Category: Education
An adventure in Dance & Music
by Linda Graham
This book is an initial compendium of the history of the first half of the life of the National Academy of Arts, a prestigious boarding school, created by the genius of Dr. Gilbert Wright in 1972.
The inspiration came to Dr. Wright, a professor of Old English literature at the University of Illinois, while he was in England on sabbatical. The story of the creation of such a school in the heartland of the U.S. is inspiring. Ms. Graham not only details the story, but also the results expressed in terms provided by many of the graduates of the years of 1972-78 when the school was forced to suspend operations for three years. It came back to life in 1981-87 for a 'second effort' that had a better chance of continuing until several State sponsored competitors created a less costly avenue for the small numbers of quality students that sought careers in either ballet or music. That second chapter is yet to be written.