Maxine Greene
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Sarah Maxine Greene (née Meyer; December 23, 1917 – May 29, 2014) was an American educational philosopher,
author An author is the writer of a book, article, play, mostly written work. A broader definition of the word "author" states: "''An author is "the person who originated or gave existence to anything" and whose authorship determines responsibility f ...
,
social activist Activism (or Advocacy) consists of efforts to promote, impede, direct or intervene in Social change, social, Political campaign, political, economic or Natural environment, environmental reform with the desire to make Social change, changes i ...
, and
teacher A teacher, also called a schoolteacher or formally an educator, is a person who helps students to acquire knowledge, competence, or virtue, via the practice of teaching. ''Informally'' the role of teacher may be taken on by anyone (e.g. whe ...
. Described upon her death as "perhaps the most iconic and influential living figure associated with
Teachers College, Columbia University Teachers College, Columbia University (TC), is the graduate school of education, health, and psychology of Columbia University, a private research university in New York City. Founded in 1887, it has served as one of the official faculties and ...
", she was a pioneer for women in the field of philosophy of education, often being the sole woman presenter at educational philosophy conferences as well as being the first woman president of the Philosophy of Education Society in 1967. Additionally, she was the first woman to preside over the
American Educational Research Association The American Educational Research Association (AERA, pronounced "A-E-R-A") is a professional organization representing education researchers in the United States and around the world. AERA's mission is to advance knowledge about education and p ...
in 1981.


Early years and education

Born in
Brooklyn Brooklyn () is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Kings County, in the U.S. state of New York. Kings County is the most populous county in the State of New York, and the second-most densely populated county in the United States, be ...
on December 23, 1917, to Lily Greenfield and Max Meyer, Greene (née Meyer) was the oldest of four siblings. The family owned a successful business, which her father established, named Richelieu Pearls.Gregorio, K., & Hancock, M. (2001). ''Exclusions & awakenings: The life of Maxine Greene''. Hancock Productions. Greene was largely raised in a way which conformed to the cultural expectations of women at that time. From an early age, however, she demonstrated an affinity towards the arts. Describing her family as one who "discouraged intellectual adventure and risk", she disregarded that approach and from the age of 7 regularly attended concerts and plays as a means of escape. Also at that age, Greene began to explore her desire to be a writer. Her pursuit of creative writing continued for many years as she authored novels and stories until attending graduate school when her writing transitioned to nonfiction.Kay, S. (1995). The power of a preposition‐ ''An interview with Maxine Greene''. ''Roeper Review'', ''18''(1), 61–65. https://doi.org/10.1080/02783199509553699 She wrote her first novel for her father, who she adored and whose attention was formative for Greene. As a child, Greene and her siblings attended a local private Episcopalian school, Berkeley School (now Berkeley Carroll School).Maxine Greene. (2018, November 27). From Mary Lou Fulton Teachers College website: https://education.asu.edu/inside-the-academy-of-education/honorees/maxine-greene Having achieved high marks and academic awards, Greene graduated in 1934.Maxine Greene
(n.d.). From Teachers College Press website: https://www.tcpress.com/maxine-greene
At a time when only 10-15% of women attended college, Greene enrolled at
Barnard College, Columbia University Barnard College of Columbia University is a private women's liberal arts college in the borough of Manhattan in New York City. It was founded in 1889 by a group of women led by young student activist Annie Nathan Meyer, who petitioned Columbi ...
where she received a bachelor of arts with a major in American history and minor in philosophy in 1938. She was the first in her family to attain a higher education degree. Greene had not received any encouragement to attend graduate school or to continue her education. Instead, as was a typical path for Barnard graduates of the time, Greene eloped and started a family. She married a doctor named Joseph Krimsley in March 1938,"Maxine Greene." ''Contemporary Authors Online'', Gale, 2014. ''Literature Resource Center'', https://link.galegroup.com/apps/doc/H1000039380/LitRC?u=coloboulder&sid=LitRC&xid=8c933284. with whom she had a daughter, Linda. In the early years of the marriage, she managed his medical officeGreene, M. (1998). An autobiographical remembrance. In W. F. Pinar (Ed.), ''The Passionate Mind of Maxine Greene'' (pp. 9-12). London : Bristol, PA: Falmer Press. while also pursuing her writing ambitions. She authored several historical and personal novels that despite negotiations with publishers did not go to press. Greene described Krimsley as unsympathetic to her intellectual aspirations and after his deployment and return from the war, they divorced. Greene married Orville Greene on August 7, 1947 and remained married to him until his death in 1997. It was only after this second marriage that Greene entertained the notion of returning to school. In the film Exclusions and Awakenings: The Life of Maxine Greene, Greene recounts that her career in education began largely due to demands of child rearing. When identifying and choosing a graduate program, she needed to find courses offered when her children were at school. For that reason, She enrolled in courses at New York University's
School of Education In the United States and Canada, a school of education (or college of education; ed school) is a division within a university that is devoted to scholarship in the field of education, which is an interdisciplinary branch of the social sciences en ...
taught by Adolphe Meyer, Theodore Bramheld and George Axtelle. She remained there and completed her MA (1949) and PhD (1955) both in the Philosophy of Education.Teachers College, Columbia University. (n.d.)
Maxine Greene Collection
Retrieved August 4, 2019, from PocketKnowledge website.


