Founding Pine Mountain Settlement School was founded during a period of time when more than two hundred schools were founded across Southern Appalachia in order to bring educational opportunities to rural communities across the region. "...Pine Mountain Settlement School was founded in 1913 as a school for children in the commonwealth's remote southeastern mountains and a social center for surrounding communities. The school was the dream of a local man, William Creech Sr., who was troubled by the area's lack of educational opportunities, and the prevalence of social problems and rampant disease. He donated land for the school and recruited two women,
Katherine Pettit of
Lexington, Kentucky, and
Ethel de Long, a
New Jersey native, to establish and run the new institution. These two women enlisted the help of architect
Mary Rockwell Hook of
Kansas City to draw up plans for the campus and its buildings." It has been designated as a
National Historic Landmark District for its importance as a rural example of the urban settlement schools.
Uses Pine Mountain Settlement School developed as a rural example of the urban
settlement movement, which established institutions such as
Hull House in
Chicago, to provide education and social services to the new populations of immigrants and migrants in the cities. The school has served many purposes since its founding in 1913, more than a century ago. It continues to operate primarily as an educational institution. From 1913 to 1930, Pine Mountain served as a
boarding school for children of
elementary and
middle school age. In 1930, Pine Mountain was adapted as a boarding
high school, encouraging
vocational and artistic development for students from the Appalachian region, as well as academics. In 1949, Pine Mountain and the Harlan County educational system began to jointly operate an elementary school as part of the county public school system.
Relationship with Alpha Sigma Tau Alpha Sigma Tau Sorority adopted Pine Mountain Settlement School in 1945 as its national
philanthropy. The partnership lasted 71 years until its conclusion in 2016. Members of
alumnae and
collegiate chapters and
colonies of Alpha Sigma Tau raised money annually for Pine Mountain Settlement School. The Sorority supported Pine Mountain Settlement School through the
Alpha Sigma Tau National Foundation, Inc. ==References==