The BeginningWritten by Peter A. Schwartz in 1975

An independent school is an intensely personal organization – personal to everyone who has anything to do with it, whether as a member of the governing board, of the fac-ulty, student or parent body. Most of all it is personal to the headmaster, especially if he happens to be the founding headmaster. Each person in his way regards the institution as his school because of what he has put into it and taken out of it. Few human organizations remain in today’s world, which enjoy this air of personal proprietor-ship, which, while it is a source of some danger, provides an independent school with its greatest strength. Love of school is a powerful factor that continues alive in the inde-pendent school, whereas colleges, businesses, clubs, and even churches have lost it.

An independent school is an intensely personal organization –

I find it quite impossible to write a history of our little school in any but a personal manner. The intimacies of personal contact and interaction have been so much a part of the school, and so much a part of my life for so long that I am unable to be objective about them. Use of the first person, personal interpretation of facts and situations, per-sonal bias will all inevitably be characteristic of this work. I apologize for it in advance, but I expect, even invite, a like personal interpretation by each of my readers who, I’m sure, will take issue with me upon many occasions.

INTRODUCTIONFort Worth Country Day credits much of its early success to the first head of school, Peter A. Schwartz. In this document, “Fort Worth Country Day: The Beginning,” he shares, in his own words, what it was like to create this school.

Mrs. Robert P. DuPree

It all began for me on the morning of February 5, 1962. As I remember it the morning was a fresh, beautiful one, warm and clear for a Kansas winter day. The mailman had arrived and among the letters for me was one from a Mrs. Robert P. DuPree of whom I had never heard. It was written from Fort Worth, Texas, a place of which I had only heard because a loquacious wife of one of the faculty of the Pembroke-Country Day School hailed from there and never ceased to sing its praises, thereby prejudicing me against it.

That isn’t quite true, for I had been in Fort Worth, once, while on a trip to San Antonio to attend a meeting of the Independent Schools Association of the Southwest. I had spent the night at the Holiday Inn at the intersection of Highways 80 and 183, hardly an area representative of the city. My experience there did little to dissuade me from my prejudice, for the evening, midnight, and dawn patrols from and to Carswell Air Force Base tore sleep to shred and my stomach growled all night trying to digest the almost raw steak that the chef had thrown at me when I came to the dining room just as it was closing the evening before.closing the evening before.

I was mildly interested in Mrs. Dupree’s statement that a group of Fort Worth people were planning to start a new independent school, and flattered when she went on to say that they wished to consider me as a candidate for its headmastership. It appeared that Alan Lake Chidsey, founding Headmaster of St. John’s School in Houston and in 1962 one of the best known figures in private schooling in America, had recommended me to them. I was flattered by that, too, for it is always moving to be noticed by the great of one’s profession. Beyond a feeling of curiosity about the whys and wherefores of plans for a new school and about whyfor a new school and about why Alan, a good friend of mine, had seen fit to recommend me I felt no real enthusiasm for the project.

I was mildly interested in Mrs. Dupree’s statement that a group of Fort Worth people were planning to start a new independent school, and flat-tered when she went on to say that they wished to consider me as a candidate for its me as a candidate for its headmastership.

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PRELIMINARY CONTACTSchapter one

It just happened that in a day or two from the time that I received Mrs. Dupree’s letter I was supposed to attend a meeting of the National Council of Independent Schools of which I was a board member. Mr. Chidsey, likewise a member, would be present; so, I put off replying to the letter until I had had a chance to discuss the matter with him.

After the meeting in New York I found time for a conference. He told me that this was one of the most promising school starts that he’d ever seen, almost as good as his own in Houston nearly twenty years before. He had been called in to talk with the embryo Board of Trustees, had had a meeting with a large group of prospective parents, and was impressed with the serious interest and careful planning with which the people of Fort Worth had approached the project. He told me that half a million dollars had been raised in gifts and pledges, that a board had been formed, that land had been pur-chased, that proper steps had been taken with state authorities to establish a school, chased, that proper steps had been taken with state authorities to establish a school, and with the Internal Revenue Service to establish the school as a tax free entity entitled to receive deductible gifts. In short, he was very enthusiastic about the project and be-lieved that it was something that I should be interested in.

I went home to Kansas City with much to think about. I was very fond of the Pembroke Country Day School where I had been very successful. I was fond of the people of Kansas City. I had even turned down the chance to become head of a school known to be one of the wealthiest in the land. And yet, I had been feeling a nagging restlessness. Ten years as head of a thriving school! Not a very long time, surely. Yet change was in the air. School heads were talking (as they still are) about when is the proper time to move from one job to another. Five years? Ten? Fifteen? No one any longer spoke of staying the rest of his life in one place. staying the rest of his life in one place. And then there was that word “challenge”? One heard it ad nauseam. It had become trite. Yet, there it was, and there was a challenge staring me in the face. Could I help asking myself whether I had the courage to take it up?