Academic career

After completing her doctorate, Greene's ambition was to become a faculty member of a Department of the Philosophy of Education, which was challenging as a woman in 1950's and 1960s academia.Goldman, K. L. (2010). Maxine Greene: Influences on the Life and Work of a Dynamic Educator. ''Journal of Educational Controversy'', ''5''(1), 14. Until she attained that goal, she occupied faculty positions, primarily in English departments, at various institutions in proximity to her New York city home. She taught at
New York University New York University (NYU) is a private research university in New York City. Chartered in 1831 by the New York State Legislature, NYU was founded by a group of New Yorkers led by then- Secretary of the Treasury Albert Gallatin. In 1832, th ...
between 1949 and 1956 and between 1957 and 1959,
Montclair State College Montclair State University (MSU) is a public research university in Montclair, New Jersey, with parts of the campus extending into Little Falls. As of fall 2018, Montclair State was, by enrollment, the second largest public university in New ...
as assistant professor between 1956 and 1957, and Brooklyn College as Associate Professor of Education from 1962 to 1965. During the summer of 1960 and 1962, Greene was a visiting lecturer at the
University of Hawaii A university () is an institution of higher (or tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. Universities typically offer both undergraduate and postgraduate programs. In the United States, th ...
. In 1965 Greene was invited to become faculty and the editor of the ''
Teachers College Record ''Teachers College Record'' is a monthly peer-reviewed academic journal of education that was established in 1900. It is published by EdLab at Teachers College, Columbia University. The journal also "pre-publishes" papers online, and curates spec ...
'', a peer reviewed journal published by Columbia University's Teacher College, which she accepted. Facing resistance from the male faculty in the Department of Philosophy and Social Sciences that previously had not included any females, she initially became a member of the English Department.Miller, J. L. (2010). Greene, Maxine. In C. Kridel, ''Encyclopedia of Curriculum Studies''. https://doi.org/10.4135/9781412958806.n226 Her work was perceived as unsuitable and outside of the dominant philosophy of education disciplinary discourse, as Greene reflected in 2009, "my writing was described as not the writing of a philosopher but of an artist."Lake, R. (Ed.). (2010). ''Dear Maxine: Letters from the unfinished conversation with Maxine Greene''. New York: Teachers College Press. Rules prohibited women from entering the shared faculty club, which further isolated Greene from fellow philosophers. Nonetheless, in a few years time (1967), she secured a faculty position in the Department of Philosophy and Social Sciences where she remained until her retirement. Greene broke traditional convention with her narrative and literary form as well as through her philosophical approach, transitioning from analytic to
existential Existentialism ( ) is a form of philosophical inquiry that explores the problem of human existence and centers on human thinking, feeling, and acting. Existentialist thinkers frequently explore issues related to the meaning, purpose, and valu ...
schools of thought, that shaped the field moving forward.Kohli, W. (2014). Greene, Maxine. In D. Phillips (Ed.), ''Encyclopedia of educational theory and philosophy'' (Vol. 1, pp. 356-358). Thousand Oaks,, CA: SAGE Publications, Inc. doi: 10.4135/9781483346229.n156 She served as the William F. Russell Professor in the Foundations of Education at the Teachers College of Columbia from 1975 to 1998 and was professor emeritus thereafter. Despite being in the minority as a female, she was elected to several leadership roles within scholarly societies and associations. In 1981, Greene was elected as president of the
American Educational Research Association The American Educational Research Association (AERA, pronounced "A-E-R-A") is a professional organization representing education researchers in the United States and around the world. AERA's mission is to advance knowledge about education and p ...
(AERA).American Educational Research Association.
AERA Past Presidents
Greene recalls that appointment as one of the most startling events in her career, in part, because a woman had not filled that role in over 31 years. Greene went on to serve as president of the Philosophy of Education Society (1987),About Maxine Greene
From Maxine Greene Institute website: http://maxinegreene.org/about/maxine-greene
American Educational Studies Association The American Educational Studies Association (AESA) is an international learned society dedicated to research on education. It was established in 1968 and is based in Tecumseh, Michigan. Most of its members are university professors whose work per ...
(1972), and the Middle Atlantic States Philosophy of Education Society. Additionally, she served on municipal and state curriculum committees as well as consultant to the
United States Department of Education The United States Department of Education is a Cabinet-level department of the United States government. It began operating on May 4, 1980, having been created after the Department of Health, Education, and Welfare was split into the Departmen ...
from 1965 to 1967.


