Native American Cultural Center Finds New Home After Sale of Brooke Elementary

This spring, a group of newly found friends carried boxes, loaded trucks and arranged fabrics on a classroom shelf in what’s now the Native American Cultural Center at the former Metz Elementary in East Austin. Every week, you can see people gather to practice stitching straight lines on sewing machines or old friends catching up over a plate of warm comidita. 

“We had a whole community (help),” said Nan Blassingame, the center’s creative director. “We moved in, like two days … We were just like, ‘This is our home.’” 

It’s the second move the cultural center, formerly known as Great Promises for American Indians, has had to make in the past year. Last September, the center celebrated a grand opening at another former East Austin school, Brooke Elementary, which closed in 2020. City officials spoke, ribbons were cut and the community celebrated the milestone that was about 10 years in the making. The center occupied two classrooms in the old elementary school, where other local nonprofits were also housed.

But as the center buzzed with activity preparing for its big Austin Powwow gathering in November, which draws more than 15,000 attendees, Blassingame said she started hearing rumors about the Austin Independent School District selling Brooke to mend a nearly $20 million budget deficit at the time, which has now only grown. Soon, the rumors were confirmed.

Blassingame received an email from the district along with their commitment to help the cultural center find a new home.

“We knew we were going to be moving (again),” she said. “We just didn’t know where.” She wondered if they’d enjoy another space as much as the one they had started to settle into.

At that point last fall, the cultural center’s weekly programming called Sew Indigenous was growing to over 30 attendees. Blassingame feared the impacts of a potential downsize.

“In the beginning of the year, we started looking for places, and (AISD was) gonna take us on tours,” Blassingame said, sitting at a rectangular crafting table in the new location. “We didn’t tour anything but this place, and we said ‘We’ll move here.’” As soon as she saw the portable classroom buildings that were available on the Metz Elementary School campus, she knew it was the place for them. 

In early April, the cultural center moved into Metz, which also closed in 2020. The district still uses it to house for various departments and local organizations. The new cultural center space is similar to the Brooke building space— two classrooms with a connecting hallway surrounded by a field of grass and flowers. The slightly smaller size goes unnoticed, and Blassingame said she loves the new location’s many compartments to store fabric and craft supplies. 

Although this is their second move in about a year, one thing is clear: Wherever the center goes, the community will follow. 

The center had previously been housed in the AGE of Central Texas building since 1991. When it moved to Brooke Elementary last year, Blassingame and Executive Director Skye Howell had to hire movers to help them. This year, the community and AISD did the heavy lifting. 

Blassingame attributes this growth to its time at the former Brooke Elementary campus, which allowed them to start hosting weekly workshops, and more potlucks last spring.

“We have built a beautiful community in the span of a year,” Blassingame said. “The support is just unreal.” 

Lorenza Reynosa and her mother Maximina Tinoco started attending the workshops this year and helped provide tiny containers to help organize supplies. They started going to take advantage of free sewing classes. They stayed because of the warmth and welcoming offered by the group. 

Tinoco mainly speaks Spanish, but people at the cultural center who speak Spanish rush over to help when needed. Even with that language barrier, Blassingame still helps them sew the perfect garment. 

Sierra Cruz, who fixed a slit on a dress as she got the hang of the sewing machine, said it was only her second time at the workshop nights. She said she joined to reconnect with her tribe, and her husband, who is a part of the Zapotec tribe based in Mexico, would join the following week. She said he wants to reconnect with his roots, surround himself with people who may speak the language and dive into leather work. 

Why AISD is selling Brooke

AISD closed Brooke Elementary as part of a wave of school closures in Austin in the 2019-20 school year. The closure of the school helped cut down on salary and overhead costs, but AISD still maintained the building. The district used the building to house various AISD departments, or it leased it out to local nonprofits, including the center. 

However, that move did not solve its budget problem. This academic year, in an effort to attack a growing budget deficit, the district voted to close down more schools, and it also sold Brooke. 

Contract negotiations for the Brooke site are now happening with the Trammell Crow Company and High Street Residential, two leading commercial real estate developers, according to the AISD website. The proposed project involves an apartment community, made up of both affordable and market-price housing, above a ground floor of retail and open-space areas. 

The district did not respond to a request for comment.

In October, AISD opened the Outdoor Wonder and Learning Center, a field of native plants next to the new Native American Cultural Center, that hosts field trips for students. As they move in, Howell said the cultural center would like to work with the camp or start their own heirloom garden – something they have long dreamed of building once they were home.

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IF YOU GO

Native American Cultural Center Sew Indigenous Workshops

What: A free sewing, beading or crafting workshop open to the public. Attendees can also enjoy tribal games, food and drink and good company. 

When: Every Wednesday from 4 to 7 p.m.

Where: Native American Cultural Center, 84 Robert T Martinez Jr. St., Austin, TX 78702

Bingo Fundraiser 

What: Play bingo and get a free plant as a prize!

When: May 30 from noon to 4 p.m.

Where: Native American Cultural Center, 84 Robert T Martinez Jr. St., Austin, TX 78702