The Spring School of the Arts
History
The Spring School of the Arts, originally incorporated as The Spring Nursery School of the Arts, opened its doors on September 15, 1980, in the parish of St. Andrew & St. Monica in 36th and Baring Streets in West Philadelphia.
The historic undertaking was accomplished under the leadership and vision of two sisters, Ardie Stuart Brown and Patricia Stuart Robinson a story telling duo otherwise know as the “Stuart Sisters.” The two women, director and co director respectively, were driven by an unrelenting desire to implement Ardie Stuart Brown’s philosophy of “learning through the arts,” in an academic setting.
The institution is an outgrowth of the Dance Theatre Studio (DTS), founded by Ardie Stuart Brown. DTS opened in October, 1976, at 119 South 46th Street, also in West Philadelphia. At DTS, a very serious approach to dance was taken, and children between the ages of 3 through 17 were taught dance history, music interpretation, eurhythmics, choreography, and dance criticism.
Through the cultivation of DTS, Ardie Stuart Brown was able to provide proof of the success of her “learning through the arts” philosophy, as DTS participants went on to excel in other areas of their lives in addition to dance.
Indeed, because of the overwhelming success of the techniques, training and discipline developed at DTS, combined with its positive results on the students, parents and audiences exposed to it, a decision was made to expand this concept to include the other art forms: drama, music, and the visual arts.
Thus, The Spring Nursery School of the Arts was born. In 1982, the Spring purchased and moved into its own building at 3639 Lancaster Avenue. On October 19, 1984, the Spring celebrated paying off the loan on the Lancaster Avenuebuilding by conducting a “Mortgage Burning Ceremony and Concert” at the University of Pennsylvania’s Annenberg Center.