Walden School (New York City)
Encyclopedia
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Walden School was a private day school
in Manhattan
, New York City
that operated from 1914 until 1988, when it merged with the New Lincoln School; the merged school closed in 1991. Walden was known as an innovator in progressive education. The Walden School was founded in 1914 by Margaret Naumburg, an educator who later became an art therapist. Claire Raphael Reis
, a musician
, was also involved.
Naumburg, who had been exposed to the theories of John Dewey
at Columbia University
, embraced “individual transformation” as an education principle, encouraging creative expression and self-motivated learning. Throughout its history, the Walden School emphasized the visual
and performing arts
. Competition between students was minimized; students did not receive grade
s and no exams were required for admission. Students called teachers by their first names.
The old Walden building is now occupied by the Trevor Day School
Walden School was a private day school
Day school
A day school—as opposed to a boarding school—is an institution where children are given educational instruction during the day and after which children/teens return to their homes...
in Manhattan
Manhattan
Manhattan is the oldest and the most densely populated of the five boroughs of New York City. Located primarily on the island of Manhattan at the mouth of the Hudson River, the boundaries of the borough are identical to those of New York County, an original county of the state of New York...
, New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
that operated from 1914 until 1988, when it merged with the New Lincoln School; the merged school closed in 1991. Walden was known as an innovator in progressive education. The Walden School was founded in 1914 by Margaret Naumburg, an educator who later became an art therapist. Claire Raphael Reis
Claire Raphael Reis
Claire Raphael Reis was a music promoter and the founder of the People's Music League in New York City. The League was intended to provide free concerts for immigrants and public schools....
, a musician
Musician
A musician is an artist who plays a musical instrument. It may or may not be the person's profession. Musicians can be classified by their roles in performing music and writing music.Also....* A person who makes music a profession....
, was also involved.
Naumburg, who had been exposed to the theories of John Dewey
John Dewey
John Dewey was an American philosopher, psychologist and educational reformer whose ideas have been influential in education and social reform. Dewey was an important early developer of the philosophy of pragmatism and one of the founders of functional psychology...
at Columbia University
Columbia University
Columbia University in the City of New York is a private, Ivy League university in Manhattan, New York City. Columbia is the oldest institution of higher learning in the state of New York, the fifth oldest in the United States, and one of the country's nine Colonial Colleges founded before the...
, embraced “individual transformation” as an education principle, encouraging creative expression and self-motivated learning. Throughout its history, the Walden School emphasized the visual
Visual arts
The visual arts are art forms that create works which are primarily visual in nature, such as ceramics, drawing, painting, sculpture, printmaking, design, crafts, and often modern visual arts and architecture...
and performing arts
Performing arts
The performing arts are those forms art which differ from the plastic arts insofar as the former uses the artist's own body, face, and presence as a medium, and the latter uses materials such as clay, metal or paint which can be molded or transformed to create some physical art object...
. Competition between students was minimized; students did not receive grade
Grade (education)
Grades are standardized measurements of varying levels of comprehension within a subject area. Grades can be assigned in letters , as a range , as a number out of a possible total , as descriptors , in percentages, or, as is common in some post-secondary...
s and no exams were required for admission. Students called teachers by their first names.
The old Walden building is now occupied by the Trevor Day School
Notable faculty
- Hans MaederHans MaederHans Karl Maeder was an innovative educator who founded the Stockbridge School in Stockbridge, Massachusetts and served as its director and headmaster for 23 years.-Early life and career:...
taught at Walden School and served as its interim head in the 1940s before leaving to start Stockbridge SchoolStockbridge SchoolStockbridge School was a "progressive" co-educational boarding school for adolescents near the Interlaken section of Stockbridge, Massachusetts and which operated from 1948 to 1976.-History:...
in MassachusettsMassachusettsThe Commonwealth of Massachusetts is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States of America. It is bordered by Rhode Island and Connecticut to the south, New York to the west, and Vermont and New Hampshire to the north; at its east lies the Atlantic Ocean. As of the 2010...
.
Notable alumni
- Tina AumontTina AumontMaria Christina Aumont , best known as Tina Aumont, was an American actress.She was of French Jewish and Dominican descent....
, actress - Chaz Bono, son of former musical talent "Sonny and Cher"
- Matthew BroderickMatthew BroderickMatthew Broderick is an American film and stage actor who, among other roles, played the title character in Ferris Bueller's Day Off, Adult Simba in The Lion King film series, and Leo Bloom in the film and Broadway productions of The Producers.He has won two Tony Awards, one in 1983 for his...
