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Blackwell School Foundation Document
Blackwell School National Historic Site » Blackwell School Foundation Document » Document List
On October 17, 2022, President Joseph Biden signed the Blackwell School National Historic Site Act authorizing the establishment of the Blackwell School National Historic Site in Marfa, Texas, and directing the Secretary of the Interior to acquire the property and establish a new unit of the national park system. The legislation directed the National Park Service (NPS) to preserve, protect, and interpret the Blackwell School including its role as an academic and cultural cornerstone in Marfa, Texas, and its function within a segregated system of education in Texas and the United States from a period of 1885 through 1965.
On July 17, 2024, Secretary of the Interior Deb Haaland formally established Blackwell School National Historic Site. The NPS is welcoming the new park by preparing a foundation document to guide future planning and management of Blackwell School National Historic Site.
A foundation document identifies a national park unit's core purpose and significance, its most important resources and values, and the interpretive themes that tell its unique American story. The preparation of a foundation document is the first step in planning for any new park. The document's intention is not to provide specific management actions or development planning. Rather, the foundation document will guide future decision making by ensuring all efforts stem from a unified understanding of what is most important about the park.
The National Park Service welcomed public input about the new park - including what is most important about the Blackwell School, potential issues that could threaten park resources, and opportunities for preservation, commemoration, or interpretation - during a comment period that ended on July 12, 2024. The park is now working with the information received and with stakeholders including Blackwell school alumni, their descendants, and former managers of the Blackwell School Museum to prepare the foundation document. The final document will be posted at this site when complete, likely in the late spring of 2025.
You can learn more about the project by viewing the informational newsletter available under the "Document List" tab to the left. You may also wish to join the park's mailing list, which is available under the "links" tab to the left.
Thank you for your interest in Blackwell School National Historic Site.
On July 17, 2024, Secretary of the Interior Deb Haaland formally established Blackwell School National Historic Site. The NPS is welcoming the new park by preparing a foundation document to guide future planning and management of Blackwell School National Historic Site.
A foundation document identifies a national park unit's core purpose and significance, its most important resources and values, and the interpretive themes that tell its unique American story. The preparation of a foundation document is the first step in planning for any new park. The document's intention is not to provide specific management actions or development planning. Rather, the foundation document will guide future decision making by ensuring all efforts stem from a unified understanding of what is most important about the park.
The National Park Service welcomed public input about the new park - including what is most important about the Blackwell School, potential issues that could threaten park resources, and opportunities for preservation, commemoration, or interpretation - during a comment period that ended on July 12, 2024. The park is now working with the information received and with stakeholders including Blackwell school alumni, their descendants, and former managers of the Blackwell School Museum to prepare the foundation document. The final document will be posted at this site when complete, likely in the late spring of 2025.
You can learn more about the project by viewing the informational newsletter available under the "Document List" tab to the left. You may also wish to join the park's mailing list, which is available under the "links" tab to the left.
Thank you for your interest in Blackwell School National Historic Site.