North Shore Country Day School - Mirror Yearbook (Winnetka, IL)

Page 18 text:

LEICESTER For many years there has been a steadily increasing demand for some sort of facilities which would make it possible for parents living beyond commuting distance to send their children to North Shore. It has been gratifying, also, to receive from time to time inquiries from as far away as New England, from parents who would like to enroll their children with us if it were possible to furnish living accommodations under the supervi- sion and control of the School. The only way we have been able to solve this problem in the past has been to find places in the homes of faculty members or parents who were willing to accept such a responsibility on a definitely professional basis. This has worked out satisfactorily for both the children and the homes concerned. In fact, it has proved so successful that there has been a constant succession of such ar- rangements during the last six or seven years. Many parents, however, expressed a de- sire for living arrangements with even more supervision on the part of the School. To meet this demand the Board of Directors, after a careful stud} ' of the problem, voted in 1940 to inaugurate a new home residence department centered around a master and his wife, who would live on the grounds in the residence building known as Leicester Hall, where five or six boys could live under their direction and the direct supervision of the School without danger of its becom- ing an institutional dormitory. Accordingly, details of this plan were carefully worked out. A group of parents was selected to assist in planning the redec- orating and remodeling of the building and selecting the furniture and equipment. In January 1941 the two members of the Parents ' Advisory Committee appointed to work out the details of remodeling and re- decorating Leicester Hall for a students ' residence, began to meet with Mr. Bollinger. Blue prints of the building, and its existing condition were studied, and a new arrange- ment was worked out. About this time Mr. and Mrs. Nathaniel French accepted the appointment as the heads of the household, and the plans were shown to them and their suggestions in- vited. Few structural changes were called for by the remodeling planned by the committee. Plumbing and wiring that absolutely had to be done were the most expensive items in the program. Two partitions had to be added in the second floor bedrooms, certain doors were blocked up, others were reopened, and two clumsy old built-in cupboards were removed and used in the dressing room. As soon as the construction work was un- der way, another sub-committee began plan- ning the decorating, and Mr. Bollinger began investigating the furnishing. Each boy ' s room was quite different from all the others. The floor plans differed widely to begin with. Each room was given a distinctive color scheme, worked out in bright plaid homespun curtains, and plain- colored couch covers, against neutral walls. Mr. and Mrs. French moved into Leices- ter Hall in May and began the process of making a home there, which has now been very successfully completed. Life at Leicester Hall closely resembles that in a well-run private home. The effect of this has been to provide the students with a normal, homelike environment. The re- 14