Tag Archives: Native American Teachers

Minta Foreman: She taught in Indian schools for 50 years

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Minta Foreman, a Native American from the Cherokee Tribe, spent five decades teaching students in government Indian schools. Photo credit: Choctaw Journeys.

Many dedicated Native Americans have served their communities as talented and hardworking educators. One who is an example of this is Minta Foreman, a Native American from the Cherokee Tribe who spent five decades in government Indian schools teaching students from the Choctaw, Cherokee, Chickasaw, and Seminole tribes.

Minta was born on April 14, 1878, in Park Hill, near the town of Tahlequah in Oklahoma Indian Territory. Her given name was Araminta Ross Foreman. Her father was Stephen Foreman, a Presbyterian minister. During her childhood, Minta studied at the mission school in Muskogee. Later she attended Willie Halsell College in Vinita, Oklahoma, and the Presbyterian College in Independence, Missouri.

Once she completed her education, Minta taught sixth grade at Cherokee Female Seminary in Ardmore, Oklahoma. Her career there spanned from 1898 to 1909, during which time she also taught high school students and served as the school’s principal. Next, Minta taught seventh and eighth grade at the Cheyenne school in Colorado Springs, and later she taught Choctaw students for six years at Wheelock Academy in Oklahoma. She also completed stints at the Bloomfield Academy, a school for Chickasaw girls, and the Mehusky Indian School. In all, Minta’s career as an educator in government Indian schools spanned 50 years.

Minta’s students said she left a lasting impression on them. They described their teacher as “tall, straight and haughty looking.” Nevertheless, she commanded great respect from her students, who frequently expressed she was an enthusiastic, but dignified, role model.

Sadly, after all these years of dedicated teaching, Minta succumbed to a heart attack on April 29, 1952, in Craig County, Oklahoma. She was 74 years old. She is buried at the Fairview Cemetery in Vinita, Craig County, Oklahoma.

Alabama’s Catharine Brown: Cherokee teacher and author

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Alabama’s Catharine Brown, a Cherokee who, during the early 19th century, worked as a missionary teacher, also became a celebrated author. Her memoirs were widely distributed and immensely popular.

There are many examples of Native Americans who became teachers and leaders in their community. Some have also become celebrated authors. One of these was Catharine Brown, a Cherokee who, during the early 19th century, worked as a missionary teacher and writer.

Catherine was born at the turn of the century, circa 1800, in a small village in Cherokee Indian Territory, Alabama, approximately 25 miles southeast of the Tennessee River. Her parents, Yau-nu-gung-yah-ski (“Drowned by a Bear”), known by Westerners as John Brown, and Tsa-luh, known as Sarah, held a place of prominence in their tribe.

As a young girl of about 17, Catharine attended the Brainerd Missionary School. Her progress there was impressive. In only three months, she learned to read the Bible in the English language. Then she became a tutor to younger students in the school. May 1820, Catharine accepted a position as a teacher at a school for Native Americans established at Creek Path, her home town. The school opened with 20 students, but enrollment continued to grow, as both children and their parents were eager to learn.

In 1821, Catharine left the school to nurse her brother John, who had contracted tuberculosis. Unfortunately, he did not survive. Soon after he died, Catharine began to show symptoms of the deadly disease. By 1823, her condition was so serious that she was transported by canoe to the home of a missionary doctor. But, sadly, she died on July 18, 1823. She was not older than 23.

One year after her passing, Catherine’s biography was published. The volume, entitled Memoir of Catharine Brown, A Christian Indian of the Cherokee Nation, was widely distributed and became immensely popular. Largely forgotten in the following centuries, Catharine Brown has recently been rediscovered as an influential Native American leader and writer. You can find her memoir on amazon.

Etta Schureman Jones: Teacher and WWII prisoner of war

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Etta Schureman Jones

Alaskan teacher Etta Schureman Jones spent WWII as a prisoner of war in Japan. Photo credit: Mary Breu.

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There are times when extraordinary circumstances of history present already gutsy teachers with unexpected challenges. This is certainly true of the intrepid Etta Schureman Jones, an elementary school teacher and trained nurse originally from Vineland, New Jersey.

Etta Schureman was over forty years old when she and her sister, Marie, ventured into Alaska Territory to teach Native American students in primitive rural schools. After one year, Marie  returned to the Lower 48, but Etta, who had met the love of her life and married, settled permanently in Alaska. The picture here is the happy couple on their wedding day.

Eighteen years later, Etta and her beloved husband, C. Foster Jones, were working together  in the remote Aleutian island of Attu when Pearl Harbor was attacked by the Empire of Japan on December, 7, 1941, “a day that will live in infamy.” The couple and their students had been slated to be evacuated by the US Navy, but before that could be accomplished, the island was invaded by Japanese troops.

