Chief Kamiakin Elementary School in
Sunnyside, Washington, was the first
public school to be named after the famous chief of the
Yakama,
Chief Kamiakin.
History
Construction of the current school began in 1975 and was finished in 1976. It replaced an earlier building that burned down in 1974.
The original building housing Chief Kamiakin Elementary School was built in 1910 and initially served as Sunnyside's
High School. That building was nearly destroyed by a fire on March 20, 1933, but was subsequently re-built. When a new three year high school was built in 1954, the old high school was converted into a
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 ...
for 7th, 8th, and 9th grades. When a new junior high school was built nearby in the late 1950s, the old building saw its final use as an elementary school beginning in 1960. It was at that time a contest to name the (now) elementary school resulted in what was called "the odd choice (so many people thought) of Chief Kamiakin." It served as one of the two public
elementary schools in Sunnyside until it burned down on the morning of Tuesday, February 12, 1974. Investigators determined that the fire was caused either by a problem with electrical wiring or a faulty furnace on the ground floor of the building. Several months after the fire, young boys were paid to salvage bricks from the gutted building at 1.5 cents per brick.
Following the fire, Kamiakin students shared
Washington Elementary School until the new building was finished. The new elementary school building was erected by V.K. Powell Construction of Wapato, Washington at a cost of $3.23 million. The building was financed by $500,000 in School District funds, $1 million in insurance payments, and $2 million from the state of Washington.
["$3.23-million school job at Sunnyside is about finished," Yakima Herald-Republic, April 17th, 1976] The current school retains the name of Chief Kamiakin.
Famous alumni
* N/A
Awards, grants, and honors
GLOBE Program Chief Scientist's Honor Roll: Clouds (October, 2000 - January, 2001)Peer Coaching Grant Awardees 2008-2009 (Karie Youngblood)
External links
Official web site of Chief Kamiakin Elementary School
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Kamiakin, Chief
Public elementary schools in Washington (state)
Schools in Yakima County, Washington