Oklahoma's oldest Native American school is nearing the brink of closure as years of poor financial decisions, inconsistent leadership and disrepair threaten what was once a haven for Indigenous academics.

Students aren’t attending classes here this semester, but work still needs to be done. In the college’s historic buildings, there are leaks to plug, mold to purge and priceless works of Native American art to save from ruin. Not to mention devising a plan to keep the college from shuttering for good. It’s a daunting task for the nine remaining employees.

But on this rainy December morning, the college’s president is running a DoorDash order. “If we have the money, we can pay,” Interim President Nicky Michael said regarding salaries. Even she has to find a way to make ends meet.

Founded in 1880 as a Baptist missionary college focused on assimilation, Bacone College transformed into an Indigenous-led institution that provided an intertribal community, as well as a degree. With the permission of the Muscogee Nation Tribal Council, Bacone’s founders used a treaty right to establish the college at the confluence of three rivers, where tribal nations had been meeting for generations.