FAIRHOPE — In a community itself barely 106 years old, it’s not many an institution that can claim to have thrived for 100 years, surviving two world wars, an economic depression, the death of its founder and even shifts in the national consciousness.

The Marietta Johnson School, a.k.a. the Organic School, is an institution in Fairhope that has continued under good and bad economic conditions, celebrating its centennial year. Founded by visionary educator Marietta Johnson, the school, poised for a reunion which will celebrate its 100th year of continous operation, has established a Centennial Fund supported mainly by alumni. The fund put in place by the board of managers to provide accessible money for the ongoing needs of the school was seeded by an anonymous $20,000 if a match can be raised. So far, almost $10,000 has been raised as a match to the original donation, and more is anticipated as a result of the Centennial reunion activities.

Visitors, including graduates and former students from all over the country, are expected to convene here Oct. 5-7 to reunite with old friends, take part in activities at the school and learn some of the many stories their classmates have to tell.

The School of Organic Education was founded as one of the first progressive schools in the nation, and it has never closed its doors although it has endured financial crises, leadership shifts, petty disputes and a certain amount of negative publicity throughout its lifetime. The negatives now in the past, the school is going forward this year with increased enrollment and an alumni base eager to help secure its future, in part with the establishment of the Centennial Fund.

The Organic School, as it is called, has been a benchmark in the Progessive Education movement since its founding. In 1913, it was reviewed by noted educational philosopher John Dewey, and selected as one of the best schools in the nation in his book Schools of Tomorrow. Occupying the 10 acres now housing Faulkner State Community College, the Organic School celebrated childhood itself and imbued its students with the joy of learning as well as the incentive to live the best lives possible. In the 100 years of its existence, its message of educating the whole child — body, mind, and spirit — has been co-opted by a number of other schools but has never been borne out as completely as at the Fairhope school where the concept began.

Marietta Johnson was an American original. Born in Minnesota in 1864, she was a schoolteacher with a dream of starting a school shaped to teach children at their individual level of readiness. She understood that children learn best when they are interested in the subject matter, and felt it was the school’s job to provide such subjects in a timely manner, as the child asked for them. It was her firm belief, which has held to be true over time, that children want to learn and learn best the subjects that interest them. Outdoor activities, nature study, hands-on arts and crafts, music and dance, were all as important in her curriculum as academic subjects. These activities are the backbone of her school as it operates today.

People are expected to begin arriving for the Centennial Reunion as early as Thursday morning from Massachusetts, Arizona, Ohio, New Jersey, Virginia, Tennessee, Georgia, Florida and many locations in Alabama. Organizers say the pre-registration of graduates living in the Fairhope area is surprisingly low, but expected to be up to 200 by the time the events begin.

The Centennial Reunion will include an Open House at the school’s new campus on Marietta Drive (east of Section Street) at Pecan Avenue. The buildings will be open, and students will show visitors what a day in the life of the school is like. Current students will be assisted by graduates who are now of high school and college age, armed with videocams to record stories related to them by some of the older alums. This battery of roving reporters will add to the afternoon fun, which will include a pottery demonstration by Organic graduate and well-known local potter Tom Jones, a cake walk, and the graduates will enjoy a folk dance party Saturday night.

Beginning with Registration at 4 p.m. Friday, the old campus of the school (now Faulkner Community College) will be abuzz with activities including talks by Mary Lois Adshead, Dr. Paul Gaston, Maggie Mosteller-Timbes and Leslie Mulcahy, director of the school. Registration will be in the Bell Building, now the home of the Marietta Johnson Museum, at 10 S. School St.

The Marietta Johnson Museum, in the Bell Building on the Faulkner Campus, will be open in the afternoon Oct. 7 following the brunch. The Marietta Johnson School of Organic Education is a Pre-K through 8 school with openings available in all classes. For information, call (251) 928-9347.

Event Schedule

Friday, Oct. 5

4-5 p.m. Registration, Bell Building

5:45 Welcome Talks, Centennial Hall

6:45 Supper, Recreation Building (Dahlgren Hall)

Saturday, Oct. 6

9-10 a.m. Late Registration, Fairhope Public Library

10 Organic Education Seminar, Dr. Paul M. Gaston, Class of 1946, Speaker “Coming of Age in Utopia,” introduced by Mary Lois Adshead, Class of 1958

10:45 Coffee and doughnuts

11 Discussion of Organic Education, Led by Dr. Gaston and Mrs. Adshead, including comments from visitors on the life they’ve led after their experience at the school.

2-4 p.m. Open House, School of Organic Education, 8 Marietta Drive (East of Section on Pecan Avenue) Pottery Demonstration; Cake Walk; Roving Reporters interviewing alums

7 Folk Dance Party, Fellowship Hall, Fairhope United Methodist Church

Sunday, Oct. 7

11 a.m. Brunch, Biscuit King, County Road 24