Schools, settlement, and sanitation in Alaska Native villages

The effective adaptation to a harsh and seasonal environment represented by the mobility of traditional Alaska Native communities has been undermined and replaced with the "persistent village." Traditional settlement sites ty pically were selected for their access to food and other subsistence resour ces. Early correspondence and reports from the federal Bureau of Education illustrate the important role that schools often played in the consolidatio n of Native populations. In response to the establishment of schools, among several other influences, permanent villages developed and increased in si ze. Providing sanitation services was considered by educators to be a centr al part of their broad mission to improve the life of the Native population , and sanitation was a major focus of teachers' and administrators' activit ies. However, many of the village sites that had been suitable for temporar y or seasonal use by a relatively small population were not well suited-due to geographic considerations such as soils, topography, or remote location -to adequate sanitation for a year-round, larger population. As schools con tributed to the consolidation of settlements, they helped situate today's r emote Alaska villages that now face numerous economic, social, and politica l challenges, including providing reliable and affordable sanitation.