Cherokee Nation Opens $30M Cherokee Immersion Middle School

TAHLEQUAH, Okla. - Cherokee Nation leaders gathered Monday to open the new ᏧᎾᏕᎶᏆᏍᏗ ᎦᎵᏉᎩ ᏂᏚᏳᎪᏛ (School of the Seven Directions) Cherokee Immersion Middle School, a $30 million investment in Cherokee language revitalization.

The building opens for the new school year starting August 27.

"The dawn of a new age has begun for Cherokee language immersion. This middle school is one major step closer to our goal of revitalizing not only the Cherokee language, but our culture and traditions. The knowledge learned between these walls will last for generations to come. As the teachers pass the torch on to each student, our Cherokee youth are handed a heavy and vital responsibility to carry into our future," said Cherokee Nation Principal Chief Chuck Hoskin Jr.

The new middle school is located near the Durbin Feeling Language Center in Tahlequah. Construction on the more than 66,000-square-foot middle school began in August 2024 as part of the Hoskin/Warner Administration's Durbin Feeling Language Preservation Act.

The middle school, with 16 classrooms, will house fourth grade to eighth grade.

"Our immersion teachers dedicate every waking moment of every day to these students and their immersion in the Cherokee language and traditions. This beautiful learning institution, and all its incredible features, are well-deserved, and I'm confident they will be put to good use," said Cherokee Nation Deputy Chief Bryan Warner.

The middle school was built with Cherokee traditions in mind. The school features a courtyard, a playground, stickball field and an art patio. The courtyard in the center of the school is designed to align with the spring and fall equinoxes. The stickball pole, fire hearth, and other elements of the courtyard will align with the sun during these seasonal events, and traditional ceremonies will be held on campus during these times.

"Everything that you see here was done on purpose, every color, the way that the school faces. This entire school was built from east to west on the equinox," said Howard Paden, executive director for the Language Department. "We want to thank the Chief, the Deputy Chief and the Council for allowing us to boldly interpret our culture in the construction of this school. They have been with us every step of the way and have not faltered."

The campus includes a gym with a basketball court, an open media center, a cafeteria with a stage, specialty classrooms that are equipped for art, music, dance, wrestling, life-skills, pottery, a science lab, a STEM lab; areas for flint knapping, bow-making, woodcarving, and much more. The courtyard and specialty classrooms will also be utilized by the students at the Durbin Feeling Language Center and the Greasy Immersion School students.

"Every time we create another place where Cherokee can be spoken, we strengthen the language," said District 8 Council Codey Poindexter. "Today, we are creating one of those spaces, a place where children can grow surrounded by the Cherokee language, where our teachers can pass knowledge to another generation, and where our fluent speakers can see their life's work continue."

Contractors for the project were Thompson Construction, Inc., and architects for the project were Blue River. The school features are entirely in the Cherokee language with no English on signage or spoken in the school.

Since 2019, the landmark Durbin Feeling Language Preservation Act has expanded various language programs, created new language programs and services and funded the construction of the Durbin Feeling Language Center.

The 2019 law also led to the opening of a second immersion campus in Greasy, quadrupled the size of the Cherokee Language Master/Apprentice Program, constructed a "speaker village" in Tahlequah and established a new Speaker Services program to address quality of life issues for elder fluent speakers.

In Jan. 2024, Chief Hoskin reauthorized the historic Durbin Feeling Language Preservation Act, which promised the $30 million for the construction of the immersion middle school.

Earlier this summer, Chief Hoskin also signed an amendment to the language act that replaced the tribe's language immersion state charter board with tribal government oversight.

To learn more about the Cherokee Nation Language immersion schools, contact the Language Department at 918-207-4900.