Marva Collins

Born 1936 · Joined the Ancestors 2015

Fact

Turned down Secretary of Education from two presidents

Fact

Started school with $5,000 from her pension

Fact

Students labeled learning disabled reading Shakespeare within months

Marva Collins walked away from Chicago failing public school system in 1975 and opened Westside Preparatory School in her own home with 5,000 dollars of her pension. Using classical education methods and an unwavering belief that every child could learn, she transformed children who had been labeled learning disabled into students reading Shakespeare and Tolstoy.

Her approach was radical in its simplicity: high expectations, classic literature, phonics-based reading, and a refusal to accept excuses.

Collins turned down offers to become U.S. Secretary of Education from two presidents, choosing instead to keep teaching.