{{short description|American educator}} {{Infobox person |name =Marva Collins |image = National Medal of Humanities Recipient Marva Collins in the Oval Office (cropped).jpg |alt = Marva Collins |caption = Collins in 2004 |birth_name = Marva Delores Knight |birth_date = {{Birth date|1936|08|31}} |birth_place = Monroeville, Alabama, U.S. |death_date = {{Death date and age|2015|06|24|1936|08|31}} |death_place = Beaufort County, South Carolina, U.S. |education = Clark Atlanta University |other_names = Marva King |spouse = {{marriage|Clarence Collins|1960|1995|reason=d.}} |children = 3 |occupation = Educator |known_for=Creating Westside Preparatory School in Chicago's Garfield Park neighborhood in 1975. | years_active = 1957–2008 }} '''Marva Delores Collins''' (née '''Knight'''; August 31, 1936 – June 24, 2015) was an American educator. Collins is best known for creating Westside Preparatory School, a widely acclaimed private elementary school in the impoverished Garfield Park neighborhood of Chicago, Illinois, which opened in 1975.<ref name=ChicagoTrib-Obit-2015>{{cite news|last1=Briscoe|first1=Tony|title=Marva Collins, Renowned Educator, Dies at 78|url=http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/ct-marva-collins-obituary-met-20150625-story.html|accessdate=29 June 2015|work=Chicago Tribune|date=28 June 2015}}</ref><ref name=NYTimes-Obit-2015>{{cite news|last1=Roberts|first1=Sam|title=Marva Collins, Educator Who Aimed High for Poor, Black Students, Dies at 78|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2015/06/29/us/marva-collins-78-no-nonsense-educator-and-activist-dies.html|accessdate=29 June 2015|work=The New York Times|date=28 June 2015}}</ref>
==Early life== Collins was born in Monroeville, Alabama, to father, Henry Knight, a businessman who owned a funeral home and worked with cattle, and to mother, Bessie Knight (née Nettles). She grew up in Atmore, Alabama, a small town near Mobile, Alabama, during the time of segregation in the American South.<ref name=NYTimes-Obit-2015/> When she was young, Collins went to a strict elementary school in a one-room schoolhouse in Atmore, an experience which influenced her later in life.<ref name=People-OneRoomSchoolhouse-1978>{{cite news|last1=Kellett|first1=Susie|title=For the Kids' Sake, Marva Collins Resurrects the One-Room School House—in a Chicago Ghetto|url=http://www.people.com/people/archive/article/0,,20072400,00.html|accessdate=30 June 2015|work=People|issue=24|date=11 December 1978|volume=10}}</ref> She graduated from Clark College (now known as Clark Atlanta University) in Atlanta, Georgia.<ref name=ChicagoTrib-Obit-2015/>
== Career == [[File:President George W. Bush and Mrs. Laura Bush with National Medal of Humanities Recipient Marva Collins in the Oval Office.jpg|thumb|right|Collins with President George W. Bush and First Lady Laura Bush in 2004]] Collins taught school for two years in Alabama, then moved to Chicago in 1959, where she taught as a full–time substitute teacher in inner–city Chicago Public Schools system for fourteen years.<ref name=Al.com-Obit-2015>{{cite news|last1=Matthews|first1=Michelle|title=1 comment Acclaimed educator Marva Collins, a native of Monroeville, dies at 78|url=http://www.al.com/news/mobile/index.ssf/2015/06/acclaimed_educator_marva_colli.html|accessdate=30 June 2015|work=AL.com|publisher=Alabama Media Group|date=29 June 2015}}</ref>
=== Westside Preparatory School === Dismayed at the low levels of learning that she felt some students were experiencing in particular areas, Collins took $5,000 ($25,910 in 2021 dollars<ref>[https://www.usinflationcalculator.com/ U.S. Inflation Calculator]</ref>) from her own teacher's retirement fund and started a private school on the top floors of the brownstone in the West Garfield Park neighborhood where she lived in 1975.<ref name="People-OneRoomSchoolhouse-1978"/>
