In the fall of 1976, the Delphian School opened on the site of a former a Jesuit novitiate near Sheridan, Oregon. The main building on campus is a four-story, Art Deco-style building with a brick exterior that was designed by Poole & McGonigle and built in 1933 for the Jesuit house. There were about 60 students enrolled in the school's first year. Two years later in 1978 the school had 120 students, tuition was $4,500 for boarding students and $2,800 for non-boarders. In the mid-1980s the campus was considered as a possible location for a federal prison. The Sheridan Federal Correctional Institution opened in 1989 in another location in the area.
Academics
The Delphian School is operated by Delphi Schools using L. Ron Hubbard's study techniques, known as Study Tech. The Study Tech teaching methodology is licensed through the Scientology-related group Applied Scholastics. The school is also the location of Heron Books, which published textbooks and materials using Hubbard's educational philosophy. The school uses a proficiency- or competency-based education model. There are no letter grades, report cards, or traditional grade levels at the school. Students advance through the curriculum by demonstrating proficiency or competence rather than at a set time. Delphian School is a member of the Oregon Federation of Independent Schools, an organization that works to limit government influence on school choice. The OFIS's current director, Mark Siegel, also acts as assistant headmaster of the school. The school is an accredited member of the Northwest Association of Independent Schools, and an accredited member school of AdvancED.
Activities
The Delphian School's sports team is known as the "Dragons". The school participates in the Oregon School Activities Association's Northwest League, 2A classification, for girls and boys basketball, baseball and softball, boys soccer and tennis, volleyball, cheerleading, solo music, and choir. In 2014 the Delphian choir tied for the OSAA Choir State Championship, and three school soccer players were named to the All-State team. In 2013 a student was chosen as the youth delegate to Youth for Human Rights International, a Scientology-related organization.
Culture
Lauren Haggis, a daughter of Paul Haggis, said that Delphian is "on top of a hill in the middle of nowhere" and that she "lived in a giant bubble. Everyone I knew was a Scientologist."