Tentatively, I began a reply to Mrs. Dupree. She had asked me to write a description of my educational philosophy. That would be a challenge in itself, for I had never before written down what I thought I stood for in private education. I struggled with it, trying to put substance into a few scintillating sentences. As I reread them I am impressed with my complete lack of originality. I succeeded in putting on paper a list of truism not even interestingly stated. Some resounding phrases about preserving the heritage, building manhood, teaching kids to think, instilling spiritual principles, and all in the framework of the three “Rthe three “R’s”.

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Then, almost as an after thought, I did a dirty trick. The whole affair seemed like an exercise – not really true. I couldn’t believe that I was actually taking the first step toward quitting a comfortable post in a first class school to launch forth upon the un-known at God knew what risk. So, why not throw them a curve? Texas was in the south, wasn’t it? Integration was a subject of growing importance, wasn’t it? There was a good chance that this group of conservative Fort Worthers was setting up a white flight school, wasn’t there? I added a final paragraph in which I stated rather pompous-ly that of course the great principles upon which a good independent school would be founded would apply equally to all children, regardless of their social, financial, or ethnic origins. Perhaps I secretly hoped that I would be relieved of having to make this dreadful decision. I was sincere in my belief, then as now, and had made overtures to my board of trustees at the Pembroke-Country Day School. As a matter of fact, one of the things that I felt I would be running away from were I to leave was the incipient battle in Kansas City on this very subject. I was reluctant to leave the field before the battle had even been joined.battle had even been joined.

In my naiveté I was doing a great injustice to the Fort Worth people, as I was to learn later on. But I mailed the letter with a feeling of satisfaction. That was that! The end of the matter! I felt certain that I would hear no more from that quarter.

But it was not the end of the matter. I did hear, and as one thing led to another bridg-es were burned behind me and I found myself launched upon the great undertaking of my life. The mixture of excitement, reluctance, enthusiasm, regret, fear, and confi-dence that assailed me is beyond description. There was an unreal, dreamlike quality about the transition months that did not disappear till long after Fort Worth Country Day School was an accomplished fact. How long that was I cannot say for I do not know when we passed the line between experiment and reality.

But it was not the end of the matter. I did hear, and as one thing led to another bridges were burned behind me and I found myself launched upon the great undertak-ing of my life.

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Mr. James R. Meeker

My letter to Mrs. Dupree, dated February 11, 1962 produced an invitation to visit Fort Worth and to meet with the Board of Trustees. My records do not show the date of the meeting but it must have been in March, for I have a carbon copy of a letter to Mr. James R. Meeker dated March 30 in which I thank him for taking such good care of us on our trip. Jim was Secretary of the Board oftrip. Jim was Secretary of the Board of Trustees during the formative years of the school and for the first few years of its existence.

Although the files do not contain much information about this get-acquainted meeting, I have a clear recollection of it. The meeting of the Board was held in the office of Mr. Perry R. Bass, President and Chairman of the Board, and I am under the impression that it was well attended. Many questions were asked but the meeting seemed to lack direction; so, I took the initiative and started to ask questions about what the Board expected of an independent school. What should it stand for? Whom should it serve? How would it be financed? Did they realize the selectivity would have to apply to children of financed? Did they realize the selectivity would have to apply to children of Board Members as well as to other children? I felt that I was making some important points, but I knew that I wasn’t really getting through. The school was yet far from a reality and what I had to say was of mere academic interest.

Finally, Mr. Bass said, “Mr. Schwartz, we want the finest day school in America.” He didn’t add, “and right away?” but I felt that time was of the essence. This was a group of people used to getting what they wanted in a hurry. They were used to working hard for what they wanted. I got a strong impression that this venture would be backed with a lot of power. But I also got the impression that results were wanted, visible results, soon. There would be no quarter given if the appointed head didn’t deliver the goods with speed.

I took the initiative and started to ask questions about what the Boards expected of an independent school. What should it stand for? independent school. What should it stand for? Whom should it serve? How would it be financed? Did they realize the selectivity would have to apply to children of Board Members as well as to other children?