The school she started was called Westside Preparatory School. Westside Prep became an educational and commercial success.<ref name="WLS-TV-Chicago-ABC-SchoolClosure-2008"/> Collins created her low-cost private school specifically for the purpose of teaching low income black children whom Collins felt the Chicago Public School System had mislabeled as being learning disabled.<ref name=MarvaCollins-Bio-2011>{{cite web|title=Marva Collins - Biography |url=http://www.marvacollins.com/pdf/marva_bio.pdf|website=Marva Collins|accessdate=29 June 2015 |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20110723015431/http://www.marvacollins.com/pdf/marva_bio.pdf |archivedate=23 July 2011|date=2011}}</ref> Collins said she had the data to prove that her students were teachable and were able to overcome obstacles of learning via her teaching methods, which she said eliminated behavioral issues and allowed students to flourish.<ref name=EDOCERE-OCET-MW-Excerpts-20>{{cite web |last1=Collins |first1=Marva |title=Excerpts from Ordinary Children, Extraordinary Teachers and Marva Collins' Way |url=http://www.edocere.org/articles/marva_collins.htm |website=EDOCERE |publisher=Society of Saint Pius X |accessdate=29 June 2015 |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20050205060910/http://www.edocere.org/articles/marva_collins.htm |archivedate=5 February 2005}}</ref>
The one-room schoolhouse of her education influenced her methods. At home her father gave her assignments she believed built her confidence and gave her a sense of responsibility. She felt time spent with students was more valuable than distance-creating audio visual information.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.biography.com/people/marva-collins-5894|title=Marva Collins Biography |website=Biography.com |publisher=A&E Television Networks|access-date=7 June 2016}}</ref> Collins and her daughter ran the school for more than 30 years until it closed in 2008 due to lack of sufficient enrollment and funding.<ref name=NYTimes-Obit-2015 /><ref name=WLS-TV-Chicago-ABC-SchoolClosure-2008>{{cite news|last1=Jordan|first1=Karen|title=Marva Collins School to Close|url=http://abc7chicago.com/archive/6188122/|accessdate=29 June 2015|work=WLS-TV Chicago|date=5 June 2008}}</ref>
==Media coverage== Collins became well-known due to the 1981 TV movie based on her life's work entitled ''The Marva Collins Story'', starring Cicely Tyson and Morgan Freeman.<ref name=IMDb-MarvaCollinsStory-1981>{{IMDb title|id=0082719|title=The Marva Collins Story}}</ref><ref name=NYTimes-TVMovie-Review-1981>{{cite news|last1=O'Connor|first1=John J.|title=TV: Marva Collins, Unusual Teacher|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1981/12/01/arts/tv-marva-collins-unusual-teacher.html|accessdate=30 June 2015|work=The New York Times|date=1 December 1981}}</ref> She also appeared on a featured news article on CBS's ''60 Minutes. ''Cicely Tyson, who played Collins in the TV movie, said she spent time with Collins to research for the role.<ref name="NYTimes-TysonResearch-1981">{{cite news|last1=Fraser|first1=C. Gerald|title=Television Week: Dedication|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1981/11/29/arts/television-week-111191.html|accessdate=30 June 2015|work=The New York Times|date=29 November 1981}}</ref> The ''60 Minutes'' feature was inspired by a 1970s article written by Chicago Sun-Times reporter Zay N. Smith about Collins and Westside Prep.<ref name="ChicagoSunTimes-Obit-2015">{{cite news|last1=Dudek|first1=Mitch|title=Marva Collins, 'a natural force' in inner city education, dies at 78|url=http://chicago.suntimes.com/news/7/71/722381/marva-collins-natural-force-inner-city-education-dies-78|accessdate=30 June 2015|work=Chicago Sun-Times|date=25 June 2015|url-status=dead|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20150701012755/http://chicago.suntimes.com/news/7/71/722381/marva-collins-natural-force-inner-city-education-dies-78|archivedate=1 July 2015}}</ref>
