Zuni Public School District (ZPSD) is a school district headquartered in the Zuni Pueblo census-designated place of unincorporated McKinley County, New Mexico, United States. It includes sections in Cibola County and McKinley County (including Zuni Pueblo and Black Rock).

History

Created on July 1, 1980, it was the first tribally controlled public school system in the United States. The last school district creation, prior to that of Zuni, occurred in 1950. Zuni School District, which largely coincides with the Zuni Indian Reservation, became the 89th school district in New Mexico. The initial prospective enrollment was 1,800, with 98% of them being Zuni people. Hayes Lewis, the acting superintendent, stated that the reason why the Zuni Pueblo community decided to leave the Gallup-McKinley County Schools system is because the Zuni people wanted to make their own educational decisions, and a Zuni had never been elected to the school board of the previous district. The Zuni people had attempted forming their own school district for about ten years prior. In 1999 the district leadership criticized the New Mexico school district funding formulas, stating they are not enough to support the district.

Schools

Reference list