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OVERTURES BECOME NEGOTIATIONSchapter two

Mr. Perry R. Bass

A surprising question arose concerning the absorption of another school. I was in the dark, of course, until they told me that there was a boys’ choir school that was fast becoming noticed nationally and that needed to become noticed nationally and that needed to become part of an academic school. This choir was in the habit of taking long trips that necessitated absence from school. It was also desirable from the point of view of the choir director to give the boys of the choir a much stronger background in the liberal arts, particularly inforeign languages, than was normally foreign languages, than was normally obtainable at the local public schools. Did I think it feasible to incorporate this already existing school into the about-to-be-founded Fort Worth Day School?

I felt incompetent to make a definitive reply since I knew so little of the circumstances, all too little about the city, its needs, the social structure, and the true nature of the desires of the Board for the school they were about to start. Instinctively, however, I felt this to be a very important question in the eyes of the people I was meeting with. They wanted an answer, and one of the headmaster candidates would venture one. Why not I?

An already organized group of boys would be a tempting asset to anyone trying to start a school. Enrollment would be the main problem in getting started and fifty to a hundred boys would be a very good beginning. But intuition began shooting little red lights all over the place. An enrollment core would be an asset, but a group that was pointed to a set of goals different from those of the main school would be a distinct liability. I could imagine part of the student body permitted to be absent from school for a concert series and what that would do to the morale of the rest of the student body. I could imagine faculty attitude when required to help the absent singers to make up the work they had missed. Classes of required to help the absent singers to make up the work they had missed. Classes of fifteen or twenty could be pretty badly hampered by the absence of four or five members.

Finally, Mr. Bass said, “Mr. Schwartz, we want the finest day school in America.”

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Consequently, though I felt that I was firing blind, as it were, I said that I would not approve of such an amalgamation. The Board listened attentively to my reasoning and moved on to other matters. But that was not the end of the matter.

The meeting ended on a very friendly note, and we departed for Kansas City with warm feelings about Fort Worth. The enthusiasm of the Board for the new school project was unmistakable. It was clear that financial backing could be obtained. I had been informed that many prospective parents were enthusiastic about a private day school in Fort Worth that was then the only city of comparable size in the United States that didn’t have such a school. On the other hand, it was hard to determine whether or not the city would take to such a school. In the midwest the popular attitude toward independent school was that they were elitist – refuges for the protected children of the rich. I was familiar with the attithey were elitist – refuges for the protected children of the rich. I was familiar with the atti-tude as it existed in Kansas City, but there the independent school had been a fact for half a century and three strong schools were flourishing in 1962. Would anyone dare to pio-neer one in the Fort Worth area? More important, would I dare? True, Dallas had three thriving private schools; but, as my Fort Worth friends had hastened to tell me, Dallas was Dallas and Fort Worth was Fort Worth. They didn’t say “never” but it was implied that the meeting would be hard to achieve.

A major roadblock of a personal nature was present, too. The Fort Worth people were anxious to get started. They were impatient. They had worked on the project for a long time and wanted to get on with it. Many of the interested parents had children ready to enter eighth or ninth grade and they wanted to get them started in the new school without having to attend public high school. They knew how hard it would be to make the break once their children had gotten thoroughly indoctrinated in the “big time”.

My timing was not the same as theirs, though. March was not a good time to resign a headmastership for one reason. It would be most unfair to my Board of Trustees in Kansas City to drop such a bomb shell upon them at such a time, especially as we had gone through so much together and had built up strong mutual regard. Of course, I hadn’t been offered the job in Fort Worth and there was no assurance that I would be offered it, but I had to make up my mind in advance in case the offer should come. Clearly, it would be better for Fort Worth to find a man who could start in April or May. In my opinion, the time was much too short to pull together a faculttime was much too short to pull together a faculty, even if the problem of a school building could be solved on a temporary basis.

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There followed a period of frenetic activity. Telephone calls and letters almost daily. The new Headmaster was assigned a retainer fee plus expenses for the period May 1, 1962 until June of 1963 when he would take up residence in Fort Worth. Formal an-nouncement of his appointment was held up until June when he could formally resign as head of the Pembroke Country Day School, which resignation was to become effective in June of 1963. In other words, he was to be head of two schools simultaneously, one run-ning full blast and one in its formative stages, throughout the school year 1962-1963.

Another trip to Fort Worth was planned for late June of 1962 at which time the headmas-ter would be introduced to a number of prospective parents and enter upon a series of meetings with architects to approve plans for new buildings, which were to be begun as soon as possible. Meetings with the Board’s Vice-President, Mr. O.P. Leonard, Jr., pro-duced some tentative figures for the first year’s operating budget. A most difficult job for there was no way to be sure what the enrollment of the school would be or in what grades children would be concentrated. It was determined to start with grades one through nine (the original plan had been to include one through eight) so as to accommodate those par-ents who had been counting upon their children entering in the eighth grade and who would now be disappointed because of the decision to open the school a year later.

