Delphian School is a
private
Private or privates may refer to:
Music
* "In Private", by Dusty Springfield from the 1990 album ''Reputation''
* Private (band), a Denmark-based band
* "Private" (Ryōko Hirosue song), from the 1999 album ''Private'', written and also recorded ...
, co-educational
K–12
K–12, from kindergarten to 12th grade, is an English language expression that indicates the range of years of publicly supported primary and secondary education found in the United States and Canada, which is similar to publicly supported sch ...
boarding and
day school
A day school — as opposed to a boarding school — is an educational institution where children are given instruction during the day, after which the students return to their homes. A day school has full-day programs when compared to a regular s ...
near
Sheridan, Oregon, US. It is operated by Delphi Schools on a 720-acre campus.
Founded in 1976, Delphian primarily teaches children in grades 8–12, with most living on campus either full or part-time.
It uses study techniques created by
Scientology
Scientology is a set of beliefs and practices invented by the American author L. Ron Hubbard, and an associated movement. It is variously defined as a scam, a Scientology as a business, business, a cult, or a religion. Hubbard initially develo ...
founder
L. Ron Hubbard
Lafayette Ronald Hubbard (March 13, 1911 – January 24, 1986) was an American author and the founder of Scientology. A prolific writer of pulp science fiction and fantasy novels in his early career, in 1950 he authored the pseudoscie ...
, known as Study Tech. Accredited by
Cognia and the
Northwest Association of Independent Schools, Delphian curriculum is self-paced without traditional grades or grade levels.
Campus and history
In the fall of 1976, Delphian School opened on the site of a former Jesuit
novitiate
The novitiate, also called the noviciate, is the period of training and preparation that a Christian ''novice'' (or ''prospective'') monastic, apostolic, or member of a religious order undergoes prior to taking vows in order to discern whether ...
near
Sheridan, Oregon.
The main building on campus is a four-story,
Art Deco
Art Deco, short for the French (), is a style of visual arts, architecture, and product design that first Art Deco in Paris, appeared in Paris in the 1910s just before World War I and flourished in the United States and Europe during the 1920 ...
-style building with a brick exterior designed by Poole & McGonigle and built in 1933 for the Jesuit house.
In 1974, the order sold the building and surrounding acreage to Delphian. The former novitiate was then converted to a boarding school.
Opening in 1976, Delphian School created a curriculum for grades K-12. There were about 60 students in the school's first year. Two years later in 1978 the school had 120 students; tuition was $4,500 for boarding students and $2,800 for non-boarders.
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.
The headquarters for Delphi Schools, Inc. are located at Delphian School, which is the founding school.
[About Delphi Schools, Inc.]
" The Delphian School. Retrieved on December 27, 2010.
During
school closures due to COVID-19, Delphian School offered free online classes.
Academics
Delphian School uses
Study Tech; techniques created by
Scientology
Scientology is a set of beliefs and practices invented by the American author L. Ron Hubbard, and an associated movement. It is variously defined as a scam, a Scientology as a business, business, a cult, or a religion. Hubbard initially develo ...
-founder
L. Ron Hubbard
Lafayette Ronald Hubbard (March 13, 1911 – January 24, 1986) was an American author and the founder of Scientology. A prolific writer of pulp science fiction and fantasy novels in his early career, in 1950 he authored the pseudoscie ...
and licensed through
Applied Scholastics
Applied Scholastics (APS) is an organization that promotes and licenses the use of study techniques created by L. Ron Hubbard, the founder of Scientology. Applied Scholastics is operated by the Church of Scientology.
Overview
Applied Sch ...
.
The school is the location of
Heron Books, which published textbooks and materials using Hubbard's educational techniques (the Delphi Curriculum).
Delphian School is a member of the Oregon Federation of Independent Schools (OFIS), an organization that works to limit government influence on school choice. The OFIS's current director, Mark Siegel, also acts as the school's assistant headmaster. 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.
Activities and athletics
Delphian School's sports team is known as the "Dragons". The school participates in the
Oregon School Activities Association
The Oregon School Activities Association (OSAA) is a non-profit, board-governed organization that regulates high school athletics and competitive activities via athletic conferences in the U.S. state of Oregon
Oregon ( , ) is a U.S. s ...
'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.
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.
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.
At the 2022 Mountain Valley Conference district track and field championship, the girls team won multiple disciplines including the 100 and 200 meters, 300 hurdles, and 4×400 relay. The boys team placed first overall, winning the 100, 200, 800, 1500 and 3000 meters, 300 hurdles, and the 4×100 and 4×400 relays.
