Pawhuska families launch Learning Academy to preserve Osage language after school closure

PAWHUSKA, Okla. — When Chief Tillman closed Daposka Ahnkodapi Immersion School due to budget issues, families in Pawhuska faced a tough choice.

Some decided to pull their children from public school and start fresh at the Learning Academy — a grassroots effort by a parent and teacher who weren't ready to give up on Osage language education.

Walking into the classrooms, you'll hear a mix of English and Osage as students tackle everything from science to math. During 2 News' visit, kids were exploring atoms and molecules — but doing it in their native language.

For these students, the school closure was more than just losing classes — it was losing a piece of home.

"Whenever I first heard that the school shut down, I was at the grocery store with my mother. And my one of I saw one of my old friends and she had said I saw on Facebook that the school got shut down," Evaon Shackelford, a Learning Academy student, said. "I didn't think it was true until I asked my mom when I got home and she said it was true. It was just heartbreaking that the chief would do this."

While older students process the shock of losing their school, younger ones are embracing their new space — filling hallways with traditional songs and learning basic Osage words.

When official support disappeared, this community created their own solution to ensure their language and culture survive.

This story was reported on-air by a journalist and has been converted to this platform with the assistance of AI. Our editorial team verifies all reporting on all platforms for fairness and accuracy.

This story was initially reported by a journalist and has been converted to this platform with the assistance of AI. Our editorial team verifies all reporting on all platforms for fairness and accuracy.