=== Kevin Ross === In 1982, Kevin Ross, a 23–year-old Creighton University basketball player, got to his senior year of college without being able to read.<ref name=Oklahoman-KevinRoss-1983>{{cite news|last1=Lassiter|first1=Jim|title=For Kevin Ross, There Is More to Learn|url=http://newsok.com/for-kevin-ross-there-is-more-to-learn/article/2027975|accessdate=30 June 2015|work=The Oklahoman|date=9 June 1983}}</ref> With the assistance of a Creighton booster, Ross enrolled in 7th grade at Westside Prep. With private tutoring by Collins, Ross learned how to read and graduated in May 1983.<ref name=ESPN-OutsideTheLines-Ross-Read-2002>{{cite news|last1=Ley|first1=Bob|last2=Salters|first2=Lisa|title=Outside the Lines: Unable To Read|url=https://www.espn.com/page2/tvlistings/show103transcript.html|access-date=30 June 2015|work=ESPN|date=17 March 2002}}</ref><ref name=NYTimes-KevinRoss-1990>{{cite news|last1=Curry|first1=Jack|title=Suing for 2d Chance To Start Over|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1990/01/30/sports/suing-for-2d-chance-to-start-over.html|accessdate=30 June 2015|work=The New York Times|date=30 January 1990}}</ref> Ross had difficulties continuing his education, but when he had serious troubles, Collins was instrumental in helping him.<ref name=ChicagoTrib-KevinRossRampage-1987>{{cite news|last1=Wattley|first1=Philip|title=Cops Subdue Ex-basketball Player Kevin Ross In Hotel Rampage|url=https://www.chicagotribune.com/1987/07/24/cops-subdue-ex-basketball-player-kevin-ross-in-hotel-rampage/|access-date=30 June 2015|work=Chicago Tribune|date=24 July 1987}}</ref>
==Career highlights== Due to the success of her teaching methods, it was reported that President Ronald Reagan wanted to nominate Collins to the position of United States Secretary of Education,<ref name=WLS-TV-Chicago-ABC-SchoolClosure-2008/><ref name=NYTimes-Reagan-EducationSec-1980>{{cite news|last1=Smith|first1=Hedrick|title=Chicago Principal Weighed for Cabinet|url=https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1980/12/19/111323940.pdf|accessdate=30 June 2015|work=The New York Times|date=18 December 1980}}</ref> but Collins took herself out of the running for the position.<ref name=ReadingEagle-CollinsTooksSelfOut-1980>{{cite news|last1=Associated Press|title=Elizabeth Dole Is Appointed Liaison Assistant by Reagan|url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=v_UhAAAAIBAJ&pg=2863%2C4970|accessdate=30 June 2015|work=Reading Eagle|date=21 December 1980}}</ref><ref name=NYTimes-UPI-CollinsTookSelfOut-1980>{{cite news|last1=Hunter|first1=Marjorie|title=Mrs. Dole is Named Assistant to Reagan|url=https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1980/12/21/111325510.pdf|accessdate=30 June 2015|work=The New York Times|agency=United Press International|date=21 December 1980}}</ref> In 1983, Reagan cited Collins during an unveiling of a national program to combat adult illiteracy.<ref name=NYTimes-AdultIlliteracy-Reagan-1983>{{cite news|last1=UPI|title=Reagan Backs Literacy Effort|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1983/09/08/us/reagan-backs-literacy-effort.html|accessdate=30 June 2015|work=The New York Times|date=8 September 1983}}</ref> She was also asked by president George Bush to become Secretary of Education, but she declined in favor of teaching one student at a time.<ref>{{cite book|title=The Columbia Guide to African American History Since 1939|isbn = 9780231138116|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Y6yuwT54mA0C&q=George+H.+W.+Bush+marva+collins&pg=PA264|last1 = Harris|first1 = Robert L.|last2 = Terborg-Penn|first2 = Rosalyn|date = 5 September 2008| publisher=Columbia University Press }}</ref> In 1994, Prince featured Collins in his music video for "The Most Beautiful Girl in the World." He also donated $500,000 to the Westside Preparatory School Teacher Training Institute, which was created to teach Collins' educational methodology.<ref name=Prince-Donation-1985>{{cite news|title=Prince Donates $500,000 to Marva Collins' School|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=mrADAAAAMBAJ&q=prince+marva+collins&pg=PA63|accessdate=30 June 2015|work=Jet|date=4 November 1985|publisher = Johnson Publishing Company}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.watchtheyard.com/back-in-the-day/marva-collins-alpha-kappa-alpha/|title=This Famous Alpha Kappa Alpha Soror Was Featured In Prince's Video|date=May 31, 2016|publisher=Watch The Yard}}</ref>
