Separating Native American children from their people to train them for entering white society was seen by proponents as an alternative to extinction. Reformers implemented this goal by establishing off-reservation boarding schools like that at Chemawa, Oregon. Though their methods changed, the objective of assimilation remained constant. This case study argues that this emphasis was well-intentioned but flawed. Examination of a fifty year period reveals the unrealistic assumption that Native children would forsake their identity for another.
","abstract_html":"<p>Separating Native American children from their people to train them for entering white society was seen by proponents as an alternative to extinction. Reformers implemented this goal by establishing off-reservation boarding schools like that at Chemawa, Oregon. Though their methods changed, the objective of assimilation remained constant. This case study argues that this emphasis was well-intentioned but flawed. Examination of a fifty year period reveals the unrealistic assumption that Native children would forsake their identity for another.</p>","abstract_has_math":false,"creators":["Smith, James Alan"],"institution":null,"degree_name":"Master of Arts (MA)","degree_level":null,"degree_discipline":"History","degree_department":null,"school":null,"contributors":["Kent D. Richards","Karen Blair","Earl T. Glauert"],"advisors":[],"committee_chairs":[],"committee_members":[],"year":1993,"date_issued":"1993-01-01T08:00:00Z","date_published":"1993-01-01T08:00:00Z","updated_at":"2026-07-24T01:37:54Z","subjects":["Chemwa","Native American","Boarding School","Assimilation","erasure","identity","Cultural History","History","Indigenous Studies","Social History","United States History"],"languages":[],"rights":[],"rights_urls":[],"identifier_entries":[]},"links":{"outbound_url":"https://digitalcommons.cwu.edu/etd/1500","outbound_label":"Repository record","outbound_source":"dc:identifier"},"metadata_groups":[{"id":"people","label":"People","entries":[{"key":"dc:contributor","label":"Contributor","values":["Kent D. Richards","Karen Blair","Earl T. Glauert"]},{"key":"dc:creator","label":"Author","values":["Smith, James Alan"]}]},{"id":"academic_context","label":"Academic Context","entries":[{"key":"dc:date.available","label":"Dc Date Available","values":["2021-06-04T07:00:00Z"]},{"key":"dc:type","label":"Dc Type","values":["Text"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_discipline","label":"Discipline","values":["History"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_name","label":"Degree Name","values":["Master of Arts (MA)"]}]},{"id":"subjects_keywords","label":"Subjects and Keywords","entries":[{"key":"dc:subject","label":"Dc Subject","values":["Chemwa","Native American","Boarding School","Assimilation","erasure","identity","Cultural History","History","Indigenous Studies","Social History","United States History"]}]},{"id":"identifiers","label":"Identifiers","entries":[{"key":"dc:identifier","label":"Identifier","values":["https://digitalcommons.cwu.edu/etd/1500"]}]},{"id":"additional","label":"Additional Metadata","entries":[{"key":"dc:description.abstract","label":"Abstract","values":["Separating Native American children from their people to train them for entering white society was seen by proponents as an alternative to extinction. Reformers implemented this goal by establishing off-reservation boarding schools like that at Chemawa, Oregon. Though their methods changed, the objective of assimilation remained constant. This case study argues that this emphasis was well-intentioned but flawed. Examination of a fifty year period reveals the unrealistic assumption that Native children would forsake their identity for another.
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