Stanwood Cobb (November 6, 1881 – December 29, 1982) was an American educator, author and prominent Baháʼí of the 20th century. He was born in

Newton, Massachusetts Newton is a city in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States. It is approximately west of downtown Boston. Newton resembles a patchwork of thirteen villages, without a city center. According to the 2020 U.S. Census, the population of Ne ...

, the son of

Darius Cobb Darius Cobb (August 6, 1834 – April 23, 1919) was a noted American painter. Cobb was considered to be one of America's best painters during his lifetime, as well as a painter of society portraits, landscape, religious themes and historical cos ...

and his wife, née Laura Mae Lillie. Darius and his twin brother

Cyrus Cobb Cyrus Cobb (August 6, 1834 - January 29, 1903) was an American lawyer, sculptor, poet and musician. Early years and education Cyrus Cobb, twin brother of Darius Cobb, the painter, was the son of Rev. Sylvanus Cobb, Universalist clergyman, and E ...

were Civil War soldiers and artists, and descendants of Elder Henry Cobb of the second voyage of the

Mayflower ''Mayflower'' was an English ship that transported a group of English families, known today as the Pilgrims, from England to the New World in 1620. After a grueling 10 weeks at sea, ''Mayflower'', with 102 passengers and a crew of about 30, r ...

. Their mother was Eunice Hale Waite Cobb, founding president of the Ladies Physiological Institute of

Boston Boston (), officially the City of Boston, is the state capital and most populous city of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, as well as the cultural and financial center of the New England region of the United States. It is the 24th- mo ...

. Darius Cobb and his wife had four daughters and three sons. Stanwood Cobb studied at

Dartmouth College Dartmouth College (; ) is a private research university in Hanover, New Hampshire. Established in 1769 by Eleazar Wheelock, it is one of the nine colonial colleges chartered before the American Revolution. Although founded to educate Native A ...

, where he was

valedictorian Valedictorian is an academic title for the highest-performing student of a graduating class of an academic institution. The valedictorian is commonly determined by a numerical formula, generally an academic institution's grade point average (GPA ...

of his 1903 or 1905 graduating class, and then at

Harvard Divinity School Harvard Divinity School (HDS) is one of the constituent schools of Harvard University in Cambridge, Massachusetts. The school's mission is to educate its students either in the academic study of religion or for leadership roles in religion, gov ...

, earning an A.M. in philosophy and comparative religion 1910.''The Baháʼí World'', Vol 18, Part 5, "In Memoriam: Stanwood Cobb, 1881–1982"
/ref> His thesis work, ''Communistic Experimental Settlements in the USA'', observed that every such settlement had failed within a generation because of an inability of communism to get people to subordinate their own desires for the good of the group. In 1919 he married Ida Nayan Whitlam. Cobb was a member of several literary associations and of the

Cosmos Club The Cosmos Club is a 501(c)(7) private social club in Washington, D.C. that was founded by John Wesley Powell in 1878 as a gentlemen's club for those interested in science. Among its stated goals is, "The advancement of its members in science, ...

Washington, D.C. ) , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, ...

Cobb lived internationally for some years before settling in

Chevy Chase, Maryland Chevy Chase () is the name of both a town and an unincorporated census-designated place (Chevy Chase (CDP), Maryland) that straddle the northwest border of Washington, D.C. and Montgomery County, Maryland, United States. Several settlements in th ...

, where he died.

Career as educator

In 1907–1910, Cobb taught history and Latin at

Robert College The American Robert College of Istanbul ( tr, İstanbul Özel Amerikan Robert Lisesi or ), often shortened to Robert, or RC, is a Selective school, highly selective, Independent school, independent, mixed-sex education, co-educational Secondary ...

Constantinople la, Constantinopolis ota, قسطنطينيه , alternate_name = Byzantion (earlier Greek name), Nova Roma ("New Rome"), Miklagard/Miklagarth (Old Norse), Tsargrad ( Slavic), Qustantiniya (Arabic), Basileuousa ("Queen of Cities"), Megalopolis (" ...

(now

Istanbul Istanbul ( , ; tr, İstanbul ), formerly known as Constantinople ( grc-gre, Κωνσταντινούπολις; la, Constantinopolis), is the List of largest cities and towns in Turkey, largest city in Turkey, serving as the country's economic, ...

