- Details
- By Jenna Kunze
This month, we’re compiling questions that our readers are asking us about Indian Boarding Schools and offering answers as reported by our team.
Today’s reader question about Indian Boarding Schools comes from Linda B., who asked us:
Are the current-day facilities — such as St. Joseph’s Indian School in South Dakota — better or in the same category of the federally funded ones mentioned in the article?
Our reporter Jenna Kunze, who has written nearly half of our 100-plus stories about Indian Boarding Schools, provides this answer:
Currently, the federal Bureau of Indian Education funds or operates 183 schools across the United States—including four off-reservation boarding schools—though the schools do not function as they once did.
“The most important thing to understand right now is that it is not the express purpose of the United States federal government to operate the schools to forcibly assimilate kids,” Assistant Secretary for Indian Affairs Bryan Newland said last month, adding that most of the schools funded by the Bureau of Indian Affairs are operated directly by tribes. “So the difference is at the core of the school's mission, which is to empower Indian kids in their communities… and not to forcibly assimilate kids and not to take them from their families without their consent.”
St. Joseph’s Indian School, formerly known as Chamberlain Indian School, was an off-reservation boarding school funded by the federal government from 1898 to 1909. It was later sold to the Catholic Church, who still run the facility as a boarding school for Native American youth today. The school made headlines in 2016 when officials sent out disparaging fundraising letters meant to appear as though they were authored by children.
If you have a question about Indian Boarding Schools, please submit them to [email protected] or use the online form that can be found at the bottom of stories such as this one. Want to help support our continued reporting on this important topic? Become a recurring donor for $5 or $10 a month, or make a one-time donation.
Tell Us What You Think
More Stories Like This
Chickasaw Elders Tour the Historic HomelandThree California Tribes Sign Treaty to Manage the Yurok-Tolowa Dee-ni' Indigenous Marine Stewardship Area
Indian Affairs Announces Return of Jurisdiction to Skokomish Nation
Sacred Mound Returned to Osage Nation
Navajo Nation Gets Land Into Trust Near Flagstaff
Can we take a minute to talk about tribal sovereignty?
Sovereignty isn't just a concept – it's the foundation of Native nations' right to govern, protect our lands, and preserve our cultures. Every story we publish strengthens tribal sovereignty.
Unlike mainstream media, we center Indigenous voices and report directly from Native communities. When we cover land rights, water protection, or tribal governance, we're not just sharing news – we're documenting our living history and defending our future.
Our journalism is powered by readers, not shareholders. If you believe in the importance of Native-led media in protecting tribal sovereignty, consider supporting our work today.
Right now, your support goes twice as far. Thanks to a generous $35,000 matching fund, every dollar you give during December 2024 will be doubled to protect sovereignty and amplify Native voices.
No paywalls. No corporate owners. Just independent, Indigenous journalism.