In 1996, Collins was hired to supervise three Chicago public schools that had been placed on probation. In 2004, Collins received a National Humanities Medal, among many awards for her teaching and efforts at school reform.<ref name=NEH-Medalist-2004 /> During the 2006–07 school year, Collins' school charged $5,500 for tuition, and parents said the school did a much better job than the Chicago public school system, which budgeted $11,300 per student. The authorities complained that this was not enough.<ref name=WLS-TV-Chicago-ABC-SchoolClosure-2008 /><ref name=NBCNews-StudentProtest-2008>{{cite news|last1=Associated Press|title=Chicago Students Skip School in Funding Protest|url=https://www.nbcnews.com/id/wbna26515276|access-date=29 June 2015|work=NBC News|agency=Associated Press|date=2 September 2008}}</ref>
==Teaching methods and critics== Collins was known for applying classical education, in particular the Socratic method, modified for use in primary schools, successfully with impoverished students. Collins criticized the teaching of the students, not the students themselves.<ref name=MarvaCollins-Bio-2011 /> She wrote a number of manuals, books and motivational tracts describing her history and methods. In 1982 and in subsequent articles, Collins has been criticized by George N. Schmidt from ''Substance News,'' who claims that Collins' work was fraudulent.<ref name=EducationWeek-SubstanceCriticizes-1994>{{cite news|title=The Muckrakers|url=http://www.edweek.org/tm/articles/1994/08/01/9sub.h05.html|accessdate=30 June 2015|work=Education Week Teacher|date=1 August 1994}}</ref><ref name=SchenectadyGazette-WonderWoman-1982>{{cite news|last1=Smothers|first1=David|title=Controversial Teacher Marvis Collins: Educational Wonder Woman or Fraud?|url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=8RNGAAAAIBAJ&pg=1304%2C2195328|accessdate=30 June 2015|work=Schenectady Gazette|agency=UPI|date=7 April 1982}}</ref> Collins denied any fraud.<ref name=NYTimes-UnderFire-1983>{{cite news|title='Superteacher' in Chicago Under Fire From Parents and Press|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1982/03/07/us/superteacher-in-chicago-under-fire-from-parents-and-press.html|accessdate=30 June 2015|work=The New York Times|date=7 March 1982}}</ref> At the time, Collins had both supporters and detractors.<ref name=CSMonitor-CollinsRocksBoat-1982>{{cite news|last1=DeVries|first1=Hilary|title=Dedicated to Education as Ever, Marva Collins Still Rocks Boat|url=https://www.csmonitor.com/1982/0909/090928.html|accessdate=30 June 2015|work=The Christian Science Monitor|date=9 September 1982}}</ref>
== Personal life and death== Collins was married to Clarence Collins from September 1960 until his death in 1995.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Roberts |first1=Sam |title=Marva Collins, Educator Who Aimed High for Poor, Black Students, Dies at 78 (Published 2015) |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2015/06/29/us/marva-collins-78-no-nonsense-educator-and-activist-dies.html |access-date=1 January 2021 |work=The New York Times |date=28 June 2015}}</ref> Together, they had three children. Collins died on June 24, 2015, in Beaufort County, South Carolina, aged 78, while in hospice care.<ref name=ChicagoTrib-Obit-2015/>
==Works and publications== ===Monographs=== * Collins, Marva, Bert Kruger Smith, and Charlene Warren. ''A Conversation with Marva Collins: A Different School.'' From ''The Human Condition.'' Austin, Tex: Hogg Foundation for Mental Health, the University of Texas, 1982. {{OCLC|8257640}} * Collins, Marva, and Civia Tamarkin. ''Marva Collins' Way.'' New York: Putnam, 1990. Foreword by Alex Haley. 2nd ed. {{ISBN|978-0-874-77572-3}} {{OCLC|32523785}} * Collins, Marva. ''Ordinary Children, Extraordinary Teachers.'' Norfolk, VA: Hampton Roads Pub. Co, 1992. {{ISBN|978-1-878-90141-5}} {{OCLC|26790433}} * Collins, Marva. ''Values: Lighting the Candle of Excellence: A Practical Guide for the Family.'' Los Angeles, CA: Dove Books, 1996. {{ISBN|978-0-787-11040-6}} {{OCLC|35896951}}