), followed by several years teaching in the US and Europe. He later headed the English department at St. John's College in

Annapolis, Maryland Annapolis ( ) is the capital city of the U.S. state of Maryland and the county seat of, and only incorporated city in, Anne Arundel County. Situated on the Chesapeake Bay at the mouth of the Severn River, south of Baltimore and about east o ...

(1914–15), taught at

Asheville School Asheville School is a private, coeducational, university-preparatory boarding school in Asheville, North Carolina founded in 1900. The campus sits on amid the scenic Blue Ridge Mountains and currently enrolls 295 students in grades nine throug ...

Asheville, North Carolina Asheville ( ) is a city in, and the county seat of, Buncombe County, North Carolina. Located at the confluence of the French Broad and Swannanoa rivers, it is the largest city in Western North Carolina, and the state's 11th-most populous cit ...

(1915–16), and was instructor in history and English at the

United States Naval Academy The United States Naval Academy (US Naval Academy, USNA, or Navy) is a federal service academy in Annapolis, Maryland. It was established on 10 October 1845 during the tenure of George Bancroft as Secretary of the Navy. The Naval Academy ...

(1916–19). Frustrated by the teaching experience at the Academy, Cobb heard a lecture by

Marietta Johnson Marietta Pierce Johnson (18641938) was an educational reformer and Georgist. Johnson was born in St. Paul, Minnesota, and moved with her family to Fairhope, Alabama, in 1902. In 1907, she founded a progressive school called the School of Orga ...

who helped marshal and crystallize his thoughts on education practice and

curriculum theory Curriculum theory (CT) is an academic discipline devoted to examining and shaping educational curricula. There are many interpretations of CT, being as narrow as the dynamics of the learning process of one child in a classroom to the lifelong lear ...

.Alternative Schools: Diverted but not Defeated
Paper submitted to Qualification Committee, At UC Davis, California, July 2000, By Kathy Emery As a result, in 1919, Cobb founded the Chevy Chase Country Day School, of which he was the principal until his retirement, and, active in the

progressive education Progressive education, or protractivism, is a pedagogical movement that began in the late 19th century and has persisted in various forms to the present. In Europe, progressive education took the form of the New Education Movement. The term ''pro ...

movement in the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

, became a founder and motivating force, first secretary, and eventually president (1927–1930) of The Association for the Advancement of Progressive Education, in 1931 renamed

Progressive Education Association The Progressive Education Association was a group dedicated to the spread of progressive education in American public schools from 1919 to 1955. The group focused on pedagogy in elementary schools through the twenties. The group turned towards p ...

(PEA) and then American Education Fellowship. The first president was Arthur E. Morgan.''The Struggle for the American Curriculum'' by H. Kliebard, p. 168, published by Rutledge, 1955 Later the influential

John Dewey John Dewey (; October 20, 1859 – June 1, 1952) was an American philosopher, psychologist, and educational reformer whose ideas have been influential in education and social reform. He was one of the most prominent American scholars in the f ...

served as president. Cobb resigned the presidency in 1930 following the influx of supporters of

George Counts George Sylvester Counts (December 9, 1889 – November 10, 1974) was an American educator and influential education theorist. An early proponent of the progressive education movement of John Dewey, Counts became its leading critic affiliated with ...

who moved the focus of the Association from a

student-centered learning Student-centered learning, also known as learner-centered education, broadly encompasses methods of teaching that shift the focus of instruction from the teacher to the student. In original usage, student-centered learning aims to develop lear ...

approach to one of a social policy oriented approach to education theory. However, between the enormous impact of

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

on all thought and the involvement of many members of the PEA in

communism Communism (from Latin la, communis, lit=common, universal, label=none) is a far-left sociopolitical, philosophical, and economic ideology and current within the socialist movement whose goal is the establishment of a communist society, a s ...

and the general atmosphere of

Anti-communism in the United States Anti-communism is political and ideological opposition to communism. Organized anti-communism developed after the 1917 October Revolution in the Russian Empire, and it reached global dimensions during the Cold War, when the United States and the ...

the achievements of the PEA both before Cobb's resignation and after were largely lost.