The best advice obtainable from various headmasters and school consultants discour-aged inclusion of grade nine in the opening year on the grounds that high school students being another breed apart from the rest of the school would be hard to handle. The aca-demic structure would not, it was thought, be strong enough for them and the total ab-sence of a high school tradition would put them at a disadvantage. Pressure was strong to include these students, though, since many of their parents had been leaders in the pre-liminary struggle to organize a school and to raise money. Consequently, the step was taken though with much misgiving on the part of the headmaster who had now to organize a three-part school instead of merely the lower and middle divisions.

Another series of negotiations had to be entered into with members of the Board to deter-mine the fees that would be charged at the various grade levels. Few board members had any real sense of the cost of operating an independent school and were of the opinion that fees could be at a very low level. The headmaster was hard put to convince them that low charges meant low operating income and that that, in turn, meant poor compensation for teachers. It was clear to him that board and prospective parents wanted the best in edu-cational service but were reluctant to pay for it.

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FINAL NEGOTIATIONS AND INITIAL PLANSchapter three

Mr. O.P. Leonard, Jr.

By use of a Cadillac/Ford analogy he managed to convince them that they could not enjoy the luxury of the former for the price of the latter and a reasonable tuition schedule was finally agreed upon: $500 for the first three grades, $700 for the next three, $900 for the top three.

It was at about this time that an announcement of the inception of the Trinity Valley School was suddenly made through the mail to people who had expressed interest in the founding of an independent school. Trinity Valley was to open in the autumn of 1962 in the old Laneri High School building on Hemphill Street. A curriculum rich in foreign lan-guages was published in their brochure, the names of some teachers known to be good were mentioned, and tuition fees were set at a very low level.

This development caused some consternation in the ranks of Fort Worth Day School supporters. It was felt that an effort was being made to “scoop” a rival. The decision to postpone the opening of the Day School until 1963 had left a vacuum in private school de-velopment just when anticipation was at its height and it was felt, with some reason, that parents planning to send their children to the Day School in 1963 might be sidetracked into Trinity Valley just because it was ready and waiting to begin. This happened in some cases, but since the Trinity Valley School had been formed to absorb the Choir School as previously mentioned, and since it was for boys onlpreviously mentioned, and since it was for boys only, there never was much competition for students. The Day School, founded as a coeducational school at a time when coedu-cation was the coming thing, had the upper hand in enrollment until Trinity Valley went co-educational some years later.

...a reasonable tuition schedule was finally agreed upon: $500 for the first three grades, $700 for the next three, $900 for the top three.

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Mrs. Amon G. Carter, Jr.

Mrs. Virginia CurtisMrs. Virginia Curtis

Mrs. Ben T. Willey

Lists of interested parents had been prepared and letters and forms for applying for admission to the Day School were being sent out. It became necessary to set up some sort of office structure to conduct the business of the school during the summer and through the following school year. Mrs. Olive Swenson (Pellich) had been appointed by the Board ofappointed by the Board of Trustees during the fund raising period and it was agreed to retain her services. She was doing all work on the pledge cards, answering the telephone, replying to questions about the school, keeping board members informed on developments, keeping minutes of Board meetings. In short, she was the school, first at an office on Rosedale and later in her own apartment throughout the year 1962 and well into 1963.apartment throughout the year 1962 and well into 1963.

To process applicants expected in the fall it was necessary to set up a testing organization. Through the help of Mrs. Amon G. Carter, Jr., a member of the Board, Mrs. Virginia Curtis was selected to do the admission testing with Mrs. Swenson to help her. A schedule of test days was set up for the fall and winter. A preliminary interview with Mrs. Beninterview with Mrs. Ben T. Willey who appeared at a large public meeting in the Texas Hotel where the new headmaster was introduced for the first time gave hope of finding a Dean of Girls, a vital appointment at the new school because the headmaster was without previous experience in coeducation having always worked at boys’ schools.

The name of the new school turned out to be an issue. Since the very beginning interested people had wrestled with the problem without success, and when the Trinity Valley School appeared to have selected a most appropriate name eappropriate name efforts were redoubled. The best that could be agreed upon was the Fort Worth Country Day School and the school was first incorporated under that name, even though all believed that it left much to be desired.

