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Catholic Church historian looking for ‘honest assessment’ of Indigenous boarding schools in Oklahoma

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Catholic Church historian looking for ‘honest assessment’ of Indigenous boarding schools in Oklahoma



Catholic Church is conducting oral history interviews of people who attended Oklahoma Catholic boarding schools for Native Americans

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An oral historian has begun conducting interviews with people whose family histories are intertwined with Oklahoma Catholic boarding schools for Native Americans.

The interviews of former boarding school students and their descendants are being conducted to glean information for the Oklahoma Catholic Native Schools Project, an ambitious effort launched in 2021 by the Archdiocese of Oklahoma City, the Diocese of Tulsa and St. Gregory’s Abbey.

Through the project, Oklahoma Catholic leaders said they hoped to gain an honest assessment of the history and legacy of boarding schools for Native Americans that were operated by the church from 1880 to 1965.

According to the archdiocese, 14 Catholic boarding schools for Native Americans existed in Oklahoma between 1880 and 1965. The first one opened in Konawa in 1880 and closed in 1926. The last boarding school, St. Patrick’s in Anadarko, closed in 1965. They were all overseen by various Catholic religious orders.

George Rigazzi, the archdiocese’s archivist, said about seven people showed up in Anadarko to share their histories with an independent historian.

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But the oral history initiative hit a snag when a planned second set of interviews in the Fairfax/Pawhuska area was not as fruitful. Because of this, a third interview time in Hominy has been postponed as church leaders regroup to determine how to encourage more people to share their stories.

“I understand the reticence, believe me, because it’s a matter of trust,” Rigazzi said. “We know not everything that happened in the Catholic Indian schools was bad, but we also know there were some things that were not right.”

The interviews in Hominy were initially planned for the first week of January. Rigazzi said church leaders are working with various groups to spread the word to Indigenous communities around the state and a meal designed to open up the lines of communication may be held in February. He said the church is primarily targeting Indigenous people for the interviews, but other people who attended the schools or their descendants are welcome to share their stories, as well.

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The Native Schools Project came in the wake of a reckoning that began in Canada after the May 2021 discovery of 215 unmarked graves of Indigenous children by Canada’s Tk’emlúps te Secwepemc First Nation at the Kamloops Indian Residential School in British Columbia. Shortly afterward, U.S. Interior Secretary Deb Haaland launched a comprehensive review of the federal government’s role with Indigenous boarding schools, aiming to discover and highlight the intergenerational effect of the schools and the trauma they created for hundreds of Indigenous children and families.

More: Deb Haaland visits Oklahoma ’12 years of hell’: Former students recount life at Native American boarding schools in OK

In May 2022, the Interior Department published a federal report based on its investigation, underscoring the wide-ranging forms of abuse that Native students were forced to endure at the boarding schools, all with the purported goal of helping them assimilate into white culture. In June 2022, Oklahoma — which had 76 of the schools, more than any other state ― was the first stop on Haaland’s “Road to Healing” listening tour to hear boarding school survivors talk about their experiences.

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Oral histories versus ‘listening sessions’

Thus far, the project has included research being conducted in partnership with Marquette University in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, which holds the archives for the Bureau of Catholic Indian Missions. Specific collaboration is with Marquette professor Bryan Rindfleisch, who specializes in Native American history and studies.

More: Boarding school research Days of Native Americans at boarding schools are being brought to light with professor’s work

Notably, the project also has included “listening sessions” which were designed to draw former Indigenous boarding school students or their descendants to local churches to talk about their experiences with Deacon Roy Callison, with the archdiocese’s American Indian Catholic Outreach.

Callison, who facilitated the sessions with his wife, Susan, has said the listening sessions were generally informative and positive. At least one, a listening session held in early 2022 at Sacred Heart Catholic Church in Konawa was not as positive, after it ended abruptly when several Native American women spoke about the troubled history of some of the boarding schools. The session ended on a sour note when a priest asked the Native American women to leave because church members became upset about the women’s negative portrayal of the boarding schools.

