Delphian School is a co-ed K–12private school operated by Delphi Schools. It uses study techniques created by Scientology founder L. Ron Hubbard, known as Study Tech.[5] It is located on a 720-acre campus[6]inunincorporatedYamhill County, Oregon, near Sheridan.[7][8] Most students live on campus either full-time or five-day (going home for the weekends). The school also accepts day students; boarders must be at least eight years old, while day students can be as young as five. As of 2024, most of the school's 204 students were in grades 8-12.[3]
In the fall of 1976, Delphian School opened on the site of a former Jesuit novitiate near Sheridan, Oregon.[9][10] The main building on campus is a four-story, Art Deco-style building with a brick exterior designed by Poole & McGonigle and built in 1933 for the Jesuit house.[11]
In 1974, the order sold the building and surrounding acreage to Delphian. The former novitiate was then converted to a boarding school, as it already featured dorm rooms, classrooms, and a dining hall with a commercial kitchen.
Opening in 1976, Delphian School created a curriculum for grades K-12. There were about 60 students in the school's first year.[12] Two years later in 1978 the school had 120 students; tuition was $4,500 for boarding students and $2,800 for non-boarders.[10] 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.[13][14]
The headquarters for Delphi Schools, Inc. are located at Delphian School, which is the founding school.[15]
Delphian School uses a proficiency or competency-based education model. The school does not have letter grades, report cards, or traditional grade levels. Students advance through the curriculum by demonstrating proficiency or competence rather than at a set time.[18]
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.[5] The school is also the location of Heron Books, which published textbooks and materials using Hubbard's educational philosophy (the Delphi Curriculum).
Delphian School is a member of the Oregon Federation of Independent Schools (OFIS),[19] an organization that works to limit government influence on school choice.[20] The OFIS's current director, Mark Siegel, also acts as the school's assistant headmaster.[21] The school is an accredited member of the Northwest Association of Independent Schools, and an accredited member school of Cognia, a standards-based accreditation body.[1][2]
Delphian School's sports team is known as the "Dragons". The school participates in the Oregon School Activities Association's (OSAA) Northwest League, 2A classification, for girls and boys sports: basketball, tennis, cross country, track and field, boys soccer, volleyball, and cheerleading; and for such other activities as speech and debate, solo music, and choir.[22]
Delphian School started its cheerleading squad in 2013. In 2016, they won the Class 3A/2A/1A state cheerleading title with an overall judged score of 160.70.[23]
In 2014, the Delphian choir tied for the OSAA Choir State Championship. That year three school soccer players were named to the All-State team.[25][26]
^"Contact UsArchived 2011-04-17 at the Wayback Machine." The Delphian School. Retrieved on 27 December 2010. "Delphian School 20950 SW Rock Creek Road, Sheridan, Oregon 97378"
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