Arkansas City USD 470 is a

public In public relations and communication science, publics are groups of individual people, and the public (a.k.a. the general public) is the totality of such groupings. This is a different concept to the sociological concept of the ''Öffentlichkei ...

unified school district A unified school district (in the states of Arizona, California, Kansas and Oregon) or unit school district (in Illinois), in the United States of America, is a school district that generally includes and operates both primary schools (kindergarten ...

headquartered in

Arkansas City, Kansas Arkansas City () is a city in Cowley County, Kansas, United States, situated at the confluence of the Arkansas River and Walnut River in the southwestern part of the county. As of the 2020 census, the population of the city was 11,974. The n ...

, United States. The district includes the communities of Arkansas City, Parkerfield, Silverdale, and nearby rural areas.

History

The public school system developed beginning in 1872. The district, throughout its history, did not do racial segregation. The first class of high school students graduated in 1880.Ferguson, Heather D. ''Arkansas City: People, Places, and Events''.

Arcadia Publishing Arcadia Publishing is an American publisher of neighborhood, local, and regional history of the United States in pictorial form.(analysis of the successful ''Images of America'' series). Arcadia Publishing also runs the History Press, which publi ...

, 2011. , 9780738560496. p
106

Schools

The school district operates the following schools: Secondary: * Arkansas City High School ** See also: Old Arkansas City High School * Arkansas City Middle School ** The first

junior high school A middle school (also known as intermediate school, junior high school, junior secondary school, or lower secondary school) is an educational stage which exists in some countries, providing education between primary school and secondary school ...

, built south of an existing vocational training school, was 16-classroom facility with a cost of $100,000. It finished construction in Spring 1918 and had its dedication that May 16. In addition to classrooms and offices, it included an auditorium, a gymnasium, a library, and science laboratories.Ferguson, Heather D. ''Arkansas City: People, Places, and Events''.

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Primary: * Adams Elementary School * C-4 Elementary School * IXL Elementary School * Jefferson Elementary School * Roosevelt Elementary School ** It originated as the First Ward School, which began using a brick building in that ward in 1874. It originally housed all grade levels but later became only an elementary school. In 1888 it received an expansion. * Frances Willard Elementary School ** It originated in 1885 as the Fourth Ward School and also was known as the Central School. Two classrooms, each in one of two wings, were added to the building in 1924 along with plumbing and heating services and more windows to improve lighting; the construction done by the Wichita company W. H. Underhill, who hired forty workers for the purpose. Former schools: * Washington Elementary School ** It opened in 1887 as Third Ward Elementary School, in a brick and limestone building, equipped with steam heating, on a former hunting grounds. The

Grand Rapids, Michigan Grand Rapids is a city and county seat of Kent County, Michigan, Kent County in the U.S. state of Michigan. At the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the city had a population of 198,917 which ranks it as the List of municipalities in Mi ...

firm Grand Rapids School and Furniture Company created the furniture used in the school. When the original building was affected by flooding, the school moved to another facility.Ferguson, Heather D. ''Arkansas City: People, Places, and Events''.

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* The district's board approved the construction of a vocational/

manual training school A vocational school is a type of educational institution, which, depending on the country, may refer to either secondary or post-secondary education designed to provide vocational education or technical skills required to complete the tasks ...

in 1910, and that facility, which had air circulation systems, was remodeled in 1917.

References

External links

* {{Arkansas City, Kansas School districts in Kansas Education in Cowley County, Kansas School districts established in 1872 1872 establishments in Kansas