The History of Boarding Schools in the 1950s

By Jennifer Haase, eHow Contributor updated March 19, 2011

American boarding schools in the 1950's had a wide range of focus and purpose.
This was a time when schools were beginning to accommodate the Baby Boom, a
bigger middle class and desegregation. In this post-war decade, boarding schools
across the United States were used for different purposes, some of which are no
longer in use today.
In the 1950s and '60s, new co-ed boarding schools were founded in America like the
Rancho Salano Preparatory School established in Arizona in 1954. After World War II,
more young American women than ever before had plans to attend college. Co-ed
boarding schools with college-prep focus were needed to meet the new female
student demand. According to an article in Radcliffe Quarterly, young women in the
1950s were likely planning to attend college to become teachers and wives, but were
interested in higher education nonetheless.
Military Boarding Schools
o Traditional and discipline-focused, military college-prep boarding schools were
still popular in the 1950s. Most military schools were all male at the time like
Georgia Military Academy founded in 1900, later named Woodward Academy.
Building strong leaders and able cadets was an important focus for these
schools during the days of the Korean War. According to Woodward Academy,
many of their alumni served in World War II, the Korean War and the Vietnam
War as commissioned officers.
African American Boarding Schools
o Particularly in the southern states, boarding schools for black children were
thriving in the 1950s when school segregation was still intact. According to an
article from Diverse Issues in Higher Education website, these schools were
some of the best opportunities for African American children to get a good
education or any education at all. Strongly rooted in tradition, faith and
community, alumni of boarding schools for black children remember their
experiences fondly. The dawn of desegregation in the 1960s and '70s
eventually closed most of these schools.
Native American Boarding Schools
o In the late 1800s, Native American children were often involuntarily sent to
boarding schools by the U.S. government. These schools were still in use in
the 1950s, with an approach to education that was more about erasing the
Indian heritage than providing great academics. According to a report from
National Public Radio, American Indian children were not allowed to continue
their tribal language or customs at school. If they had an Indian name, it was
changed. Many former students remember harsh treatment, lost identities and
feel they were victims of racial cleansing.

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