For an article on Sudbury Valley School and the Sudbury approach to education, see the May/June 2006 issue of Psychology Today on newsstands, or online here.

For Voices from the New American School House, a new documentary about
Fairhaven School, click here.

Fairhaven students ages 5 through 19 and beyond are free to decide for themselves how to spend their days. Motivated by curiosity and the drive to become competent adults, they grow emotionally, creatively, and intellectually—through play, school governance, conversation, the arts, classes, computer activities, reading, and the exploration of nature. All kinds of learning, all types of intelligence are valued.

Fairhaven is a true democracy: a weekly School Meeting, made up of students and staff, votes on all aspects of the schools operation—from school rules to budgeting to staffing. Issues of justice are resolved by the Judicial Committee, on which everyone serves on a rotating basis. Students learn firsthand what it means to live in a working democracy, with the freedom and responsibility it entails.

Fairhaven School is modeled after the 35 year old Sudbury Valley School. There are a growing number of Sudbury schools and start-ups around the world, in Canada, Australia, Israel, Denmark, and the Netherlands, as well as the United States (See LINKS). Our graduates have an excellent record of admission to colleges and other post-secondary institutions; their self-confidence, motivation, and ability to manage their time and pursue excellence open doors for them wherever they go.

Fairhaven opened in 1998 on a beautiful 12-acre campus with towering trees, a fossil-filled stream, and open fields, in a quiet, rural setting between Washington D.C. and Annapolis, Maryland. We invite you to take a TOUR of our school by selecting one of these: Panoramic Tour or Virtual Tour.