Witness only schools

by freedom96 9 Replies latest jw friends

• 

  freedom96

  When I was growing up, there was a "school" in the area, that catered only to witness children. There was probably about 60 students, mostly elementary school, but there were a few that were from high school. I had a friend that went for a while, and I got to visit a few times.

  The teaching was barely enough, and consisted of two or three classrooms. My friend went there for a couple of years. He went for a year of middle school, and over a year of high school.

  What sucked though, was that you could absolutely graduate from there, but what you were given was a GED, not a diploma. So, though you went to school, you never had the credit of a "real " school, with an actual diploma.

  My friend ended up going to a public school, after he had already spent over a year in the high school program they had. When he went to transfer, the public school did not accept ANY of the credits he had achieved at the witness school. He had to take a year of classes over, so he could get the required credits so he could graduate.

  And no, the private witness school, did NOT tell the students, nor the parents about this. Many people ended up getting screwed by having to redo so many courses.

  Was this just a one of a kind school? Anyone else experience one of these, or heard of them? This certainly was not a WTS sponsered program, but some gung ho witnesses that had some sort of teaching credentials that thought this would be a good idea. I think it hurt more than it helped, for sure.
• 

  nilfun

  Was this just a one of a kind school?

  Nope. Some of my siblings attended a JW school.
• 

  imanaliento

  I remember an elder who is now is his 60's talking about, that years and I mean years ago they had them. not sure but I'm guessing , they disbanded over to much hanky panky going on, or nit picking, or maybe they felt a better witness could be given if amongst wordlings. ?? but to not give credit for all those years, how disappointing.
• 

  nilfun

  Well, the JW school I was talking about *might* still be in operation...I dunno...the last time I knew for sure it was still "teaching" was around 1991....
• 

  Brymichmom

  In Tucson, Arizona there was a JW school called the "New World School". It was run by mostly uncredentialed JW's who really didn't have a clue what they were doing. (Although I do believe that the principal of the school and his wife had bachelor's degrees from the University of Arizona) From what I know it was just a school of JW propaganda. I knew a few kids who did go to that school. My cousin's wife taught there and from what I understand she was a very mean teacher; she had no credentials either.

  Cynthia
• 

  nilfun

  Funny school that was.
  
  JW kids were sent there so they could straighten up and/or to avoid the harmful influence of worldly schools.
  
  The thing was, that school kinda reminded me of the stories I'd heard about juvie.
  Some kids went in somewhat innocent and naive...and came out knowing more than
  their well-intentioned parents ever dreamed they would about drugs, sex, and crime.
  
  Since a lot of the JW kids there knew the real deal, they didn't worry about
  whether or not they made Jehovah look bad. There was no reason to give a "good witness"
  to anybody- they all came from JW families already - who were they going to recruit?
  
  "Lets watch how we walk and watch how we talk"? Not at this school.
  
  As long as you toe the line among the grown-ups, you could be
  as "worldly" as you wanted to be.
  
  Poor JW Moms and Dads. I wonder how they would feel knowing
  that some of their kids' only motivation for going to class was to
  get the hook-up? Or to liaison with their dealer?
  
  Most of the kids there understood much better than their JW parents
  the fact that JWs are no more better, righteous, pure or loving
  than "worldly people"...if only their parents had understood this.
  They could have spared themselves a lot of expense.
  
  Those JW kids really didn't get much of an education, academically speaking, of course.
  But they did get educated about a whole lot of other stuff.
  
  I mean, some of those JW school alumni sure know how to roll a mean joint.
• 

  robxy

  There was a school in the Sacramento, California area in the 70's and 80's called Sacramento State Preparatory School. Brother Bill [edit] started it and served as Principal. It's the only school I ever attended (well, until college that is). It was a K-12 school designed for witness children (although you didn't have to be a JW to attend). All the teachers and staff had to be baptized witnesses. Most had teaching credentials, although that would have been tough to prove from the way some of them taught. I graduated in 1985. It stayed in existence into the early 90's I think, then they sold the campus to Country Day School. The old school still exists sort of - they changed their name and operate out of an office now, as a homeschool.
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  franklin J

  I grew up on Long Island, New york; and never heard of any JW kind of school. I attended public schools and was an avid dub during the 1970s when the 1975 armageddon date was being thrown out there. From WT influence I wanted to quit school at age 16. Fortunately for me; my Elder father believed in secular education ( he alsways had his own ideas) and insisted that I graduate High School.

  Although I became a full time pioneer at age 17; I had my fathers unconditional encouragement and support at age 21 to attend college.
• 

  one

  based on my experience at "wordly" schoolsI was in favor of private jw school and did a bit promoting the idea, nothing happend

  GED is no problem, the indiviual is the one that can make the difference, i entered college with a GED, i know a pure mathematics university professor, above his peers, who started with a GED at "old" age, after having a family
• 

  XQsThaiPoes

  I went to one of those. In truth times have changed. At first the school was a halo of solace and a belessing to any jw child in the area (and even any child period from the inner city). No gangs, no grafitti, no bullies, no A* teachers or socialworkers, picking on you solely because of your religion. people commuted hours to have their kids there. It was physicaly a paradise with a knoll and woods which oddly was a simultaniously a boyscout camp. It was close to the new order as a jw could get. Ah the wonderful 80's. I remember hearing the challenger blew upon the radio as I came up to that gate. All the kids glued to the TV in the Study Hall watching that y shaped plume.
  
  Then reality soaked in. The late 90's and new millenium. It became a jail for JW kids too bad for public school. Basically JW Juvy. SOme kids were just off of drugs, gangs, or sex. Polo shirts, members only jacket gave way to fubu, and sean jean, vans to air force ones, big hair and diced sweat suits to piercings and belly shirts. Devobecame cotraband eminem.
  
  So "Pajama day" a ecentric and inocent tradition banned after to many um parts began to be exposed, soon to follow tacky day (think if jws gave the do dah parade... well not just the part with the synchornized marching guys in cheap grey suits doing book bag drills but the more creative fashion statments) after too many um well parts began to be exposed.
  
  Also the green eyed monster started deleting pillars of the falculty. While the founders were college professors along with X-public school teachers that were grifted, and great but fed up with the corrupt inner city school system, gave way to fomer students of the school, handymen, indian cheif, highscool drop outs, or anyone sober enought between poping pill to kill 45 minutes by reading the textbook to you and asking empty questions with out explaining or teaching anything. OMG wait I seen that format before. No wait my mistake the other place had microphones. Oddly since a real profesor is still the boss they give out phony college credits something college being tongue clucked when I attended (). SO in the eyes of "the world" the school has gotten academically better.