Selected works

Maxine Greene wrote and spoke extensively about aesthetic education, social imagination, wide-awakeness, and educational reform. For Greene, the inclusion of arts in education was a means to reveal the social conditions that shape schools and to spark imagination that looks beyond current conditions towards future change. She was an advocate for approaches to education founded on concepts of freedom and humanity. A prolific writer, her works signal an intellectual heritage with existential philosophers:
Jean-Paul Sartre Jean-Paul Charles Aymard Sartre (, ; ; 21 June 1905 – 15 April 1980) was one of the key figures in the philosophy of existentialism (and phenomenology), a French playwright, novelist, screenwriter, political activist, biographer, and lit ...
, Simone de Beauvoir,
Albert Camus Albert Camus ( , ; ; 7 November 1913 – 4 January 1960) was a French philosopher, author, dramatist, and journalist. He was awarded the 1957 Nobel Prize in Literature at the age of 44, the second-youngest recipient in history. His work ...
,
Soren Kierkegaard Soren may refer to: *Søren, a given name of Scandinavian origin, also spelled ''Sören'' *Suren (disambiguation), a Persian name also rendered as Soren *3864 Søren, main belt asteroid *Sōren, also known as ''Chongryon'' and ''Zai-Nihon Chōsenji ...
, and
Maurice Merleau-Ponty Maurice Jean Jacques Merleau-Ponty. (; 14 March 1908 – 3 May 1961) was a French phenomenological philosopher, strongly influenced by Edmund Husserl and Martin Heidegger. The constitution of meaning in human experience was his main interest an ...
. She was also influenced by her contemporaries such as
Paulo Freire Paulo Reglus Neves Freire (19 September 1921 – 2 May 1997) was a Brazilian educator and philosopher who was a leading advocate of critical pedagogy. His influential work '' Pedagogy of the Oppressed'' is generally considered one of the found ...
, Hannah Arendt, and
Fritjof Capra Fritjof Capra (born February 1, 1939) is an Austrian-born American physicist, systems theorist and deep ecologist. In 1995, he became a founding director of the Center for Ecoliteracy in Berkeley, California. He is on the faculty of Schumacher ...
.Spector, H., Lake, R., & Kress, T. (2017). Maxine Greene and the pedagogy of social imagination: An intellectual genealogy. ''Review of Education, Pedagogy, and Cultural Studies'', ''39''(1), 1–6. https://doi.org/10.1080/10714413.2017.1262150 She wrote more than 100 articles and essays, 40 contributed chapters, six books and one edited collection.Imagining Maxine Greene
(2005). Retrieved from Teachers College, Columbia University website: https://www.tc.columbia.edu/articles/2004/june/imagining-maxine-greene/
In 1967, Greene published ''Existential Encounters for Teachers'' which marked her move as one of the first educational philosophers to draw out connections between existential philosophy and educational theory. The text was written for practicing teachers and invited their contemplation of teacher identity and authentic relationships with learners by drawing upon the works of existential philosophers. Her second book ''Teacher as Stranger: Educational Philosophy for the Modern Age'' was published in 1973 and further explicates Greene's critical existential philosophy as applied to teachers. She challenges teachers to "do philosophy" and to deliberately consider choices and responsibility for a socially just education. Twenty years after its publication, Greene stated that her goal for the book was to instill in teachers the realization that "to help kids shape their identity, we've got to awaken them to their own questions and encourage them to create their own projects. They don't really learn unless they ask."Oringel, A. (2002, April 1). The Power Of One. Education Week. ''Teacher''. Retrieved from http://www.edweek.org/tm/articles/2002/04/01/07greene.h13.html In 1974, the book won the "Educational Book of the Year" award from Delta Kappa Gamma. Throughout her writing, Greene references specific works of literature, film, and other art forms, as she did in her 1988 publication, ''The Dialectic of Freedom.'' She illustrates her arguments with biographical sketches and life stories as well as citing literature from:
W.H. Auden Wystan Hugh Auden (; 21 February 1907 – 29 September 1973) was a British-American poet. Auden's poetry was noted for its stylistic and technical achievement, its engagement with politics, morals, love, and religion, and its variety in ...
, Edith Wharton,
Virginia Woolf Adeline Virginia Woolf (; ; 25 January 1882 28 March 1941) was an English writer, considered one of the most important modernist 20th-century authors and a pioneer in the use of stream of consciousness as a narrative device. Woolf was born i ...
,
Kate Chopin Kate Chopin (, also ; born Katherine O'Flaherty; February 8, 1850 – August 22, 1904) was an American author of short stories and novels based in Louisiana. She is considered by scholars to have been a forerunner of American 20th-century femini ...
,
Henry James Henry James ( – ) was an American-British author. He is regarded as a key transitional figure between literary realism and literary modernism, and is considered by many to be among the greatest novelists in the English language. He was the ...
, Langston Hughes. The text was originally given as her John Dewey Lecture presented at a meeting of the
American Educational Research Association The American Educational Research Association (AERA, pronounced "A-E-R-A") is a professional organization representing education researchers in the United States and around the world. AERA's mission is to advance knowledge about education and p ...
, in which she calls on North American educators to examine models from diverse educators across the globe who successfully center learning on imagination and possibility. Greene's primary claim is that the pursuit of a pedagogy for freedom is situated in specific time and contexts, and, therefore, is an ongoing process that requires educators, in community, to continually pose questions about what has become accepted or given in educational systems. For Greene, transformations are possible when educators and students, inspired by works of literature and art, enter into dialog in public spaces. The text has been cited as an essential theoretical work within liberatory and critical pedagogies, alongside Freire's ''
Pedagogy of the Oppressed ''Pedagogy of the Oppressed'' ( pt, Pedagogia do Oprimido) is a book by Brazilian educator Paulo Freire, written in Portuguese between 1967–68, but published first in Spanish in 1968. An English translation was published in 1970, with the Por ...
'', Illich's '' Deschooling Society'', and Rancière's '' The Ignorant Schoolmaster''. While written in response to the social situation of the 1980s, the text continues in its relevance to educators. Extremely well known for her inspiring and lyrical speaking, her lectures given between 1974 and 1977 were compiled, revised, and published in ''Landscapes of Learning'' (1978). The book is organized into four thematic sections: Emancipatory education, Social issues, Artistic and aesthetic considerations, and Predicaments of women. The book, whose title is borrowed from Wordsworth's poem "
The Prelude ''The Prelude or, Growth of a Poet's Mind; An Autobiographical Poem '' is an autobiographical poem in blank verse by the English poet William Wordsworth. Intended as the introduction to the more philosophical poem ''The Recluse,'' which Wordsw ...
", primarily concentrates on Greene's concept of wide-awakeness that challenges teachers and learners to be fully aware of both the internal and external landscapes that influence schools. In ''Releasing the Imagination'' (1995), through narrative essays, Greene urges educators to be aware of inequities, complacency, and exclusions in everyday life and in schools. She argues that imagination and the arts can, and should, play a key role in helping educators to look on education anew, to shift inherited perspectives, and to pursue reimagined approaches for learning. The text reiterates Greene's belief that, through the cultivation of dialog in public spaces, change for education and for broader social impact are possible. The text organizes 14 essays into three sections: creating possibilities, illuminations and epiphanies, and community in the making. In ''Variations on a Blue Guitar'' (2001), thirty of Greene's lectures given at the
Lincoln Center Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts (also simply known as Lincoln Center) is a complex of buildings in the Lincoln Square neighborhood on the Upper West Side of Manhattan. It has thirty indoor and outdoor facilities and is host to 5 milli ...
from 1980 onward are collected into one volume. The title is based on
Wallace Stevens Wallace Stevens (October 2, 1879 – August 2, 1955) was an American modernist poet. He was born in Reading, Pennsylvania, educated at Harvard and then New York Law School, and spent most of his life working as an executive for an insurance compa ...
' poem, Man with the Blue Guitar, in which arguably the poet converses with Picasso's painting the Old Guitarist. The poem's theme, seeking alternatives to the way things are, resonated with Greene's concept of social imagination.Lake, R., Kress, T., Emdin, C., Teliaferro-Baszile, D., & Nieto, S. (2017). Imagining an Activist Future for a Blue Guitar: Maxine Greene and her Legacy at 100: Reflections on a 2017 AERA Biographical and Documentary Research SIG Symposium April 29, 2017. ''Vitae Scholasticae'', ''34''(1), 5-. In the lectures, Greene defines aesthetic education and articulates how inquiry and cognition are built through encounters with works of art.Book Talking with Maxine Greene. (2002). Retrieved August 4, 2019, from Teachers College Columbia University website: https://www.tc.columbia.edu/articles/2002/march/booktalking-with-maxine-greene/ For Greene, the purpose of the book was "to make aesthetics entirely accessible to public school teachers who may never have had a class in philosophy." Her works have had broad influence on educators, philosophers, social theorists, artists, and community activists, many of whom continue to reference and build on her work.