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Rigazzi said the listening sessions were helpful by providing the Callisons with opportunities to talk about the Native Schools Project with local church members. They also gave Indigenous people and others in the community opportunities to share their stories about the boarding schools with those who gathered for the sessions.

He said the oral history interviews are different because they are being conducted in private and in non-church settings. Also, the archivist said church leaders have ensured that people may share their stories privately with oral history interviewer Lisa Lynn Brooks, an educator who is Choctaw. Rigazzi said Brooks is an Oklahoman who currently lives in New Jersey and she is not Catholic.

He said another individual helping with this latest part of the project is Dana Attocknie, managing editor of the Sooner Catholic, the Oklahoma City archdiocese’s official news outlet. Rigazzi and the archdiocese’s chancellor, Michael Scaperlanda, said Attocknie, who is Comanche and Pueblo, has been helping spread the word about the oral history effort. Scaperlanda said she recommended that the initiative be advertised in tribal newspapers and that has been done.

Scaperlanda said church leaders had hoped to begin the oral history interviews sooner but encountered a few roadblocks. He said they knew the interviews needed to be conducted by someone with no church ties but also a person who has been trained to conduct such interviews, particularly because of the sensitive and personal nature of the topic.

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He said Brooks was added to the project once they determined she was the right person for the task but the logistics of where the interviews would take place also slowed the process down.

“We also knew that time was of the essence because the last school closed in 1965 and a lot of these folks are getting older,” Scaperlanda said.

He said it’s important to note that the church will not publicize oral histories if people don’t want to make them public. The idea behind the effort is to record the histories for the project, but only publicize them if the individual grants permission.

“We want to capture that history and preserve their privacy,” Scaperlanda said.

Like Rigazzi, he said he’s hoping that people will see the advertisements or hear about the oral history effort through word of mouth and decide to share their stories “because we really do want to understand what our boarding school history is.”

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For more information about the oral history interviews, go to https://archokc.org/oknativeschoolsproject.

More: Catholic Indian boarding schools Catholic leaders exploring history, legacy of Oklahoma Catholic Indian boarding schools



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Oklahoma

Oklahoma Ford Sports Blitz: December 22

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Oklahoma Ford Sports Blitz: December 22


Join News 9 Sports Director Dean Blevins, News On 6 Sports Director John Holcomb, and Toby Rowland for this week’s edition of the Oklahoma Ford Sports Blitz.

Sunday, December 22nd 2024, 11:25 pm

By:

News On 6,

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News 9

This week on the Oklahoma Ford Sports Blitz, Dean Blevins, John Holcomb, and Toby Rowland begin the show with their opening takes.

Toby’s Top 3

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OU, OSU, TU Recap

Viewer Question

Thunder Update: Caruso 4-Year Contract Extension, No Christmas Game

OU, OSU, TU, ORU Basketball Recap

OSU Wrestling Beats Virginia Tech

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Oklahoma transfer LB Dasan McCullough commits to Nebraska

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Oklahoma transfer LB Dasan McCullough commits to Nebraska


Oklahoma transfer LB Dasan McCullough commits to Nebraska

Oklahoma transfer linebacker Dasan McCullough has committed to Nebraska, he confirmed on Instagram Sunday afternoon.

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The 6-foot-5, 235-pound McCullough spent the past two seasons in Norman with the Sooners. He began his college football career in 2022 at Indiana, where he earned Freshman All-American status.

McCullough will come to Nebraska with one season of eligibility remaining.

McCullough, who played Oklahoma’s versatile hybrid linebacker/safety position called the Cheetah, suffered an injury before the start of Oklahoma’s fall camp this season and missed the first five games. He returned to the field in October and played in the final seven games, the last five of which he started. He recorded 17 tackles and 2.5 tackles for loss in 2024.

In 2023 at Oklahoma, McCullough played in 10 games and started seven while making 30 tackles with 3.5 TFLs and three pass deflections.

McCullough, who was a star recruit and ranked No. 61 nationally in the 2022 class, comes from a football family. His dad, Deland McCullough, played running back in the NFL and is currently Notre Dame’s associate head coach and running backs coach.