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Mr. Thomas M. Ryan

When the headmaster first appeared he was asked to name the school. Being totallyignorant of local names and customs and being aware that the Board wished above all ignorant of local names and customs and being aware that the Board wished above all things to avoid using the name of any person and the conventional terms such as “Hall” or “Academy” he was in a dilemma and could only suggest Fort Worth Country Day. This name, he argued, had two advantages: first, it named the city, thus giving the unheard of school instant geographic identity; and second, it gave the school the generic name “Country Day” which immediately identified it with similar schools that used the term, St. Louise Country Day, Detroit Country Day, North Shore Country Day, Pembroke Country DaDay, and a host of others.

The idea proved to be an acceptable compromise and the name was adopted some time in the summer of 1962. Articles of incorporation were changed accordingly and by autumn of that year the original name had been forgotten and Fort Worth Country Day School it was. On many occasions since, members of the school have been glad of its name, especially at athletic contests away from home when students were able to bear with them the name of their city as well as that of their school.

On August 28 an important meeting of the Board of Trustees was held at which some significant decisions were reached. The minutes include a report of the Building Commit-tee, Mr. Thomas M. Ryan, Chairman, presented general plans for the first three buildings which were designated C, B, and A. Equally important was the presentation of the campus master plan which has been warped slightly over the years but which has been generally adhered to ever since. Somewhat to the surprise of members of the Board, the master plan placed the buildings well below the top of the hill among a group of trees. This cir-cumstance caused considerable adverse comment, but finally received approval, as did the rest of the report. Mr. Preston M. Geren, Jr. and his associates deserve much credit for their foresight both in master plan on building placement, for as the area has devel-oped it is clear that placing the buildings on the hilltop would have been a sad mistake.

The name of the new school turned out to be an issue.

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Mr. Sam B. Cantey, III

Another significant action taken by the Board at this meeting was to plan another, formal fund drive with professional direction. The action was taken in the absence of the headmaster who had been unable to attend the meeting. It was much opposed by him on the grounds that the timing was wrong. People had been led to believe that a school was to be formed in 1962, and contributed to that project generously, and now were to be asked for more money before there was any evidence of a school. However, members of the Finance Committee felt that additional funds were necessary to meet members of the Finance Committee felt that additional funds were necessary to meet the heavy expense of building. The architects’ plans called for the expenditure of about $450,000, not including utilities or furnishing, and since the total funds of the school were only $500,000, most of it in pledges, a very real financial problem stood in the way unless additional funds could be acquired. October 1st was set for the opening of the drive and National Fund Raisers were decided upon to do the job.

A rough draft of a proposed brochure descriptive of the school was presented to the Board for criticism and approval. Mr. Sam B. Cantey, III, Treasurer of the school was slowly accumulating material for this brochure. Input from the headmaster was to be forthcoming by early fall. It was to be his job to provide curriculum information, school philosophy, and operating procedures. Mr. Cantey would provide the general format, the artwork, and the photography.

Perhaps the most important decision reached at this meeting was to divide the Board of Trustees into standing committees, each directed toward some aspect of the school’s structure and operation. The Headmaster had requested that this be done for he was perfectly familiar with the problems arising from getting too many people involved in every school situation, even at the policy level. Without a committee structure much time is wasted in board meetings and definitive action is hard to achieve; whereas, a committee can thoroughly discuss a matter in a small meeting and report to the full Board with recommendation for action. Board with recommendation for action. The school came to depend heavily upon this system and many board members have been able to render valuable service to the school because of it. But, at the time of its inception there was much opposition by some members of the Board who felt that all membersshould be fully involved in all board matters.

The balance of the summer of 1962 was without incident and the new headmaster retreated to Kansas City to wrestle with some problems that haddeveloped there and to try to get some vacation with his sons in the Canadian Woods Canoe Country.

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The school year 1962-1963 was not an easy one. The Headmaster was confined to his school in Kansas City where events were moving swiftly and with many com-plications. First was the regular task of running the school, but with the difference that this was a lame duck year for him. Second was the complicated task of Second was the complicated task of choosing a successor for him. He was not directly involved in the selectionprocess but he was expected to act as host to the many visiting heads who came

to the school to look around and to be interviewed. Third, after the selection was finally made some time in January, it proved to be the headmaster’s task to hire the faculty for the Pembroke Country Day School, for the man chosen to succeed happened to be em-ployed at Robert College in Istanbul and was not able to conduct negotiations with cur-rent and prospective teachers. This meant hiring two complete faculties, one for Pem-broke and one for Fort Worth.