Selected concepts


Aesthetic education

Greene advocated for the use of arts, dance, music, literary, among other artistic texts as classroom content that could foster learner engagement and could help learners to view their worlds with renewed perspective. Greene insisted that education move away from the habitual and routine practices in order to create classrooms that engage with immediate and relevant social circumstances, an approach that builds on John Dewey's notions of aesthetic experiences.Bushnell Greiner, M. (2009). Aesthetics inEducation. In E. Provenzo & A. Provenzo, ''Encyclopedia of the Social and Cultural Foundations of Education''. https://doi.org/10.4135/9781412963992.n13 Arguing against a generic and abstracted approach to teaching, Greene emphasized a focus on the uniqueness of the teachers and learners occupying a specific learning space. In addition to her writings on the topic, Greene worked with school teachers on educational and aesthetic theory during her 30 years as philosopher in residence for the Lincoln Center for the Arts in Education.


Social imagination

The importance of imagination in Greene's writing is often captured through her references to the poet
Emily Dickinson Emily Elizabeth Dickinson (December 10, 1830 – May 15, 1886) was an American poet. Little-known during her life, she has since been regarded as one of the most important figures in American poetry. Dickinson was born in Amherst, Massac ...
: "I believe that it is imagination that lights the slow fuse of possibility." According to Greene, social imagination enables a breaking with habitual ways of doing and perceiving to imagine futures that are more just and equitable. Integrating the arts in education allows teachers to invite learners to imagine things differently and to grasp their potential to transform realities, according to Greene's conception of social imagination. Janet Miller, Professor of English Education at
Columbia University Columbia University (also known as Columbia, and officially as Columbia University in the City of New York) is a private research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Church in Manhatt ...
, wrote of Greene, "Maxine's attention to the visual, written and performing arts as one means of opening vistas into what might be, and to conceptions of social imagination that might help move persons to take action against deficit versions of school and society, continue to inspire all those involved in the varied arenas of education."


