P.K. Yonge 75th Anniversary Celebration - Saturday, June 27, 2009
Good evening!
On behalf of the University of Florida, I want to extend a warm welcome to each of you to P.K. Yonge Developmental Research School's 75th anniversary's celebration.
These days, P.K. uses a lottery system for admission. But, for years and years, the waiting list to get into this school was legendary. It was common knowledge you had to sign up early—and I do mean early. New mothers, heading home from the hospital, would literally make a detour to P.K.'s admissions office to put their infants on the list for kindergarten.
When you understand this school's progressive roots…when you look into how it has influenced public education…when you get acquainted with its successful alumni…you know why families were, and are, still so eager to enroll their kids.
P.K. Yonge was that good! It is that good!
P.K. Yonge Laboratory School, as it was originally known, was established in 1934. From the outset, the school's missions were to give UF education students practical classroom experience, to test new ideas and practices in education, and to offer an alternative to Gainesville youth from kindergarten through 12th grade.
P.K. has done just that, with great success, for 75 years.
It's amazing how many of the concepts in education today that we take for granted made early appearances at P.K. Yonge. As far back as the 1930's, the school stressed problem-solving activities, group discussions and student research, rather than lectures and worksheets.
Teachers urged students to interview people in the community and research primary sources in libraries.
The school has undergone many changes over the decades, consistently pioneering new ideas in education that later gained a far larger following.
A 1960's-era "adopt a grandparent" program foreshadowed mentoring programs that are common today. A developmental reading program launched in the early 1980's spread to school districts around the country. P.K.'s physical education program began offering young women the same opportunities as young men four years before Title IX was passed.
These were not just paper innovations. Real students benefited. You can see it in P.K's alumni, whose lives mirror the creativity of their education. Graduates range from an academy-award nominated film editor to an inventor of the Hubble Telescope to an international skateboard champion.
With so many interesting and accomplished alumni, and so many here in this room, I want to single out just one by name.
Here with us tonight is a member of P.K.'s class of 1938—its fourth graduating class. After earning a bachelor's and MBA from UF, this graduate became a tenured faculty member here‐then went on to serve 24 years in the Florida House of Representatives and 12 years as a very highly regarded Florida Commissioner of Education.
Would everyone here please join me in recognizing a great man and the namesake for UF's own Turlington Hall, Ralph Turlington?
Thank you!
P.K.'s alumni are not the only evidence for its success.
Earlier, I mentioned the old waiting list system. The important addendum is that, years ago, P.K. began emphasizing diversity among its students, and in 2001 the school changed its policy to a lottery system to give students equal chance of acceptance. Today about 49 percent of P.K.'s 1,140 students hail from minority populations.
Student performance is impressive. P.K. is an "A" school - in fact, it has been one for the past seven years. Its graduation rate far eclipses the state average. Its visual, performing arts and sports programs are known far and wide for their quality.
Let me conclude with a word or two about P.K.'s Yonge's future. It is very bright!
Recognizing the force of technology in reshaping our society, P.K. teachers are emphasizing the next generation of internet applications in classrooms. The school has also begun efforts to retrofit its campus as a green campus, with the elementary school wing likely first in line.
P.K.'s fundamentals—a strong emphasis on writing, reading and analytical skills, arts and music, coupled with physical activity and education—will always remain.
But, as ever, the school is on the educational vanguard. The University of Florida is fortunate to have such a wonderful ally in its research and education missions, just as Gainesville community is lucky have this unique alternative for its children.
Congratulations on your 75th! Many more to come!