===Video=== * CBS News. ''Marva.'' ''60 Minutes.'' New York: Carousel Films, 1979. {{OCLC|19834079}} * Dave Bell Associates. ''Success! The Marva Collins Approach.'' Wilmette, Ill: Television Licensing Center, 1984. {{OCLC|11311358}} * Collins, Marva. ''Too Good to Be True?'' ''60 Minutes.'' New York: CBS Video, 1995. {{OCLC|33502110}} - follow up to original ''60 Minutes'' segment. * Robbins, Anthony, Marva Collins, and Peter Lynch. ''Anthony Robbins' Powertalk! The Power of Life Metaphors.'' San Diego, CA: Anthony Robbins, 2004. {{OCLC|65197212}} * Holzgang, Conrad, Clifford Campion, Peter Levin, Cicely Tyson, and Morgan Freeman. ''The Marva Collins Story''. Burbank, CA: Warner Home Video, 2008. {{ISBN|978-1-419-85861-1}} {{OCLC|185036842}}
==Awards== *1981: Jefferson Awards for Public Service - Award for Greatest Public Service Benefiting the Disadvantaged<ref name=JeffersonAwards-NationalWinners-1981>{{cite web|title=National Winners Greatest Public Service Benefiting the Disadvantaged|url=http://jeffersonawards.org/pastwinners/national|website=Jefferson Awards for Public Service|accessdate=29 June 2015|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20101124043935/http://jeffersonawards.org/pastwinners/national|archivedate=24 November 2010|date=1981}}</ref> *1981: George Collins Award of the Congressional Black Caucus<ref>"Past Phoenix Award Honorees (1996 – 2018)". https://s7.goeshow.com/cbcf/annual/2020/documents/CBCF_ALC_-_Phoenix_Awards_Dinner_Past_Winners.pdf </ref> *2004: National Endowment for the Humanities - National Humanities Medalist<ref name=NEH-Medalist-2004>{{cite web|last1=Johnson|first1=Janis|title=Awards & Honors: 2004 National Humanities Medalist - Marva Collins|url=http://www.neh.gov/about/awards/national-humanities-medals/marva-collins|website=National Endowment for the Humanities|accessdate=29 June 2015|date=2004}}</ref> * Alpha Kappa Alpha - Honorary member of the Alpha Kappa Alpha sorority<ref name=AKA1908>{{cite web|url=http://unsungsorors.aka1908.com/index.php/32-hall-of-fame/321-soror-marva-collins|title=Soror Marva Collins|work=aka1908.com|accessdate=26 June 2015}}</ref>
==References== {{reflist|2}}
==Further reading== * Davenport, Loretta Powell C. ''Maria Montessori, A.S. Neill and Marva Collins: Educating the Human Potential.'' Ph.D. dissertation, Iowa State University: 1987. {{OCLC|16866051}} * Collins, P. Kamara Sekou. ''The School That Cared: A Story of the Marva Collins Preparatory School of Cincinnati.'' Dallas: University Press of America, 2003. {{ISBN|978-0-761-82736-8}} {{OCLC|53906961}}
==External links== * [https://web.archive.org/web/20141220112822/http://www.marvacollins.com/ Official website]
{{Authority control}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Collins, Marva}} Category:1936 births Category:2015 deaths Category:20th-century African-American educators Category:20th-century American educators Category:Schoolteachers from Illinois Category:20th-century American women educators Category:Clark Atlanta University alumni Category:People from Monroeville, Alabama Category:Educators from Chicago Category:National Humanities Medal recipients Category:20th-century American non-fiction writers Category:American education writers Category:Writers from Alabama Category:Writers from Chicago Category:20th-century American women writers Category:American women non-fiction writers Category:20th-century African-American women writers Category:20th-century African-American writers Category:21st-century African-American educators Category:21st-century American educators Category:21st-century African-American women Category:African-American women educators