Wide-awakeness

Wide-awakeness is a concept that Greene drew from phenomenologist
Alfred Schutz Alfred may refer to: Arts and entertainment *''Alfred J. Kwak'', Dutch-German-Japanese anime television series * ''Alfred'' (Arne opera), a 1740 masque by Thomas Arne * ''Alfred'' (Dvořák), an 1870 opera by Antonín Dvořák *"Alfred (Interlu ...
and poet Henry David Thoreau, which describes a degree of consciousness necessary for actors to critically and deliberately make choices and have impact on the world. Wide-awakeness assumes that an individual who actively perceives as they experience the world would be equipped to pose meaningful questions and potentially to enact change. Heritage of this concept is also drawn to
Paulo Freire Paulo Reglus Neves Freire (19 September 1921 – 2 May 1997) was a Brazilian educator and philosopher who was a leading advocate of critical pedagogy. His influential work '' Pedagogy of the Oppressed'' is generally considered one of the found ...
's
conscientization Critical consciousness, conscientization, or in Portuguese, is a popular education and social concept developed by Brazilian pedagogue and educational theorist Paulo Freire, grounded in post-Marxist critical theory. Critical consciousness focus ...
and John Dewey's extraordinary experiences.


Public works

Greene placed tremendous importance on the public sphere as a location to collectively engage in intellectual dialog beyond traditional education boundaries, and as such has been grouped with thinkers like Susan Sontag under the title: New York Intellectual.Pinar, W. F. (1998). Introduction. In W. F. Pinar (Ed.), ''The Passionate Mind of Maxine Greene'' (1 edition). London : Bristol, PA: Falmer Press. Even after her retirement, friends, scholars, and students recall salons hosted by Greene in her 5th Avenue apartment near the
Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum The Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum, often referred to as The Guggenheim, is an art museum at 1071 Fifth Avenue on the corner of East 89th Street on the Upper East Side of Manhattan in New York City. It is the permanent home of a continuously exp ...
and the
Metropolitan Museum of Art The Metropolitan Museum of Art of New York City, colloquially "the Met", is the largest art museum in the Americas. Its permanent collection contains over two million works, divided among 17 curatorial departments. The main building at 1000 ...
. She hosted well-known thinkers of the time, such as the critical educator,
Paulo Freire Paulo Reglus Neves Freire (19 September 1921 – 2 May 1997) was a Brazilian educator and philosopher who was a leading advocate of critical pedagogy. His influential work '' Pedagogy of the Oppressed'' is generally considered one of the found ...
with whom shared foundational beliefs about education. Notably her public engagement led to participation in a number of organizations and centers that advanced aesthetic education and social imagination. Greene influenced thousands of educators through her position as Philosopher-in-Residence of the
Lincoln Center Institute Lincoln Center Education (LCE), is the education division of Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts. Founded in 1975 as the Lincoln Center Institute. In 2013, the former Lincoln Center Institute received a $4 million grant from the Sherman Fairchi ...
for the Arts in Education, now known as the Lincoln Center Education. The center hosts annual summer institutes where practicing teachers attend a series of lectures and performances, as well as interacting with artists through hands on activities. The primary goal is to expose teachers to aesthetics in education and to demonstrate the impact arts may have on learning. Between 1976 and 2012, Greene lectured at the summer sessions in her capacity as philosopher-in-residence. Greene recalls this as one of her most significant career experiences because it afforded the opportunity to work with practicing teachers and to potentially broaden the number of schools bringing arts into learning. In 2003, she founded the Maxine Greene Foundation for Social Imagination, the Arts, and Education, now known as The Maxine Greene Center for Aesthetic Education and Social Imagination. Greene credits collaborations with Bill Ayers, Michelle Fine, Naomi Barber, and Carole Saltz as essential to making the foundation possible.Ayers, W. (1995). Social imagination: A conversation with Maxine Greene. ''International Journal of Qualitative Studies in Education'', ''8''(4), 319–328. The foundation supports the creation and appreciation of works that embody fresh social visions. In Greene's words, the foundation hoped that through encounters with the arts they could awaken in people "their own questions, their own sense of predicament, their longings for something better" with the goal of generating "inquiry, imagination and the creation of art works by diverse people." Grants of up to $10,000 are awarded to educators and artists to fund programming such as
Barnard College Barnard College of Columbia University is a private women's liberal arts college in the borough of Manhattan in New York City. It was founded in 1889 by a group of women led by young student activist Annie Nathan Meyer, who petitioned Columbia ...
's Storytelling Project, the Stella Adler Studio of Acting, the Boston Arts Academy Foundation, the Bronx Charter School for the Arts, and the Center for Peace Building International. In a similar project, she inspired the creation of the High School of Arts, Imagination and Inquiry in association with Lincoln Center Education and New Visions for Public Schools in 2005. The school, located in Manhattan, New York, encourages students to expand their imaginative capacities in the arts and other subject areas. The school pursues the experiential learning and aesthetics in education that Greene espoused. For example, artists regularly visit to collaborate with teachers on the design of curriculum to integrated traditional academics alongside the arts.


