Amulba

This is Amulba, a lifer graduating in three weeks(!) We’re all anxious to hand her a diploma and say sayanora – for 11 years she’s been interrupting us incessantly with sophisticated queries above our paygrade, needling us to reflect and improve, and- worst of all, compelling us to think! I know, I know, how did we put up with it so long? She once held my destiny in her hands. Six years ago, at the end of an 8-hour visit (part of the staffing process), I had to undergo a second interview. Due to double booking, most of the staffing committee was unavailable for the interview, but Amulba was there. Just. Amulba. 11 years old. And- she interviewed me. And then she told me to leave the room while “a decision was reached.” When she called me in 2 minutes later she said, “it’s a yes.” Amulba is the monster Sudbury created; a free, capable human being. She’s like the self-learning AI everyone’s so scared of. But if that robot wants to take over the world, it better show up soon, because Amulba is getting better all the time. She can even think unemotionally and engage in debate without being defensive or becoming attached to her own opinions, like a robot. To us petty, defensive humans, only an inanimate object could synthesize information, humbly upgrade opinions, and inspect circumstances from various perspectives like Amulba does. What I’m saying is we’re on to you Amulba – where is your motherboard?

I admit tho that it doesn’t all add up: Amulba can’t be a robot, because she’s a terrible driver: just the other day she “didn’t notice” that a two-lane road had two lanes, and she randomly cut someone off, winning her a first taste of road rage. Never was good at staying in her lane!

Now that I’m thinking about it, Amulba is the person least like a robot I know (whoops)! Because she connects with people in a heartfelt way, and she engages her community and her world. So she’s actually more like Oprah than a robot. It would be hard to list all her accomplishments (but keep your eye out for her thesis, to be published on our blog shortly) It would be harder to say how much we respect and admire and love her. So we’ll just say drive carefully.

Parents’ experience of the school is a crucial factor in determining their childrens’ experience of the school. Children of parents who work hard to understand our philosophy, communicate with staff, attend events, and connect with the community usually get the most out of our program.

At Zena Democratic School, rule infractions and interpersonal conflicts are resolved using sophisticated restorative justice tools.

Age-mixing is one of the most potent developmental experiences at Zena Democratic School.

Each student aged 14+ is automatically enrolled in our High School Advisor Program;

Screens are allowed at school, with restrictions.

At Zena Democratic School, a Cooperative (coop) is a group of like-minded students and staff who organize around a common interest, like music, art, or sports.

At Zena Democratic School, the jobs of administration and maintenance are divided into roles called Clerkships;

Every student and staff at Zena Democratic School is assigned a cleaning job by the Physical Plant Clerk.

Students may receive a diploma if they elect to undergo our internal diploma process.

Zena Democratic School is located on a parcel of 67 wooded acres in the foothills of the Catskill Mountains in the Hudson Valley region of New York State.

Zena Democratic School is a direct democracy; each student and member of the staff has an equal vote in managing all aspects of the school’s operation.