Life as a Baháʼí

After looking at

Theosophy Theosophy is a religion established in the United States during the late 19th century. It was founded primarily by the Russian Helena Blavatsky and draws its teachings predominantly from Blavatsky's writings. Categorized by scholars of religion a ...

and

Reform Judaism Reform Judaism, also known as Liberal Judaism or Progressive Judaism, is a major Jewish denomination that emphasizes the evolving nature of Judaism, the superiority of its ethical aspects to its ceremonial ones, and belief in a continuous searc ...

and other themes in religion'''Restless Souls: The Making of American Spirituality'' by Leigh Schmidt Cobb, published by HarperCollins, 2005, p. 218 Cobb investigated the

Baháʼí Faith The Baháʼí Faith is a religion founded in the 19th century that teaches the Baháʼí Faith and the unity of religion, essential worth of all religions and Baháʼí Faith and the unity of humanity, the unity of all people. Established by ...

after a series of articles in the

Boston Transcript The ''Boston Evening Transcript'' was a daily afternoon newspaper in Boston, Massachusetts, published from July 24, 1830, to April 30, 1941. Beginnings ''The Transcript'' was founded in 1830 by Henry Dutton and James Wentworth of the firm of D ...

on the religion attracted his attention. He pursued the interest to

Green Acre Green is the color between cyan and yellow on the visible spectrum. It is evoked by light which has a dominant wavelength of roughly 495570 nm. In subtractive color systems, used in painting and color printing, it is created by a combina ...

conference center in

Eliot, Maine Eliot is a town in York County, Maine, United States. Originally settled in 1623, it was formerly a part of Kittery, Maine, to its east. After Kittery, it is the next most southern town in the state of Maine, lying on the Piscataqua River across f ...

in 1906 during his studies at

preparing for the Unitarian

ministry Ministry may refer to: Government * Ministry (collective executive), the complete body of government ministers under the leadership of a prime minister * Ministry (government department), a department of a government Religion * Christian ...

Sarah Farmer Sarah Jane Farmer (1847-1916) was the founder of the Greenacre Conferences in Eliot, Maine, U.S. After her death, Greenacre became the Green Acre Baháʼí School. Biography Sarah Jane Farmer was born in Dover, New Hampshire, July 22, 1847, the on ...

much affected Cobb, and Thornton Chase was giving a series of talks. It was on that occasion that Cobb became a Baháʼí. Between 1909 and 1913 he met with

ʻAbdu'l-Bahá ʻAbdu'l-Bahá (; Persian language, Persian: ‎, 23 May 1844 – 28 November 1921), born ʻAbbás ( fa, عباس), was the eldest son of Baháʼu'lláh and served as head of the Baháʼí Faith from 1892 until 1921. ʻAbdu'l-Bahá was later C ...

five times (twice in

Akka Akka or AKKA may refer to: Arts and entertainment * ''Akka'' (film), a 1976 Indian Tamil film * ''Akka'' (TV series), a 2014–2015 Indian Tamil soap opera * Akka, a character in the children's novel ''The Wonderful Adventures of Nils'' by Selma ...

and several times during the latter's travel to Europe and the US). In 1911 Cobb and a number of others gave talks in honor of the personal invitation by ʻAbdu'l-Bahá to pilgrimage of Louis Gregory. Cobb was a founding member of the

Spiritual Assembly Spiritual Assembly is a term given by ʻAbdu'l-Bahá to refer to elected councils that govern the Baháʼí Faith. Because the Baháʼí Faith has no clergy, they carry out the affairs of the community. In addition to existing at the local level ...

of the Baha'is of Washington D. C. in 1933, and served on various committees (for example Cobb was Chairman of the Teaching Committee in 1935''Alain Locke: Faith and Philosophy'' by Christopher Buck, ''Studies in Babí and Baháʼí Religions'' - Volume 18, p.168) and edited two Baha'i journals:

Star of the West ''Star of the West'' was an American merchant steamship that was launched in 1852 and scuttled by Confederate forces in 1863. In January 1861, the ship was hired by the government of the United States to transport military supplies and reinforce ...

in 1924, and

World Order In international relations, international order refers to patterned or structured relationships between actors on the international level. Definition David Lake, Lisa Martin and Thomas Risse define "order" as "patterned or structured relatio ...

from 1935–39.