Selected honors

Greene was the recipient of
honorary degrees An honorary degree is an academic degree for which a university (or other degree-awarding institution) has waived all of the usual requirements. It is also known by the Latin phrases ''honoris causa'' ("for the sake of the honour") or '' ad hon ...
in the Humanities from
Lehigh University Lehigh University (LU) is a private research university in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania in the Lehigh Valley region of eastern Pennsylvania. The university was established in 1865 by businessman Asa Packer and was originally affiliated with the Epi ...
, Hofstra University, the
University of Colorado at Denver The University of Colorado Denver (CU Denver) is a public research university in Denver, Colorado. It is part of the University of Colorado system. History University of Colorado System Anschutz Medical Campus The University of Colorado create ...
,
Indiana University Indiana University (IU) is a system of public universities in the U.S. state of Indiana. Campuses Indiana University has two core campuses, five regional campuses, and two regional centers under the administration of IUPUI. *Indiana Universi ...
,
Goddard College Goddard College is a progressive education private liberal arts low-residency college with three locations in the United States: Plainfield, Vermont; Port Townsend, Washington; and Seattle, Washington. The college offers undergraduate and gra ...
, Bank Street College, Nazareth College (Rochester, New York),
McGill University McGill University (french: link=no, Université McGill) is an English-language public research university located in Montreal, Quebec Montreal ( ; officially Montréal, ) is the second-most populous city in Canada and most populous ...
, College Misericordia, and Binghamton University. She was awarded the Medal of Honor from Teachers College and Barnard College; Educator of the Year Award from
Phi Delta Kappa PDK International (also known as PDK or Phi Delta Kappa International) is a US professional organization for educators. Its main office is in Arlington, Virginia. It was founded on January 24, 1906. Membership Currently, membership consists o ...
,
Columbia University Columbia University (also known as Columbia, and officially as Columbia University in the City of New York) is a private research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Church in Manhatt ...
, and
Ohio University Ohio University is a public research university in Athens, Ohio. The first university chartered by an Act of Congress and the first to be chartered in Ohio, the university was chartered in 1787 by the Congress of the Confederation and subseq ...
; the Scholarly Achievement Award from Barnard College; AERA's Lifetime Achievement Award; and received a
Fulbright Program The Fulbright Program, including the Fulbright–Hays Program, is one of several United States Cultural Exchange Programs with the goal of improving intercultural relations, cultural diplomacy, and intercultural competence between the people o ...
fellowship, which took her to
New Zealand New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 smaller islands. It is the sixth-largest island count ...
. She was elected to the
National Academy of Education The National Academy of Education (NAEd) is a nonprofit, non-governmental organization in the United States that advances high-quality research to improve education policy and practice. Founded in 1965, the NAEd currently consists of over 300 elect ...
in 1984. In 2004, the
Columbia Teachers College Teachers College, Columbia University (TC), is the graduate school of education, health, and psychology of Columbia University, a private research university in New York City. Founded in 1887, it has served as one of the official faculties and ...
Trustees created the Maxine Greene Chair for Distinguished Contributions to Education which recognize Greene's contributions to philosophy and education, social theory, arts and aesthetics by honoring outstanding faculty. Nancy Lesko, Professor of Education, was the first to receive the distinction.


Death and legacy

In her final years and beyond, admirers of the scholar continued to celebrate her life. Markie Hancock produced a documentary film of Greene's life, Exclusions and Awakenings, that premiered at the New School in February 2001 with Greene and more than 700 attendees in the audience. On Greene's 90th birthday, the Teachers College hosted a celebration titled "Toward Pedagogy of Thought and Imagination" that included lectures from Greene among others. Similarly, a 2017 issue of the journal ''Review of Education, Pedagogy, and Cultural Studies'' celebrated the centennial year of Greene's birth. The issue includes articles by education scholars who reflect on Greene's intellectual heritage and impact. The authors include:
Henry Giroux Henry Armand Giroux (born 1943) is an American-Canadian scholar and cultural critic. One of the founding theorists of critical pedagogy in the United States, he is best known for his pioneering work in public pedagogy, cultural studies, youth s ...
, John Baldacchino, Susan Jean Mayer, Hannah Spector, Robert Lake, Tricia Kress, Rebecca Luce-Kapler, Sabrina Ross, and Christopher Emdin. Upon her death in 2014, Greene was 96 years old. Greene was survived by her son, daughter-in-law, step daughter, and grandson. Robert Lake edited a collection of 75 letters written in the first-person by admirers and scholars influenced by Maxine Greene, including:
Gloria Ladson-Billings Gloria Jean Ladson-Billings (born 1947) is an American pedagogical theorist and teacher educator known for her work in the fields of culturally relevant pedagogy and critical race theory, and the pernicious effects of systemic racism and economi ...
, Herb Kohl, Mike Rose,
Deborah Meier Deborah Meier (born April 6, 1931) is an American educator often considered the founder of the modern small schools movement. After spending several years as a kindergarten teacher in Chicago, Philadelphia and then New York City, in 1974, Meier be ...
,
Nel Noddings Nel Noddings (; January 19, 1929 – August 25, 2022) was an American feminist, educator, and philosopher best known for her work in philosophy of education, educational theory, and ethics of care. Biography Noddings received a bachelor's deg ...
, and
William Ayers William Charles Ayers (; born December 26, 1944) rose to prominence during the 1960s as a domestic terrorist. During the 1960s, Ayers was a leader of the Weather Underground militant group, described by the FBI as a terrorist group. In ...
. The collection, ''Dear Maxine: Letters from the Unfinished Conversation'' (2010), includes excerpts from conversations between Janet Miller and Greene as well as a foreword by the scholar of multiculturalism,
Sonia Nieto Sonia Nieto is a Professor Emerita of Language, Literacy and Culture at the University of Massachusetts Amherst, School of Education University of Massachusetts Amherst. With experience in teaching students at all levels and from many socioeconomi ...
.Magolda, P. (2011). A Review of "Dear Maxine: Letters from the Unfinished Conversation with Maxine Greene." ''The Journal of Educational Research'', ''104''(6), 456–457. https://doi.org/10.1080/00220671.2011.598114 The letters are organized into four sections: The school and society; In a tune beyond us and yet ourselves; Strangers, others, and friends: Expanding the conversation; and Blue guitar lessons: The Arts and keeping wide-awake in the world. ''A Light in Dark Times: Maxine Greene and the Unfinished Conversation'', edited by
William Ayers William Charles Ayers (; born December 26, 1944) rose to prominence during the 1960s as a domestic terrorist. During the 1960s, Ayers was a leader of the Weather Underground militant group, described by the FBI as a terrorist group. In ...
and Janet Miller, collects considerations of Greene's influence on contemporary educational projects written by
William Ayers William Charles Ayers (; born December 26, 1944) rose to prominence during the 1960s as a domestic terrorist. During the 1960s, Ayers was a leader of the Weather Underground militant group, described by the FBI as a terrorist group. In ...
,
Nel Noddings Nel Noddings (; January 19, 1929 – August 25, 2022) was an American feminist, educator, and philosopher best known for her work in philosophy of education, educational theory, and ethics of care. Biography Noddings received a bachelor's deg ...
,
Peter McLaren Peter McLaren (born 1948) is a Canadian scholar who serves as a Distinguished Professor in Critical Studies Attallah College of Educational Studies, Chapman University, where he is Co-Director of the Paulo Freire Democratic Project and Internatio ...
, Jean Anyon, Louise Berman, Deborah P. Britzman, Linda Darling-Hammond among others.Taylor, P. (1999). A Light in Dark Times: Maxine Greene and the Unfinished Conversation / The Passionate Mind of Maxine Greene: "I Am...Not Yet." ''Research in Drama Education; Abingdon'', ''4''(2), 280–284. While, William Pinar's edited volume, titled ''The Passionate Mind of Maxine Greene: "I Am—Not Yet,"'' includes twenty two chapters that begin with Greene's "Autobiographical Remembrance" and moves onto thematic sections: Four books, Themes, Influences on Greene's thought, and Greene's influence on educational theory. The title draws from an oft-cited phrase which Greene uttered on June 27, 1996 during a lecture at
Louisiana State University Louisiana State University (officially Louisiana State University and Agricultural and Mechanical College, commonly referred to as LSU) is a public land-grant research university in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. The university was founded in 1860 nea ...
: "I am who I am not yet."


