New map reveals 523 boarding schools that allegedly aimed to ‘civilize’ Indigenous people in the US

A Minnesota-based Native group has revealed a new interactive map detailing an extensive list of boarding schools that have once tried to “civilize" Indigenous people.

The Minnesota-based group has spent years building its inventory of data, with efforts being bolstered in recent years by the U.S. Interior Department. The federal agency released its own list of more than 400 schools last year as part of an ongoing investigation meant to recognize the multigenerational trauma that resulted from boarding school policies.

The coalition's latest research identified an additional 115 schools, with the majority being operated without federal support by church institutions that had authority to establish schools to carry out U.S. policies meant to assimilate Native children.