Books and articles authored

Cobb was a prolific writer. Among his books were: *
The Real Turk
'. 1914, The Pilgrim Press, ISBN B000NUP6SI. *
Ayesha of the Bosphorus
'. 1915, Boston Murray and Emery Co. *
The Essential Mysticism
'. 1918, Four Seasons, (republished 2006 by Kessinger Publishing, LLC as ). *
Simla, A Tale of Love
'. 1919, The Cornhill Company. *
The New Leaven: Progressive Education and Its Effect upon the Child and Society
'. 1928, (Guy Thomas Buswell review published in The Elementary School Journal, Vol. 29, No. 3 (Nov., 1928), pp. 232–233).. *''The Wisdom of Wu Ming Fu''. 1931, Henry Holt and Company. *''Discovering the Genius Within You'' 1932, John Day Publisher, and again, World Publishing Co., Cleveland, 1941. *
New Horizons for the Child
'. 1934, Avalon Press. *
Security in a Failing World
'. 1934, Avalon Press. *''The Way of Life of Wu Ming Fu''. 1935 (reprinted 1942), Avalon Press. *
Character - A Sequence in Spiritual Psychology
'. 1938, Avalon Press. *''Symbols of America''. 1946, Avalon Press. *
Tomorrow and Tomorrow
'. 1951, Avalon Press. *''The Donkey Or the Elephant''. 1951, Avalon Press. *''What is Man?''. 1952. *''Sage of the Sacred Mountain; a Gospel of Tranquility''. 1953, Avalon Press. *''Magnificent Partnership''. 1954, Vantage Press Publisher (Warren S. Tryon review published in The New England Quarterly, Vol. 28, No. 3 (Sep., 1955), p. 429). *
What is God?
'. 1955, Avalon Press. *''What is Love?''. 1957, Avalon Press. *
Islamic Contributions to Civilization
'. 1963, Avalon Press. *
Memories of ʻAbdu'l-Baha
'. 1962, Avalon Press. *''The Importance of Creativity''. 1967, Scarecrow Press. *''Life With Nayan''. 1969, Avalon Press. *''Radiant Living''. 1970, Avalon Press. *
The Meaning of Life
'. 1972, Avalon Press. *''Thoughts on education and life''. 1975, Avalon Press. *''A Call to Action: Develop Your Spiritual Power : Man's Fulfillment on the ...''. 1977, Avalon Press. *''A Saga of Two Centuries'' 1979 (autobiography). Similar to his books, the focus of Cobb's articles has been education and Baha'i oriented - he has contributed to or was anthologized by: *

The Atlantic Monthly ''The Atlantic'' is an American magazine and multi-platform publisher. It features articles in the fields of politics, foreign affairs, business and the economy, culture and the arts, technology, and science. It was founded in 1857 in Boston, ...

(Feb 1921) *The

Journal of the American Society for Psychical Research The American Society for Psychical Research (ASPR) is the oldest psychical research organization in the United States dedicated to parapsychology. It maintains offices and a library, in New York City, which are open to both members and the gener ...

by the

American Society for Psychical Research The American Society for Psychical Research (ASPR) is the oldest psychical research organization in the United States dedicated to parapsychology. It maintains offices and a library, in New York City, which are open to both members and the gener ...

, * The School Arts Magazine by Davis Press, * Childhood Education by the Association for Childhood Education International * Child Study by Child Study Association of America *

The New England Magazine ''The New England Magazine'' was a monthly literary magazine published in Boston, Massachusetts, from 1884 to 1917. It was known as ''The Bay State Monthly'' from 1884 to 1886. The magazine was published by J. N. McClinctock and Company. The ma ...

by the Making of America Project *''The Path of Learning: Essays on Education'' by Henry Wyman Holmes, Burton P. Fowler, Published 1926 by Little, Brown and Company *

Progressive Education Progressive education, or protractivism, is a pedagogical movement that began in the late 19th century and has persisted in various forms to the present. In Europe, progressive education took the form of the New Education Movement. The term ''pro ...

as well as * The Baháʼí World (see Baha'i Periodicals for information) *

References

External links

*
Association for Childhood Education International
{{DEFAULTSORT:Cobb, Stanwood American educational theorists American Bahá'ís Dartmouth College alumni Harvard Divinity School alumni Progressive education 1881 births 1982 deaths Converts to the Bahá'í Faith 20th-century Bahá'ís American centenarians Men centenarians

Career as educator

Life as a Baháʼí

Books and articles authored

See also

References

External links