Bibliography


Books

* The Public School and the Private Vision: the Search for America in Education and Literature (
Random House Random House is an American book publisher and the largest general-interest paperback publisher in the world. The company has several independently managed subsidiaries around the world. It is part of Penguin Random House, which is owned by Germ ...
, 1965) * ''Existential Encounters for Teachers'' (
Random House Random House is an American book publisher and the largest general-interest paperback publisher in the world. The company has several independently managed subsidiaries around the world. It is part of Penguin Random House, which is owned by Germ ...
, 1967) * ''Teacher as Stranger: Educational Philosophy for the Modern Age'' (
Wadsworth Publishing Cengage Group is an American educational content, technology, and services company for the higher education, K-12, professional, and library markets. It operates in more than 20 countries around the world.(Jun 27, 2014Global Publishing Leaders ...
, 1973) * ''Landscapes of Learning'' (
Teachers College Press Teachers College Press is the university press of Teachers College, Columbia University. Founded in 1904, Teachers College Press has published professional and classroom materials for over a century and currently publishes 70 titles per year. Hi ...
, 1978) *''The Dialectic of Freedom'' (
Teachers College Press Teachers College Press is the university press of Teachers College, Columbia University. Founded in 1904, Teachers College Press has published professional and classroom materials for over a century and currently publishes 70 titles per year. Hi ...
, 1988) * ''Variations on a Blue Guitar: The Lincoln Center Institute Lectures on Aesthetic Education'' (
Teachers College Press Teachers College Press is the university press of Teachers College, Columbia University. Founded in 1904, Teachers College Press has published professional and classroom materials for over a century and currently publishes 70 titles per year. Hi ...
, 2001) * ''Releasing the Imagination: Essays on Education, the Arts, and Social Change'' (
National Association of Independent Schools The National Association of Independent Schools (NAIS) is a U.S.-based membership organization for private, nonprofit, K-12 schools. Founded in 1962, NAIS represents independent schools and associations in the United States, including day, boa ...
, 2004)


Selected contributions to edited volumes

* "Introduction: Teaching for Social Justice", In:
William Ayers William Charles Ayers (; born December 26, 1944) rose to prominence during the 1960s as a domestic terrorist. During the 1960s, Ayers was a leader of the Weather Underground militant group, described by the FBI as a terrorist group. In ...
, Jean Ann Hunt, and Therese Quinn. ''Teaching for Social Justice: A Democracy and Education Reader''. New Press (1998) * "Forward", In: John Dewey, ''How We Think''. Houghton Mifflin (1998). * "Forward", In: Linda Lambert, Deborah Walker, Diane P. Zimmerman, and Joanne E. Cooper. ''The Constructivist Leader''. Teachers College Press (2002). * "Feminism, Philosophy, and Education: Imagining Public Spaces", In: Nigel Blake et al. ''The Blackwell Guide to the Philosophy of Education''. Blackwell (2003), p. 73–92. * "Foreword", In:
Colin Lankshear Colin Lankshear is adjunct professor at James Cook University, Mount St Vincent University and McGill University. He is an internationally acclaimed scholar in the study of new literacies and digital technologies (cf., Lankshear 1987; Lankshear ...
and Peter L. McLaren. ''Critical Literacy: Politics, Praxis, and the Postmodern.'' State University of New York (1993), p. ix–xi. * "An Autobiographical Remembrance", In: William F. Pinar. ''The Passionate Mind of Maxine Greene 'I am ... not yet'.'' Falmer Press (1998), p. 8–11.


