What were some of the major accomplishments of the person for whom Etta Dale Junior High is named to honor?

Miss Etta Dorothea Dale was a longtime educator in El Reno Public Schools with many, many accomplishments. She taught in the ERPS system for 51 consecutive years, also notably serving as the first principal of Central School from the time it was built (in 1905) until she completed her 50th year with ERPS in May 1942. She returned for her final year of service, this time at El Reno High School, teaching Oklahoma history in the 1942-1943 term. Before serving in the ERPS system, she had previously taught two years in Banner School, close to where her family had moved from Missouri in the “Run of ’89.”

Etta Dale’s list of accomplishments and honors is actually quite astounding. She was several times listed among the “Who’s Who in Oklahoma” and “Who’s Who in America.” In 1926, she was personally awarded a distinguished service award by President Calvin Coolidge at the White House in Washington, D.C. In 1931, she received another distinguished service award, this time by the Oklahoma Education Association, which also awarded her a lifetime membership in the association. Then, in 1935, Etta Dale was inducted into the Oklahoma Hall of Fame.

On October 4, 1937, El Reno’s newly-built Etta Dale Junior High was formally dedicated and named in her honor. It is believed to be the only building in the entire nation which was built as part of the Public Works Administration (or PWA, one of the alphabet soup programs of FDR’s New Deal) to be named to honor a living person; in fact, special permission had to be obtained for it to be so named. (Note that the Walter P. Marsh Memorial Building and Lucus Memorial Hall were not constructed at the same time; they were added in 1957 and 1967, respectively.)

May 28, 1942 marked Miss Etta Dale’s Golden 50th anniversary of her service in El Reno Public Schools. The day was declared “Etta Dale Day” in the City of El Reno, and The El Reno Daily Tribune dedicated that day’s entire issue in her honor. The ERPS School Board also formally recognized her as “El Reno’s All-Time Most Useful and Valuable Citizen.”

Following her death on November 2, 1944, at age 72, El Reno once again paid its greatest respects to this tremendous woman. Her funeral was held at Etta Dale Junior High, where her body was laid in state. All the flags at all El Reno Public Schools buildings were flown at half-staff that day in her honor. Moreover, businesses in El Reno closed for the funeral and the schools closed early that day so that the students and staff could attend the funeral services. Her body was interred at the El Reno Cemetery.

Further resources:
https://www.elrenops.org/…/history-of-etta-dale-jr-high
https://oklahomahof.com/member-archives/d/dale-etta-d-1935