Our History
School History
Nenahnezad Community School is in Fruitland, New Mexico, near the banks of the San Juan River in the northern area of the Navajo Nation. The school was established in 1937 as a boarding school. Bureau of Indian Education schools were chartered in request from the Tribe to provide education to the children within the community boundary in respect for the Treaty of 1868. Often the land was retracted from farmers, sheepherders, or cattle owners to provide additional school building sites. Many of the buildings constructed during the 1930s in New Mexico were Works Progress Administration projects, part of the New Deal agency established by an executive order from President Franklin D. Roosevelt.
Nenahnezad has an existing historic building (Building 401) that houses kindergarten through second grades and the administration. In 1963, additional buildings were constructed to include a residential hall with classrooms and a gymnasium/cafeteria complex. Chairman of the Tribal Counsel, Raymond Nakai, was the keynote speaker at the dedication on October 3, 1963. He stated that our ancestors named the place where we gather as NINAH NIZAAD, a long way up hill. This describes the geographic location indicators of the grounds.
"It is because of that spirit which our ancestors exemplified so well, in their constant striving to improve their lands, their livestock and their condition in lives, that we are congregated here today," he said. "With the help of our ancestors, we have come a long way uphill."
The school motto is "Everyone is a Teacher in Pursuit of Lifelong Learning." We strive for continued learning, increased college and career preparation, and conversational Navajo language and literacy. Fast forwarding to the 2000s, Nenahnezad has a record of improvement in achievement of meeting Adequate Yearly Progress goals for four years running. The school has 15-1 student to teacher ratio as of 2023 and a talented staff of teachers and support personnel.
Today, we have weathered a pandemic and continue to venture forward with resolve to improve in our service of the students. The school has been awarded new technology. We encourage adult learning to adapt and grow in our use of that technology, including learning management systems and Promethean boards plus new skills to provide instruction on-site and/or distance learning. We have also implemented a new curriculum from Houghton Mifflin Harcourt to increase reading, math, and science proficiency.
Between 2017 and 2023 the school has performed major construction improvements with a refurbished gymnasium, new bleachers and scoreboard, an amphitheater, and running track. Sitewide, flooring has been refreshed. The one-mile-long trail is in place with plans to install outdoor fitness equipment in spring 2024.