Although the couple were in their sixties, Japanese soldiers killed Foster and removed Etta to an internment camp in Japan, where she was incarcerated with a small group of Australian nurses who were also prisoners of war. The Attuan natives, about three dozen of them, were also taken to Japan, with the apparent intention of assimilating them into the Japanese population. Although Etta was rescued by American troops after the war, and she and the surviving Attuans were eventually repatriated after the war, Etta never saw her students or their families again.

I have included a chapter about this intrepid teacher and her intriguing tale of survival in my book, Chalkboard Heroes: Twelve Courageous Teachers and their Deeds of Valor, available at amazon at this link: Chalkboard Heroes. Also, Etta’s story is told brilliantly by Mary Breu in her book Last Letters from Attu: The True Story of Etta Jones: Alaska Pioneer and Japanese POW.  A fascinating read, to be sure. You can find this book, also at amazon, at the following link: Last Letters from Attu.

Nicole Butler-Hooton: Oregon’s 2021 Teacher of the Year

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Elementary school teacher Nicole Butler-Hooton from Bethel, Oregon, has been named her state’s 2021 Teacher of the Year. Photo credit: The Oregonian.

I truly enjoy sharing stories about educators who have earned accolades for their exemplary work in the classroom. One of these is Nicole Butler-Hooton, an elementary school teacher from Bethel, Oregon, who has been named her state’s 2021 Teacher of the Year.

Nicole is a member of the Siletz and Apache Native American tribes. She was raised in a small coastal town in her home state. Upon graduation from high school, she earned her Bachelor’s Degree in Sociology with a minor in Ethnic Studies from the University of Oregon. While there, she was awarded the Sapsik’ʷałá grant, designed to assist Native American students to achieve their goal of earning a Master’s Degree in Education.

Once she completed the requirements for her Master’s degree, Nicole accepted a position as a second grade teacher at Irving Elementary in Bethel. Her career there has spanned 14 years. Nicole has a reputation for creating a vibrant, inclusive, and culturally-responsive teaching style. Nicole has an almost instinctive appreciation of diversity and inclusion in the classroom. “I think in order to teach a child, you have to know the child, and I think that that comes with being consistent and loving and kind,” asserts Nicole. “I think understanding that each child has a unique circumstance, remembering that all students deserve respect and attention is key, and it’s up to us teachers to go the extra mile to be able to give that,” she continues.

For her work in the classroom, Nicole has been selected Oregon’s 2021 Teacher of the Year. She is the first Native American to be so honored. She has also been named a Eugene/Springfield representative for the Oregon Indian Educator Association. She mentors and coaches student teachers and colleagues.

To read more about this remarkable educator, see her story published by The Oregonian.

Nellie Ramsey Leslie: Former slave, Freedman’s Bureau teacher

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Freedmen’s Bureau teacher Nellie Ramsey Leslie, a former slave, became a notable pianist, composer, and music educator. Photo credit: Public Domain.

There are many stories of remarkable educators in American history. One of them is the story of Nellie Ramsey Leslie, an emancipated slave who taught school for the Freedmen’s Bureau.

Nellie was born into slavery the 1840’s in Virginia. Once she was emancipated, she traveled north to Ohio, where she gained her education. She also attended the Normal School of Straight University in 1870-1871 to fine tune her instructional skills. The Normal School was founded by the American Missionary Association, which helped to prepare many teachers in the South to educate newly emancipated slaves and their children.

In late 1865, Nellie relocated to New Orleans, Louisiana, where she became employed as an elementary school teacher for the Freedmen’s Bureau. She also taught in schools in Mississippi and Texas. In 1874, Nellie married Reverend R. A. Leslie, a Presbyterian minister and a Native American of the Creek Nation. In 1880, the couple moved to the Indian Territory, where Nellie taught in schools established to educate Creek Freedmen.

Over the course of her lifetime, Nellie established a reputation as a notable pianist, composer, and music educator. After her husband’s death in 1884, Nellie studied at the Boston Conservatory of Music. Later she relocated to Corpus Christi, Texas, where she  founded a music conservatory for girls.

By 1895, Nellie was employed as a teacher and the principal of the Tallahassee Mission in Muskogee, Oklahoma, where she served as the music director for a number of years. The school served children of the Creek Nation.

This remarkable educator passed away in Muskogee during the 1920’s. The exact date and year of her passing is unknown. To read more about her, consult Notable Negro Women, Their Triumphs and Activities, by Monroe A . Majors, published in 1971. This book can be accessed online at Notable Negro Women.