Growing a School is a 25-year historical account of
the development of the Follow Through Program, a school reform
project started in 1968 in New Haven CT. It is the story of how
a progressive philosophy, a traditionally trained leader, and
a wide range of student needs combined to be- come something
entirely new and effective for New Haven school students.
Reviews
Margot
Kohorn's 25-year historical account of Growing a School: A Battle for Excellence,
documents all the details of the development of a teacher, parent
and child empowered environment starting in 1968 in New Haven,
Conn., at the time when lower income schools, families and their
communities were struggling for survival. This project's leadership
included the wisdom of Dr. Albert Solnit, chairman of the Yale
Child Study Center, the miraculous chemistry of the wise, dynamic
and visionary leadership of the Principal, Audrey Tiani, the
charismatic and forceful parent, Maceo Patton, and the sensitivity
and brilliance of Margot Kohorn, the newly appointed psychologist
who was the weaver and supporter of ideas in the Follow Through
Program. Credit and support of this innovative project also goes
to the methodology and philosophy of the Bank Street model and
the Head Start Program developed by Drs. Edward Zigler and Julius
Richmond.
This is a most exciting book and the project predates the success
of charter schools, for example, the Harlem Children's Zone in
New York and the Amistad Academy in New Haven.
Dr. Phyllis
M. Cohen Yale University
Child Study Center
As a parent
for over 10 years at what eventually became West Hills Follow
Through, it is encouraging
to know that its history will not be forgotten. Margot Kohorn's
Growing A School charts the work of a group of dedicated educators
that formed a community where learning and joy happened on a
daily basis. This story of how a progressive philosophy, a traditionally
trained leader, and a wide range of student needs combined to
become something entirely new and effective for New Haven students
is important reading for anyone who continues to press for school
improvement.
Jonathan Gillette
Director of Teacher Preparation
and Education Studies Program, Yale University
Lecturer, Yale Child Study Center
Vol. 62 of the Transactions of The Connecticut
Academy of Arts and Sciences.
(2010) ISBN 978-1-878508-30-0 119 pages $20.00 paper