In the meantime things continued to boil along in Fort Worth. Plans for the buildings were finalized. Applications began to come in sufficient numbers so that testing had to begin. Applications from teachers were being received. The Headmaster made a trip to Fort Worth in October to touch base with the many people concerned. Meetings with committees of the Board considered every aspect of the school. The copy for the bro-chure was finalized and turned over to Mr. Cantey. Interviews with teachers were set up in the Texas Hotel where the Headmaster was staying. A large gathering of prospective parents met in one of the ballrooms to hear from the Headmaster plans for the new parents met in one of the ballrooms to hear from the Headmaster plans for the new school. Numbers of students began to take shape in the various grades so that it was a little easier to see what the faculty needs would be. Plans were laid for a series of coffee meetings at various Board member houses for the purpose of giving prospective parents a better chance to talk with the headmaster. These meetings were to take place during the winter.

Another trip was made to Fort Worth in November during which the Headmaster visited the Casady School, which was in turmoil, having fired its headmaster, and where a large number of teachers were restless and attracted by the new project in Fort Worth. This proved a fruitful trip. During the time in Fort Worth discussions with Board members and prospective parents were held at every opportunity.

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THE INTERIM YEARchapter four

On December 12, 1962 ground was broken for the Fort Worth Country Day School. A large number of Trustees and friends of the school gathered on the cold hillside and with shovels hastily provided by Mr. Leonard from his store’s stock, earth was ceremonially turned. Bulldozers were hard at work during the event and Country Day Lane (not yet so named) was receiving its final touches. The Headmaster was disturbed to learn that the road had been dedicated to the city. Upon questioning this action he was told that all the land that the school could possibly use (55 acres) had been set aside west and north of that road at no cost to the school. It was true that all the flat land had been north of that road at no cost to the school. It was true that all the flat land had been retained and that the buildings were to be placed on the sight rise to the east and south. Still, the Headmaster felt that giving away the road was an action that would return to haunt the school, and so it proved.

At the time of ground breaking the school owned outright only ten acres of land. The balance of the approximately ninety acres that had been made available, minus the area covered by the road, now a city street, was held under option at $2,000 per acre. This was a very reasonable price, especially as Mr. Ryan who controlled the property had agreed to put up $1,000 for every acre that the school bought. This land arrangement was very favorable, of course, but the headmaster would be uneasy until all the land had been acquired for the school.

On December 12, 1962 ground was broken for the Fort Worth Country Day School. A large number of Trustees and friends of the school gathered on the cold hillside and with shovels hastily provided by Mr. Leonard from his store’s stock, earth was ceremonially turned.

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Miss Rae SkinnerMrs. Bruce Landis

He had had experience with problems faced by a growing school on a plot of land that was much too small, a circumstance resulting from failure of a Board of Trustees to acquire enough land many years before when it was readily available.

In February the Headmaster made an extended trip to the eastern seaboard in search of teachers for the new school. He had lined up prospects in many schools throughout the Midwest and east, from Ohio to Maine, and since it was easier and cheaper to visit those prospects on their own territory he made the trip by automobile. He had decided that the faculty of the new school should represent Texas, non-Texans, and people who, regard-less of where they had been reared and educated were currently residents of Fort Worth. These three groups were to be in approximately equal numbers. He did not want to be accused of building an Easternaccused of building an Eastern Type school. The new school was to be “different” in every sense, but not so different as to be threatening to prospective parents and their children. Such a plan necessitated a wide-ranging search as well as careful selection from local sources.

In the course of the teacher search the Headmaster began to realize that teacher talent was in short supply. Really good teachers were reluctant to give up secure jobs to go to the “wild west” to a city that they had never heard of and to a school that did not even exist. All they had to go on was the reputation of the Headmaster and his word that they were not making a mistake. Salaries offered were adequate for the times, but not munificent.

He did not want to be accused of building an Eastern Type school. The new school was to be “different” in every sense, but not so different as to be threatening to prospective parents and their children.

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Everything else was a vacuum of the unknown. Many excellent prospects were interviewed but when it came to taking the plunge the spirit of adventure seemed to dry interviewed but when it came to taking the plunge the spirit of adventure seemed to dry up. The search in the Fort Worth area began to bear fruit immediately. Miss Alann Bed-ford (Mrs. E. W. Sampson, Jr.) was appointed as head of the history department. Mrs. Arthur Clemens was appointed to start the art department. Mrs. Royce M. Willey was appointed director of girls’ athletics and dean of girls. Miss Ray Skinner (Mrs. Ed Schol-lmeier) was appointed to teach grade three. Mrs. Bruce Landis, our most experienced teacher, was appointed to teach grade two.

