University of Wisconsin - Extension

Wisconsin has an international reputation as a leader in progressive education. The next episode of Wisconsin Stories, ¿School Days,¿ recalls some of the people who helped build that image, as well as one-room schools and a beloved Milwaukee institution.

This edition of the acclaimed Wisconsin Stories airs on Wisconsin Public Television (WPT) at 7 p.m. Thursday, May 2, with an encore at 5:30 p.m. Sunday, May 5. Hosts Tracy Will and Debbie Kmetz lead the engaging journey through Wisconsin¿s rich history. The series highlights intriguing tales about the state, its people and its past through the eyes of those who lived it.

Will and Kmetz open the program outside the building that housed the nation¿s first kindergarten, started by German immigrants in Watertown.

Viewers hear of Helen Parkhurst, whose international influence and innovative ideas put her in the national spotlight. After spending her early days in Durand, she went on to pioneer the Dalton Method of teaching and at one time was the supervisor of all Montessori teachers in the United States. Eventually, she branched out to radio and television with the program ¿A Child¿s World.¿ Her ideas and career brought her plaudits from around the globe.

The days of one-room schoolhouses are remembered, and a restored one-room school in Fitchburg is visited. Students and a teacher recall the days when different ages shared the same space and some 6,000 one-room schools taught children across rural Wisconsin.

The landmark battle over University of Wisconsin professor Richard Ely and academic freedom on campus is detailed. Ely¿s detailed critiques of the labor battles in the 1890s led to his being branded an anarchist in some quarters.

In 1894, Ely faced a UW inquiry into his beliefs and methods, a ¿trial¿ that resulted in his rights being upheld by the UW Regents, a decision that included the famous ¿sifting and winnowing¿ statement. That declaration, immortalized on a plaque on Bascom Hill, reads: ¿Whatever may be the limitations which trammel inquiry elsewhere, we believe that the great state University of Wisconsin should ever encourage that continual sifting and winnowing by which alone the truth can be found.¿

Also remembered is St. Benedict the Moor, a nationally respected boarding school and Catholic Church that served as a spiritual anchor for Milwaukee¿s African-American community. A reunion of St. Benedict¿s students provides the occasion for recalling a school that drew African-American youngsters from around the nation. Alumni look back at St. Benedict¿s as a place with firm rules and high standards that laid the foundation for success in life.

Wisconsin Stories is a partnership of the Wisconsin Historical Society (WHS) and WPT. The multimedia effort unites the historians and archives of WHS with the people, production skills and reach of WPT.

Funding for Wisconsin Stories is provided by an advised fund of the Community Foundation of Southern Wisconsin; the estate and family of Lois Backus; the Halbert and Alice Kadish Foundation; Philip J. and Elizabeth B. Hendrickson; The Boldt Company; the Hamilton Roddis Foundation; the Wisconsin Education Association Council (WEAC); and the Evjue Foundation Inc., the charitable arm of The Capital Times.

The WHS engages the public with the excitement of discovery, inspires people with new perspectives on the past, and illuminates the relevance of history in our lives today.

Wisconsin Public Television is a service of the Wisconsin Educational Communications Board and University of Wisconsin-Extension.

WPT celebrates and connects the people of Wisconsin through programs such as Wisconsin Stories on WHA-TV/Madison, WPNE-TV/Green Bay, WHLA-TV/La Crosse, WHRM-TV/Wausau, WLEF-TV/Park Falls and WHWC-TV/Menomonie-Eau Claire.