Selected articles

* "Imaginary Gardens with Real Toads in Them': The Literary Experience and Educational Philosophy." ''Philosophy of Education'', vol. 19 (1963), p. 170–192. * "Toward Wide-Awakeness: An Argument for the Arts and Humanities in Education." ''Teachers College Record'', vol. 79, no. 1 (1977), p. 119–125. * "In Search of a Critical Pedagogy." ''Harvard Educational Review'' (1986), p. 427–441. * "The Spaces of Aesthetic Education." ''Journal of Aesthetic Education'', vol. 20 (1986), p. 56–62.


Thesis

* ''Naturalist-humanism in eighteenth century England: An Essay in the Sociology of Knowledge'' (Thesis, 1956)


Talks, lectures and other work

* ''Arts and the Search for Social Justice'' (Lecture at The Maxine Greene Foundation for Social Imagination, The Arts & Education, 2003) * ''Active Learning and Aesthetic Encounters'' (Talks at the Lincoln Center Institute, National Center for Reconstructing Education, Schools and Teaching, 1994) * ''Education, Freedom and Possibility'' (Russell Lecture, 1975) * ''Educational Research and National Policy'' Keynote Address: Jubilee Week, August 3, 1982. The Ohio State University College of Education. * ''Lending the Work your Life: A Celebration with Maxine Greene'' (
Lincoln Center Institute Lincoln Center Education (LCE), is the education division of Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts. Founded in 1975 as the Lincoln Center Institute. In 2013, the former Lincoln Center Institute received a $4 million grant from the Sherman Fairchi ...
, 2006)MaxineGreene.org
* ''A Teacher Talks to Teachers: Perspectives on the Lincoln Center Institute'' (
Lincoln Center Institute Lincoln Center Education (LCE), is the education division of Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts. Founded in 1975 as the Lincoln Center Institute. In 2013, the former Lincoln Center Institute received a $4 million grant from the Sherman Fairchi ...
, 1980)


See also

* American philosophy *
Art Education Visual arts education is the area of learning that is based upon the kind of art that one can see, visual arts The visual arts are art forms such as painting, drawing, printmaking, sculpture, ceramics, photography, video, filmmaking, de ...
*
Creativity Creativity is a phenomenon whereby something new and valuable is formed. The created item may be intangible (such as an idea, a scientific theory, a musical composition, or a joke) or a physical object (such as an invention, a printed Literature ...
* John Dewey * Imagination *
Lincoln Center Institute Lincoln Center Education (LCE), is the education division of Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts. Founded in 1975 as the Lincoln Center Institute. In 2013, the former Lincoln Center Institute received a $4 million grant from the Sherman Fairchi ...
* Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts *
List of American philosophers This is a list of American philosophers; of philosophers who are either from, or spent many productive years of their lives in the United States. {, border="0" style="margin:auto;" class="toccolours" , - ! {{MediaWiki:Toc , - , style="text-al ...
* Philosophy of education *
Small schools movement The small schools movement, also known as the Small Schools Initiative, in the United States of America holds that many high schools are too large and should be reorganized into smaller, autonomous schools of no more than 400 students, and optimally ...


References


Further reading

*
William Ayers William Charles Ayers (; born December 26, 1944) rose to prominence during the 1960s as a domestic terrorist. During the 1960s, Ayers was a leader of the Weather Underground militant group, described by the FBI as a terrorist group. In ...
& Janet L. Miller. ''A Light in Dark Times: Maxine Greene and the Unfinished Conversation.'' (Teachers College Press, 1997). * William F. Pinar. ''The Passionate Mind of Maxine Greene 'I am ... not yet'.'' (Falmer Press, 1998) * John Baldacchino. ''Education beyond Education: Self and the Imaginary in Maxine Greene's Philosophy.'' (Peter Lang, 2008).


External links


The Maxine Greene Foundation

Lincoln Center InstituteMArchive
a project out of the Teacher's College, Columbia University to archive and make available the works and memorabilia that capture Greene's life.
Unleashing
an exhibit of more than 28 international artists hosted from April 1 to May 31, 2018, that honored Maxine Greene.
A Dialog on the Impact of Maxine Greene
a video reflecting on Greene by Janet Miller, Professor of English Education, and Carole Saltz, Director of Teachers College Press.
John Baldacchino
an interview with scholar of Maxine Greene.
Columbia University's Mini Moments with Big Thinkers
Maxine Greene.
Maxine Greene, Teachers College Press

Maxine Greene @ Teachers College
{{DEFAULTSORT:Greene, Maxine American educational theorists 21st-century American philosophers New York University alumni Barnard College alumni Columbia University faculty Teachers College, Columbia University faculty 1917 births 2014 deaths American women philosophers Brooklyn College faculty 21st-century American women Philosophers of education