. There was a gradual increase in educational opportunities on the Navajo reservation by the turn of the twentieth century, but by 1908, only 10 percent of Navajo youths were enrolled in school. Enrollment numbers for reservation day schools did not increase over the next several decades as parents chose to keep their children at home. The outbreak of WWII and the high rates of enlistment of Navajo men changed how the tribe viewed education.

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