Presbyterian Pan American School

The boys' school behind this one taught by work. James W. Skinner, its first president, split each day into half a day of classes and half a day of labor, and anything that did not build 'a disciplined Christian manhood' went to the scrap pile. Students worked 200 acres with a dairy, gardens, a citrus orchard and livestock, or learned trades in woodworking, metal, printing and machine shops. They built almost every permanent building on the campus and printed Spanish-language publications. Eight girls in the first class left within the year because conditions were thought too primitive for them.

What the plaque says

Presbyterian Pan American School MEXICAN-AMERICAN PRESBYTERIAN CONGREGATIONS BEGAN TO APPEAR IN TEXAS IN THE LAST DECADE OF THE NINETEENTH CENTURY. WITH THE POPULATION INCREASE IN TEXAS FOLLOWING THE MEXICAN REVOLUTION, THE PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH BEGAN TO ASSESS THE NEED FOR EDUCATIONAL OPPORTUNITIES FOR IMMIGRANTS. IN 1910, THE TEXAS-MEXICAN PRESBYTERY AND THE WESTERN PRESBYTERY PRESENTED A PLAN TO ESTABLISH A MEXICAN INDUSTRIAL SCHOOL FOR BOYS. THE PLAN WAS APPROVED AND IN 1911, HENRIETTA KING OFFERED TO DONATE 640 ACRES FOR A SCHOOL. THE FOLLOWING YEAR, CLASSES OPENED AT THE TEXAS-MEXICAN INDUSTRIAL INSTITUTION WITH 49 STUDENTS INCLUDING SIX GIRLS. THEIR MISSION WAS TO PROMOTE SPIRITUAL GROWTH BUT ALSO TO TRAIN THEIR MINDS AND HANDS FOR LEADERSHIP IN THE COMMUNITY WITH ACADEMIC AND TRADE SKILLS. WITH THE SUCCESS OF THE SCHOOL CAME INTEREST TO ESTABLISH A SCHOOL FOR MEXICAN-AMERICAN GIRLS. AFTER FUNDING WAS SECURED, THE SCHOOL, AFFECTIONATELY KNOWN AS PRES.-MEX., OPENED IN OCTOBER 1924 IN TAFT, TEXAS WITH A CURRICULUM SIMILAR TO THE BOYS' SCHOOL. IN 1955, ACTION WAS TAKEN TO MERGE THE TWO SCHOOLS TO ESTABLISH THE PRESBYTERIAN PAN AMERICAN SCHOOL. BY THE FALL OF 1957, THE FIRST PHASE OF A NEW CAMPUS DESIGNED BY FAMED ARCHITECT O'NEIL FORD WAS COMPLETED. FROM THE LATE 1950s TO THE MID-1960s, THE SCHOOL SAW INCREASED GROWTH IN NUMBERS AND GEOGRAPHY WITH OVER 400 STUDENTS FROM A VARIETY OF U.S. STATES AS WELL AS GUATEMALA, MEXICO, CONGO, CUBA AND COLOMBIA. OVER THE YEARS, AMONG SUCCESS AND HARDSHIPS, THE PRESBYTERIAN PAN AMERICAN SCHOOL DEVELOPED FROM A SMALL FACILITY TO AN INTERNATIONAL EDUCATIONAL ENVIRONMENT WITH STUDENTS FROM THE UNITED STATES, LATIN AMERICA, ASIA AND AFRICA. (2012)

Where it stands

More markers nearby

• Taylor Camp Site, 1846 — 2.5 mi
• U.S. Naval Auxiliary Air Station - Kingsville — 3.4 mi
• Uriah Lott — 4.5 mi
• First Presbyterian Church of Kingsville — 4.5 mi