| Florida School for Boys | |
|---|---|
 Postcard illustration, date unknown | |
| Location | |
 | |
| , Florida United States | |
| Coordinates | 30°45′36″N 85°15′18″W / 30.760°N 85.255°W |
| Information | |
| School type | Reform school |
| Established | January 1, 1900 |
| Closed | June 30, 2011 |
| Gender | Male |
| Age | 3 to 21 |
| Enrollment | 100–564 |
| Campus size | 159 acres (64 ha) |
| Campus type | Rural |
The Florida School for Boys, also known as the Arthur G. Dozier School for Boys (AGDS), was a reform school operated by the state of Florida in the panhandle town of Marianna from January 1, 1900, to June 30, 2011.[1][2] A second campus was opened in the town of Okeechobee in 1955. For a time, it was the largest juvenile reform institution in the United States.[3]
Throughout its 111-year history, the school gained a reputation for abuse, beatings, rapes, torture, and even murder of students by staff. Despite periodic investigations, changes of leadership, and promises to improve, the allegations of cruelty and abuse continued.
After the school failed a state inspection in 2009, the governor ordered a full investigation. Many of the historic and recent allegations of abuse and violence were confirmed by separate investigations by the Florida Department of Law Enforcement in 2010, and by the Civil Rights Division of the United States Department of Justice in 2011.[4] State authorities closed the school permanently in June 2011. At the time of its closure, it was a part of the Florida Department of Juvenile Justice.[5]
Because of questions about the number of deaths at the school and a high number of unmarked graves, the state granted permission for a forensic anthropology survey by Erin Kimmerle, Ph.D., from the University of South Florida in 2012. Her team identified 55 burials on the grounds, most outside the cemetery, and documented nearly 100 deaths at the school. The state said it did not have authority to allow exhumation of graves, which would permit determination of cause of death and identification of remains. In addition, it wanted to sell land on the property. A family member of a student who died at the school in 1934, and who wanted to reinter his remains, filed suit and gained an injunction against the state's moving ahead with the sale before remains could be exhumed and identified. The state responded to the court injunction and authorized more work by a multi-disciplinary team from the University of South Florida, including exhumations. In January 2016, Kimmerle issued her final report, having made seven DNA matches and 14 presumptive identifications of remains. They continue to work on identification. Three times as many black as white students died and were buried at Dozier.[6] USF's report noted that excluding a 1914 event in which a large number of white boys were killed in a fire, the racial balance of deaths was consistent with the school's overall population demographics.[7]
After passage of resolutions by both houses of the legislature, on April 26, 2017, the state held a formal ceremony to apologize personally to two dozen survivors of the school and to families of other victims. In 2018, bills were being considered to provide some compensation to victims and their descendants, possibly as scholarships for children.
In 2019, during preliminary survey work for a pollution clean-up, a further 27 suspected graves were identified by ground penetrating radar. Many people, including former detainees, believe that over 100 bodies were buried on the school's grounds, and that further investigating should be done until all the remains have been identified and cared for. The archaeology firm who issued the report collected and interpreted data incorrectly. Subsequent field investigations by Kimmerle's team found no other graves in this area.[8]
In 2024, a bill to compensate the victims of The Dozier School for Boys carried by Representative Michelle Salzman and Senator Darryl Rouson was approved by the State Legislature and sent to the Governor to be signed into law.
- ^ Florida Department of Law Enforcement, Office of Executive Investigations. Arthur G. Dozier School for Boys Abuse Investigation. Archived 2011-10-18 at the Wayback Machine Case No. EI-04-0005. 29 January 2010, accessed 15 June 2012.
- ^ Montgomery, Ben. "After a century of pain, former Arthur G. Dozier School for Boys closes", tampabay.com, 1 July 2011, accessed 15 June 2012
- ^ Crane, Charlotte (August 2011). "Northwest Business Briefs: Marianna". Florida Trend. Archived from the original on 14 April 2023. Retrieved 3 January 2013.
- ^ United States Department of Justice, Civil Rights Division. Investigation of the Arthur G. Dozier School for Boys and the Jackson Juvenile Offender Center, Marianna, Florida. Archived 2015-08-13 at the Wayback Machine 1 December 2011, accessed 15 June 2012.
- ^ "Arthur G. Dozier School for Boys | FDJJ". Dec 18, 2008. Archived from the original on December 18, 2008. Retrieved Jul 30, 2019.
- ^ Kimmerle EH, Wells EC, Jackson A. Dec. Jan, 18, 2016. Summary Findings on the Deaths and Burials at the Former Arthur G. Dozier School for Boys, Marianna, Florida. Submitted and presented to the Florida Cabinet. pp. 168.
- ^ Kimmerle, Ph.D., Erin H.; Wells, Ph.D., E. Christian; Jackson, Ph.D., Antoinette (2016-01-18). "Summary of Findings on the Investigation into the Deaths and Burials at the Former Arthur G. Dozier School for Boys in Marianna, Florida" (PDF). mediad.publicbroadcasting.net. Retrieved 2023-08-04.
- ^ Claude Terry Associates (1981). "Permit requirements for energy and other natural resources for the State of Florida". Open-File Report: 81. Bibcode:1981usgs.rept...81C. doi:10.3133/ofr811254. ISSN 2331-1258.