To that end, officials instituted the "outing system," which was loosely modeled after the outing program Richard Henry Pratt had instituted at Carlisle Indian Industrial School; students worked at off-campus jobs to gain experience and earn money, as well as to help assimilate them.

The aggressive recruitment that closed the 1890s made PIS the second largest school in the federal system, with over 700 students.

Overcrowding accompanied the rapid growth, and during McCowan's tenure, he built new dormitories and employee residences.

As increasing enrollment made it clear to administrators that a dining hall was needed, the design modifications to turn the auditorium into one were performed in 1903 and a kitchen was built in 1904.

He inherited a stable school with 56 employees (12 of whom were teachers) and a 24-building campus surrounded by 240 acres (97 ha) of farm land.

During this time period in PIS's history, various techniques were used to attempt better assimilation – new students were organized into military companies, given a uniform and work clothes, and marched to and from classes after starting at 5am.

Within four months of President Woodrow Wilson's declaration of war on Germany in April 1917, 64 PIS students and alumni volunteered to serve in the army and navy.

Upon returning from border duty near Naco, Company F became part of the 158th Infantry Regiment, Fortieth Division.

[3] Their distinguished combat helped to change attitudes in Washington about Native Americans, leading eventually to the Indian Citizenship Act being signed into law on June 2, 1924.

Discipline problems increased, and the quality of student health care at Indian schools nationwide declined.

Brown sought to enhance this, and in 1922, he declared that the school would be responsible for all Native American employment in Phoenix.

Rhoads issued circular number 2556 in 1930 allowing some forms of punishment at Indian schools to maintain order.

The disputes came to a head; Collier found the action a backwards step and challenged Rhoads by bringing information concerning brutality at PIS to the forefront.

The charges were never proven, and there was never a definitive conclusion, but the hearing helped bring about changes, such as the appointment of W. Carson Ryan as Director of Indian Education in September 1930.

A reorganization of the Indian Service that followed allowed Meriam Report reformers to ascend to top posts in the education bureau.

At this critical juncture, the grammar school building, built in an understated Moderne style, was constructed.

Carl H. Skinner succeeded John Brown as superintendent of the Phoenix Indian School in 1931.

Under Skinner and with the assistance of new Indian Bureau chief John Collier, the facility was modernized; the old guard faded away; and waste was eliminated.

Many Native Americans volunteered or were drafted, serving in all branches of the military in the Pacific and European theaters.

It was also World War II and the widespread rate of service that brought Native American illiteracy to the forefront.

In response, Glenn Lundeen, the school's superintendent, asked for a BIA review of the campus in 1952.

At the same time, students and teachers began to question how "Indian" education emphasized some skills only useful in white culture.

With the passage of the Indian Self-Determination and Education Assistance Act of 1975, Native Americans could finally have more of a voice at BIA schools.

[citation needed] In 1982, the Reagan Administration recommended closing Phoenix Indian School.

The original buildings on the Phoenix Indian School campus were built in Victorian Queen Anne style.

From 1897 to 1912, all federal buildings were designed and built under the responsibility of the supervising architect for the U.S. Treasury Department, James Knox Taylor.

The building for the lower grades was modified on the interior to house the band, but it retains its 1931 Moderne exterior.

In 2014, Native American Connections and the Phoenix Indian Center launched a project to renovate the building, hoping to open it to the public for the first time in 25 years.

Barron Collier established a $35 million trust fund for Native American children, and the city converted the campus into Steele Indian School Park, which opened in 2001.