Delphi Schools, Inc.
Delphian School is the founding school of Delphi Schools, Inc. and also serves as its headquarters.
Other Delphi campuses
As of 2025, other campuses run by Delphi Schools, Inc. are located in
Los Angeles, California
Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...
(est. 1980); the
Boston
Boston is the capital and most populous city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Massachusetts in the United States. The city serves as the cultural and Financial centre, financial center of New England, a region of the Northeas ...
area (est. 1980); and
Clearwater, Florida
Clearwater is a city and the county seat of Pinellas County, Florida, United States, west of Tampa, Florida, Tampa and north of St. Petersburg, Florida, St. Petersburg. To the west of Clearwater lies the Gulf of Mexico and to the southeast lies T ...
(est. 1984). Previously, there was a school in
Chicago
Chicago is the List of municipalities in Illinois, most populous city in the U.S. state of Illinois and in the Midwestern United States. With a population of 2,746,388, as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of Unite ...
, and three others in California:
Santa Monica
Santa Monica (; Spanish language, Spanish: ''Santa Mónica'') is a city in Los Angeles County, California, Los Angeles County, situated along Santa Monica Bay on California's South Coast (California), South Coast. Santa Monica's 2020 United Sta ...
(2007–2014),
Sacramento
Sacramento ( or ; ; ) is the capital city of the U.S. state of California and the seat of Sacramento County. Located at the confluence of the Sacramento and American Rivers in Northern California's Sacramento Valley, Sacramento's 2020 p ...
(1980–2004), and the
San Francisco Bay Area
The San Francisco Bay Area, commonly known as the Bay Area, is a List of regions of California, region of California surrounding and including San Francisco Bay, and anchored by the cities of Oakland, San Francisco, and San Jose, California, S ...
(est. 1991).
Delphi Academy of Boston is a Pre-K through eighth grade private school in
Milton, Massachusetts
Milton is a town in Norfolk County, Massachusetts, United States. Milton is an immediate southern suburb of Boston, Massachusetts. The population was 28,630 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census.
Milton is located in the relatively hilly ...
.
Delphi Academy of Florida is a K–12 day school located at 1831 Drew St,
Clearwater, Florida
Clearwater is a city and the county seat of Pinellas County, Florida, United States, west of Tampa, Florida, Tampa and north of St. Petersburg, Florida, St. Petersburg. To the west of Clearwater lies the Gulf of Mexico and to the southeast lies T ...
.
Delphi Academy of Los Angeles serves preschool through high school in
Lake View Terrace, California. In October 2024, Delphi Academy of Los Angeles was named in a lawsuit by a former student who alleged that as a 13-year-old he was "groomed and repeatedly sexually molested" by Delphi's athletic director, a man who several years later was convicted of sexual abuse of multiple victims and was sentenced to over 17 years in prison. The 2024 lawsuit alleged that Delphi's head knew of abuses yet failed to take action, fire, or report the incidents to police or authorities. Instead, Delphi waited until the man's contract expired and then recommended him for a position at another school, at which he continued to sexually abuse minor boys.
Heron Books
Delphi's publishing arm operates under the
assumed business name
A trade name, trading name, or business name is a pseudonym used by companies that do not operate under their registered company name. The term for this type of alternative name is fictitious business name. Registering the fictitious name with ...
of Heron Books,
[Oregon business registry search](_blank)
/ref> whose offices are located on the Delphian School campus. It was incorporated in 1973 as the Delphi Foundation and changed to the present name in 1987. Delphi Schools says that its schools teach using "The Delphi Program". The Study Technology teaching method is licensed through Applied Scholastics
Applied Scholastics (APS) is an organization that promotes and licenses the use of study techniques created by L. Ron Hubbard, the founder of Scientology. Applied Scholastics is operated by the Church of Scientology.
Overview
Applied Sch ...
. Several Delphi schools use the ''Heron Basics Program'' of Heron Books for instruction.
References
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Delphian School
Private middle schools in Oregon
Sheridan, Oregon
Boarding schools in Oregon
Scientology-related schools
Educational institutions established in 1976
High schools in Yamhill County, Oregon
Buildings and structures in Yamhill County, Oregon
Private elementary schools in Oregon
Private high schools in Oregon
1976 establishments in Oregon
Private K–12 schools in the United States