The Crefeld School
The Crefeld School is a small, alternative independent school located in the Chestnut Hill section of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. It was founded in 1970 as The Miquon Upper School. Its mission is to pioneer a progressive learning community for classroom secondary and middle school students.[1] Crefeld is guided by the principles of the Coalition of Essential Schools[1] - a high school reform movement with over 1000 member schools around the United States. The Head of School is George Zeleznik.[2]
History
The Crefeld School was founded as The Miquon Upper School in 1970 by Arnold Greenberg in the Germantown section of Philadelphia. The school later moved to the Chestnut Hill section of Philadelphia[3][4] Greenberg, a former teacher at The Miquon School (a private progressive elementary school founded in 1932), created the new upper school partly in response to requests from many parents and former students from The Miquon School who wanted the opportunity to continue their schooling in the tradition of progressive education. Greenberg was granted permission by The Miquon School's board to include the "Miquon" name in the title of his new school, but the two schools were always entirely independent of each other. After some years of confusion, the upper school changed its name to The Crefeld School.[4] Currently, the school enrolls 110 students in grades 7-12.
It is classified as an alternative [5][6] secondary school. The Crefeld School recently became accredited by the Pennsylvania Association of Private Academic Schools (PAPAS) and Middle States Association of Colleges and Schools. In addition, The Crefeld School is licensed as a private academic school by the Pennsylvania Department of Education.[7]
Notable alumni
- M. K. Asante, poet, filmmaker, and professor.[8] Asante credits Crefeld with helping him blossom, after he experienced failures at other schools. He told a reporter, "There was a lot of intellectual and ideological diversity," noting that Crefeld encouraged his artistic sensibilities, stressed self-expression, and made classes optional.[9]
- Eugene Byrd, Actor [10]
- Bill Douglas, White House correspondent for McClatchy Newspapers (formerly Knight Ridder)[11]
References
- 1 2 "About Us - Philosophy". www.crefeld.org. Retrieved 2007-08-10.
- ↑ "About Us - Faculty & Staff". www.crefeld.org. Retrieved 2007-08-10.
- ↑ "Arnold Greenberg". EllsworthME.org. Retrieved 2007-08-10.
- 1 2 "How are the Miquon School and Miquon Upper School related?". The Miquon School. Retrieved 2007-08-10.
- ↑ Pennsylvania Alternative Secondary Schools
- ↑ The Crefeld School
- ↑ About Us - Licensing and Membership
- ↑ Filmmaker from Hill thrills Crefeld School kids, ChestnutHillLocal.com, December 15, 2005
- ↑ Annette John-Hall, "M.K. Asante, Jr. - Artist in Progress," The Philadelphia Inquirer, H1, Oct 30, 2005
- ↑ Eugene Byrd Biography, TV.com, accessed June 4, 2012
- ↑ "Crefeld student attends national conference". ChestnutHillLocal.com. 2007-07-12. Archived from the original on 2008-10-13. Retrieved 2007-08-10.
External links
Coordinates: 40°04′35″N 75°12′54″W / 40.0765°N 75.2149°W