Test results were sent to the Headmaster in Kansas City for evaluation and action. All parents who applied received personal letters and most of the children were accepted. Actually, test results were not particularly good and the Headmaster had difficulty making evaluation of them. The tests used were standard for independent schools, but since none of the applicants had ever attended an independent school, the testing process was a little like measuring a board with a measuring cup. process was a little like measuring a board with a measuring cup. The instrument was not really adequate for the job. Some shrewd guesses were made. Some evaluations were made by interviewing the parents. If parents seemed to have an intelligent under-standing of the aims of such a school and if they seemed to be the king of people who would require their children to make the necessary effort, admissions was sometimes granted even though test results were discouraging.

And thus the year wore on. Buildings were going up. Plans were being made. The Headmaster was vibrating between Fort Worth and Kansas City like the clapper in an electric bell, attending the prospective parent coffees, talking with architects, board members, and teacher candidates. The Headmaster’s wife came to Fort Worth house hunting, in between times of running her own household and acting as Kansas City secretary for the Fort Worth Country Day School.

Finally, with the Pembroke Country Day School’s class of 1963 safely graduated and all farewell parties finished, the Headmaster and his family moved to Fort Worth, arriving June 12th to take residence the following day on Simondale Drive.

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Mr. Hubert Williams

Mr. Peter A. Schwartz, Mrs. Olive Swenson and Mr. Robert Mitchell

Since the school’s buildings were not yet open for use, the school office was set up in the Headmaster’s home. Files accumulated by him were moved in and the remainder of the records continued to be stored at Mrs. Swenson’s house. Mrs. Schwartz continued to act as the Headmaster’s secretary and Mrs. Swenson did everything else. Her most important task was straightening out the Headmaster on the persons and personalities closely connected with the school. He had to learn names of parents and their children and their relationship to other people – grandparents, cousins, uncles, and aunts. Fortunately for him she was a mine ofgrandparents, cousins, uncles, and aunts. Fortunately for him she was a mine ofinformation and was able to save him from many a blunder.

The school’s first maintenance man hired turned out to be knowledgeable about farming and ranching and could take good care of lawns and fields but knew nothing about the complicated machinery that was being installed in the cafeteria basement to handle heating and air conditioning. With little or no assistance he was basement to handle heating and air conditioning. With little or no assistance he was going to have to care for all cleaning and repairing of interior spaces. A struggle for cleanliness ensued until assistance was finally acquired in the person of Mr. Hubert Williams who remained with the school until 1976.

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STARTING UPchapter five

A business manager was needed, too, and finally one was found. Mr. Robert Mitchell agreed to take on the task when the time came that we could give him an office and a desk. It turned out that he was not truly prepared for the job of running the finances of a school and his tenure was not long, but long enough for his son, Bobby, to be the first top honors student in the Middle School. His name is on the top of the plaque that hangs in the hall outside the Headmaster’s office.

In July disaster struck. A very important member of the faculty who had been hired to teach Latin and French wrote to say that he was unable to come. He was one of the “foreign imports” the Headmaster had carefully selected and his disappearance was a serious blow. Teachers were very hard to find, especially good ones. Teachers of foreign language were in especially short supply, but the hand of the Lord was soon in evidence. evidence. A telephone call came from an English School Master who claimed expertise in Latin and athletics. He was brought to Fort Worth for a visit, his credentials checked, and since he made an immediate hit with all people upon first meeting he was signed up and the emergency terminated.

Only two more appointments needed to be made, a director of boys athletics and a first grade teacher. The latter proved necessary because the expected number of dropouts from enrollment failed to materialize and the first grade threatened to be too large. Mrs. Annie Spencer, a retired public school teacher with a fine reputation and known to many prospective parents was hired to fill the latter post. Don Hammer, a minister at the University Baptist Church, became the schoolUniversity Baptist Church, became the school’s first director of athletics and coach of boy’s athletics. He also taught American History to the eighth grade. Later, after he had moved on to more important posts in his church, his son joined Country Day as a fine member of the student body.

Soon, enough of the administrative building was competed so that Mrs. Curtis was able Soon, enough of the administrative building was competed so that Mrs. Curtis was able to conduct a small class in remedial reading during the latter part of the first summer and the Headmaster was able to move into his office. His first task was to acquire a desk and a chair each for Mrs. Swenson, Mr. Mitchell and himself, and two filing cabinets, one for student and faculty records and one for the business office. It was touch and go whether the other two buildings would be complete for opening dawhether the other two buildings would be complete for opening day, but the builders kept promising, furniture and books kept arriving, teachers began to drop in to see how things were progressing, students and parents began to appear to meet members of the staff and to ask questions. A school did seem to be evolving, almost miraculously, among the bricks and debris of building.