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While Deland spent three seasons as the Kansas City Chiefs’ running backs coach from 2018-20, Dasan played his high school ball at Blue Valley North High School in Overland Park, Kansas. Deland became Indiana’s associate head coach and running backs coach in 2021, and Dasan, then an Ohio State verbal commit, flipped to Indiana not long after.

Dasan followed his father to Bloomington and made an impact right away. He played in all 12 games with four starts and racked up 51 tackles, 6.5 TFLs, four sacks and four pass deflections. He gained Freshman All-American honors and a Big Ten honorable mention selection.

— Steve Marik, Inside Nebraska staff writer,

Analysis

McCullough is a versatile backend defender that can play a variety of roles in Nebraska’s defense.

A rare blend of size and athleticism at 6-5, McCullough shows good speed and change-of-direction ability for his size. Has high-end instincts and IQ, which shows up in zone coverage and reacting against the run. Has had some intriguing flashes as a pass-rusher, but largely relies on athleticism to get into the backfield, still developing consistent pass rush moves.

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Technically sound tackler, though lean he’s got wiry body strength. Consistent aggression could improve as could hip fluidity. Athletic enough to hold his own in man coverage, technique can continue to improve, better in zone at this point in his career.

In Nebraska’s scheme, McCullough can play all three linebacker positions, rover or even safety if needed. He’s likely best at inside linebacker with a few pass-rush opportunities.

This addition provides Nebraska defensive coordinator John Butler something of a chess piece to move around his defense.

— Tim Verghese, Inside Nebraska recruiting analyst

Additional analysis

McCullough is a versatile and sizable defender who played both a traditional linebacker position and Oklahoma’s “cheetah” spot, which is roughly equivalent to the nickel. He also saw some periodic snaps as an edge rusher for the Sooners during his two years in Norman.

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McCullough at his best against the run, as he takes good pursuit angles, fills gaps responsibly and is a reliable tackler. That said, he’s intelligent and instinctive in zone coverage and can generally be trusted to hold his own in man-to-man matchups against tight ends and running backs.

McCullough ought to be quite the chess piece in John Butler’s defense, and could truly thrive in Lincoln depending on the Huskers’ specific vision for his diverse skill set.

— OUInsider writer Parker Thune

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Fears leads No. 14 Oklahoma against Central Arkansas

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Fears leads No. 14 Oklahoma against Central Arkansas


Associated Press

Central Arkansas Bears (3-8) at Oklahoma Sooners (11-0)

Norman, Oklahoma; Sunday, 1 p.m. EST

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BETMGM SPORTSBOOK LINE: Sooners -28.5; over/under is 145.5

BOTTOM LINE: No. 14 Oklahoma hosts Central Arkansas after Jeremiah Fears scored 30 points in Oklahoma’s 87-86 victory over the Michigan Wolverines.

The Sooners have gone 6-0 at home. Oklahoma has a 2-0 record in games decided by less than 4 points.

The Bears are 0-6 on the road. Central Arkansas ranks fourth in the ASUN with 23.8 defensive rebounds per game led by Brayden Fagbemi averaging 4.6.

Oklahoma averages 82.0 points, 5.2 more per game than the 76.8 Central Arkansas allows. Central Arkansas averages 9.0 made 3-pointers per game this season, 2.5 more made shots on average than the 6.5 per game Oklahoma allows.

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TOP PERFORMERS: Fears is scoring 17.9 points per game with 3.5 rebounds and 4.6 assists for the Sooners.

Layne Taylor is scoring 17.0 points per game and averaging 4.4 rebounds for the Bears.

LAST 10 GAMES: Sooners: 10-0, averaging 80.9 points, 29.3 rebounds, 14.1 assists, 10.1 steals and 1.9 blocks per game while shooting 47.3% from the field. Their opponents have averaged 68.5 points per game.

Bears: 3-7, averaging 73.0 points, 34.3 rebounds, 14.3 assists, 8.8 steals and 1.8 blocks per game while shooting 38.9% from the field. Their opponents have averaged 75.7 points.

___

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The Associated Press created this story using technology provided by Data Skrive and data from Sportradar.




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