, actor - Michael DiamondMichael DiamondMichael Diamond, better known as Mike D , is a founding member of New York hip hop group the Beastie Boys. Mike D raps, sings, and plays drums alongside fellow members Ad-Rock, MCA and Mix Master Mike.-Early life:...
, Beastie Boy - Jane DudleyJane DudleyFor other people named Jane Dudley, see Jane Dudley, Duchess of Northumberland and Lady Jane GreyJane Dudley was an American modern dancer, choreographer, and teacher.-Biography:...
, modern dancer - Carol GilliganCarol GilliganCarol Gilligan is an American feminist, ethicist, and psychologist best known for her work with and against Lawrence Kohlberg on ethical community and ethical relationships, and certain subject-object problems in ethics. She is currently a Professor at New York University and a Visiting Professor...
, educational psychologist - Andrew GoodmanAndrew GoodmanAndrew Goodman was one of three American civil rights activists murdered near Philadelphia, Mississippi, during Freedom Summer in 1964 by members of the Ku Klux Klan.-Early life and education:...
, civil rightsCivil rightsCivil and political rights are a class of rights that protect individuals' freedom from unwarranted infringement by governments and private organizations, and ensure one's ability to participate in the civil and political life of the state without discrimination or repression.Civil rights include...
activist - Alexandra GuarnaschelliAlexandra GuarnaschelliAlexandra "Alex" Guarnaschelli is the executive chef at New York City's Butter restaurant and a television food personality.-Background:A Manhattan native, Guarnaschelli is the daughter of cookbook editor Maria Guarnaschelli and John Guarnaschelli. She is a graduate of Horace Mann School and ...
, Celebrity chef, Iron Chef and Chopped judge, cooking show host - Glenn LigonGlenn LigonGlenn Ligon is an American conceptual artist whose work explores race, language, desire, sexuality, and identity. He engages in intertextuality with other works from the visual arts, literature, and history, as well as his own life.-Early life and career:...
, conceptual artist - Kenneth LonerganKenneth LonerganKenneth Lonergan is an American playwright, screenwriter, and director.-Background and education:Born in the Bronx, New York City, New York, Lonergan began writing in high school at the Walden School .His first play, The Rennings Children, was chosen for the Young Playwright's Festival in...
, playwright, screenwriter, and director - Mike NicholsMike NicholsMike Nichols is a German-born American television, stage and film director, writer, producer and comedian. He began his career in the 1950s as one half of the comedy duo Nichols and May, along with Elaine May. In 1968 he won the Academy Award for Best Director for the film The Graduate...
, television, theatre, and film director - Susan RosenbergSusan RosenbergSusan Lisa Rosenberg is an American radical political activist, author and advocate for social justice and prisoners' rights. Rosenberg was active in many radical movements of the 1960s and 1970s...
, radical leftistFar leftFar left, also known as the revolutionary left, radical left and extreme left are terms which refer to the highest degree of leftist positions among left-wing politics...
who is accused of driving the getaway car in the 1981 Brinks robberyBrinks robbery (1981)The Brink's robbery of 1981 was an armed robbery committed on October 20, 1981, which was carried out by Black Liberation Army members; including Jeral Wayne Williams , Donald Weems , Samuel Smith, Nathaniel Burns , Cecilio "Chui" Ferguson, Samuel Brown ; several former members of the Weather... - Jane SternJane and Michael SternJane Grossman Stern and Michael Stern are American writers who specialize in books about travel, food, and popular culture...
, food writer - Edgar TafelEdgar TafelEdgar A. Tafel was an American architect, best known as a disciple of Frank Lloyd Wright.-Early life and career:Tafel was born in New York City to Russian Jewish immigrants, and moved to New Jersey with his...
, architect and preservation advocate, apprentice and assistant to Frank Lloyd Wright - Barbara TuchmanBarbara TuchmanBarbara Wertheim Tuchman was an American historian and author. She became known for her best-selling book The Guns of August, a history of the prelude to and first month of World War I, which won the Pulitzer Prize for General Non-Fiction in 1963....
, historian - Emanuel VardiEmanuel VardiEmanuel Vardi an Israeli-American violist, was considered to have been one of the great viola players of the 20th century.- Early life :...
, musician
External links
- Margaret Naumburg and Florence Cane, student paper in Women's Intellectual Contributions to the Study of Mind and Society, Webster UniversityWebster UniversityWebster University is an American non-profit private university with its main campus in Webster Groves, a suburb of St. Louis, Missouri. Webster University is accredited by The Higher Learning Commission and is a member of the North Central Association of Colleges and Schools...