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One afternoon in August the Headmaster held a special meeting of members of the ninth grade. Most attended sat upon piles of lumber in the unfinished cafeteria and drank coke while listening to the Headmaster’s explanation of how the school would operate. They appeared unenthusiastic about his challenge to them – that they were to be the leader group, the pioneer first graduates, and that he and the school would need their interest and hard work. It would be like being seniors for four years. Come on, fellas, we’ve got a job to do! They succeeded in masking any serious feeling they may have had and only wanted to know whether the school would play football. Upon being assured that they wanted to know whether the school would play football. Upon being assured that they would be given the chance, they brightened up a bit, and even the girls showed some spark of interest when they thought of the possibility of cheerleading. It was hardly a successful meeting, but at least the ice was broken and the students knew someone attached to the school. None withdrew.

The first meeting of the faculty was held in August. There were no lab desks, cupboards, gas, water, or electric fixtures. The members of the original faculty were strangers to one another, only one or two of them having met before this day. They represented a wide range of geographic and cultural backgrounds. Even the Texans among them did not all hail from Fort Worth by any means, while some came from far off parts of the United States and from abroad. It was an interesting mix and it was anyone’s guess whether or not they would be able to work together amicably.

The Headmaster presented the Faculty Handbook, a document that while it has The Headmaster presented the Faculty Handbook, a document that while it has undergone many revisions, remains substantially the same today in basic philosophy and in what it describes as desirable teacher attitude and behavior. It took all of two days to go over all parts of the Handbook with the great care necessary to assure that all members of the faculty understood it completely and agreed to abide by it. That one document and the person of the Headmaster were all that the faculty of the school had in common at the outset. Policies and procedures were sketched in, but it was clear to everyone that they were temporary and that only in time and through mutual eeveryone that they were temporary and that only in time and through mutual effort could the distinct organism that is a school evolve.

It was agreed among the faculty that never had they had such delightfully comfortable quarters to work in as provided by the new school. It seemed that everything had been thought of. provided by the new school. It seemed that everything had been thought of. The sheer comfort of an air conditioned school, the first such in Fort Worth, gave everyone a special lift as they realized that the first awful weeks of hot classrooms, dusty air, and sweaty bodies would be no more.

Come on, fellas, we’ve got a job to do!

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Then came the great day, September 9, 1963. The Fort Worth Country Day School opened its doors to its first students. There were 210 of them in all, polished and scrubbed, feeling awkward in new uniforms, strange among strangers, but excited by their new surroundings. All the students and at least one parent from each family at-tended the opening assembly in the new cafeteria. There was plenty of room. Opening prayers, a hymn, a brief welcome from the Headmaster reminding them of their good fortune to be founders of a new school and challenging them to set a strong pace for themselves and for those to follow was the order of events. themselves and for those to follow was the order of events. Then all students and teachers were dismissed to their classes and the school year began.

However, very early on that first morning the maintenance man’s helper arrived to make sure all was in readiness. To his amazement he discovered a very young opos-sum running up and down the hall of Building C. To this day no one knows how the creature got there, but he was turned over to the science department and became an in-stant hit with the children who thought that an air-conditioned school complete with pets had to be the best. There was some discussion among the faculty about declaring the opossum to be the school’s mascot, but when they began to realize the symbolism the idea was quickly abandoned.

The school was on track and moving. That was the important fact. Its first steps were shaky, impeded by unfamiliar procedures, equipment, and buildings. But the excitement was infectious and the spirit high. From the first moments it was evident that the ninth grade was taking its responsibilities seriously. These students had never before been treated as more than human bodies in a herd and as they gradually discovered that they were to be party to decisions, their opinions respected and their leadership genuinely needed and appreciated, they rose to the occasion with becoming maturity. It would be hard to assess the contribution to the school made by this first class, the Class of 1967, hard to assess the contribution to the school made by this first class, the Class of 1967, that for four years provided student leadership, set the tone of the school in work and conduct, and set an example of meeting the new and unexpected with poise and dignity.

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Then came the great day, September 9, 1963. The Fort Worth Country Day School opened its doors to its first students. There were 210 of them in all, polished and scrubbed, feeling awkward in new uniforms, strange among strangers, but excited by their new surroundings.

It would be hard to assess the contribution to the school made by this first class, the Class of 1967, that for four years provided student leadership, set the tone of the school in work and conduct, and set an example of meeting the new and unexpected with poise and dignity.

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