Indian Education Programs

Since the Park’s opening in 1991, the major emphasis has been the Indian Education Program with the focus on children from pre-school through high school. The target population has been school children and teachers in the seven surrounding counties.

Lawrence County is home to the second-largest Indian population in the state. The Indian Education Program and Oakville Indian Mounds Park and Museum are tributes to the Indian citizens and their heritage. The Museum located within the Park serves as a teaching venue for the Lawrence County Schools’ Indian Education Program.

The Indian Education Program began in Lawrence County in 1986 with the primary purpose being to teach the local Indian history and culture to Indian students attending the Lawrence County Schools and to make students aware of their tribal roots. The program serves 1700 students with eligibility based on tribal enrollment of their grandparents, parents, or the students themselves. Most of the students are members of the Echota Cherokee Tribe of Alabama and are of Cherokee, Chickasaw, or Creek Indian mixed-blood heritage.