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30 GU I D E to Y E L L OW S P R I NG S | 2O22 – 2O23 natural capacity, health and vitality made possible.” The approach was experimental, and it is believed that stu- dents were not graded. All 12 grades were housed in the former William Mills house, which stood on the grounds where Yellow Springs’ Mills Lawn Elementary School is located. In 1929, the school dropped the junior high and high school sections and moved into the Bryan High School. The school moved into its cur - rent building on Corry Street in 1953, eventually adding a Nursery class. Today, classes are divided into Nursery, Kindergar - ten, Younger Group (approxi - mately first through third grade) and Older Group (typically fourth through sixth). School staff believe it is the oldest democratic school in the country. Summers noted that a school in England that was founded the same year as the Antioch School claims to be the oldest democratic school in the world. “Arthur Morgan didn’t call it a democratic school, but that is what we are,” Summers said. “That label basically says the children have a significant amount of say in how they approach their day at school.” It also described the school’s lack of hierarchy among the staff. As school manager, Sum - mers handles many admin- istrative functions, but daily decisions are made by teachers and staff as a group. The board determines the “bigger picture,” such as philosophy, goals and direction. In anticipation of the cen - tennial, the board and staff had begun some strategic planning work a couple of years before the pandemic hit. Summers said the focus was on the school’s financial wellbeing, increasing the endowment and increasing scholarship opportunities so that cost was not an obstacle for anyone wanting to attend. Summers, whose two children attended the Antioch School (one is now at Yellow Springs High School and the other is at Dayton’s Stivers School for the Arts), said he loves being part of the school’s life. “From my desk, I have a complete view of the play- ground,” he said. “I love being a fly on the wall and watch - ing the students interacting with each other and coming up with games, being totally joyful with each other. It feels really great to be doing work that contributes to that joy.” ♦ allowed to flourish in his own time,” Rothman-Zecher wrote. “I’d say that a large part of who I am — a novelist, a poet, a teacher of creative writing — has its roots in my time at Antioch,” he added. Founded by then-Antioch College President Arthur Morgan as a teacher-training laboratory for the college’s students, the original school went through 12th grade. There was to be “close, open- minded observation of the children, with a molding of the school program to suit the children’s needs, rather than forcing them to fit a rigid and artificial curriculum,” accord - ing to a school history. “Children were encouraged to progress at whatever rate ▲ Antioch School students demonstrated unicycle skills at the 2012 annual “Anything on Wheels” event. P H O T O : M A T T M I N D E » Estate Planning & Probate & Wills » Real Estate » Conservation Easements » Referrals — PI, Family & Criminal 513-600-7171 lcurliss@curlisslaw.com P.O. Box 463 Yellow Springs, OH 45387 Member of Ohio Bar College ACCEPTING NEW PATIENTS ACCEPTING NEW PATIENTS 937-864-7733 937-399-1121 EnonVeterinary Hospital Northside Veterinary Clinic 208 W. Main St., Enon, OH 10 Critter Court Rd., Springfield, OH HOURS: MON.–FRI., 8 A.M.–6 P.M. SAT., 8 A.M.–NOON • CLOSED SUN. HOURS: MON.–FRI., 8 A.M.–6 P.M. SAT., 8 A.M.–NOON • CLOSED SUN. Certified PersonalTrainer 937 . 760 . 0555 at 360 ° Studio, 213XeniaAvenue above theWinds Jaimie Wilke LEARN: • Proper Stretching • Strengthening • Alignment • Balance • Functional Exercise • And FUN !