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Sally Liberman Smith - May 7, 1929 - December 1, 2007

Sally Liberman Smith, born in New York City in 1929, became one of the 20th and 21st Centuries greatest innovators in education. Smith founded The Lab School in 1967 unlocking the talented minds of children with leaning disabilities. Inspired by her background in education and dance as well as her own youngest son’s experience with learning disabilities, Smith single-handedly built up the Lab School and a curriculum infused with the arts. All the while Smith also served the students of the American University for 30 years where was a professor in the School of Education and the Head of the Graduate Program in Special Education until the time of her death. Her innovative teaching method, the Academic Club Method, is a revolutionary tool in American education today.

Early Years
Smith was born to Isaac and Bertha Liberman on Tuesday May 7, 1929. She was one of four daughters in the Liberman family and grew up in New York. Her father, Isaac, was the president of a department store, Arnold Constable and Co.

Education
In 1950 Smith graduated from Bennington College in Vermont – at the time an all women’s institution. At Bennington Smith studied dance under acclaimed modern dancer, Martha Graham. Smith also studied under Erich Fromm in the area of psychoanalytics. Her first published book was born under Fromm’s guidance: A Child’s Guide to a Parent’s Mind, 1951. Smith continued on to receive a Masters degree in Education from New York University in 1955. Smith then became a professor at the School of Education at the American University and ran the Masters Program focused on learning disabilities.

Family
Sally Liberman married Robert Smith and became the mother of three sons: Randall, Nick, and Gary. Her marriage with Robert Smith ended in divorce.

Professional Life
After receiving her Masters degree Smith worked for the World Health Organization and lived abroad, moving with Robert Smith who was in the Foreign Service. While traveling she wrote her second book: Nobody Said It’s Easy: Can the Years Between 13 and 19 Be the Best Year’s of a Child’s Life?, 1965. In 1967, when Smith’s youngest son Gary was in first grade Smith discovered the extent of Gary’s learning disabilities that were hindering him from excelling in school in the same way as his peers. Motivated by the lack of services for talented minds like Gary’s, Smith started the Lab School with a few children from her neighborhood. Smith’s observations of Gary at her sons’ themed birthday parties set off a light bulb in her head to connect the arts with scholastic material. The Academic Club Method was born and fleshed out by Smith during the first years of the Lab School as more and more parents dropped their children at her doorstep. As Smith became the director of the Lab School she also took on the role of professor and head of the Learning Disabilities Masters program at the American University in Washington. In 1983 the Lab School moved to a more permanent residence and the success gave birth to a fund raising campaign in 1984 connecting famous figures with learning disabilities to supporting the school’s efforts. In 2000 another campus of the Lab School opened in Baltimore to accommodate the growing interest of parents with learning disabled children. Following the Lab School’s phenomenal success Smith established the Academic Club Teaching Service (ACTS) in 2005 to train educators at other intuitions in the Academic Club Method.

Remembrances
Sally Smith is fondly remembered and joyfully celebrated by her many communities of friends, coworkers, students, and family. Smith passed away on December 1, 2007 from myeloma. The Lab School students organized a day of remembrance in January of 2008 celebrating Sally’s vision and impact on the lives of countless children and families in a colorful and joyful tribute. The Washington Post and NPR News also remembered Sally Smith as a distinguished figure in American education.

Philosophy
Sally Smith holds a strong belief in the ability of all children to learn and discover their talents. Traditional education reaches a certain sector of the population but innovative methods are needed to help unlock the talent within children with learning abilities outside of that spectrum. The Lab School model uses art-infused academic coursework in such a way as to address the specific neurological passageways in the brains of students with learning disabilities. Smith has found that often these children have a higher I.Q. than their peers and, thus, require stimulation for critical thinking and logic based approaches to learning. Smith also believes highly in the importance of enjoyment in the learning process and often speaks of the joy expressed by her students in coming to the Lab School.

Publications
Sally Smith has authored ten books, numerous articles, and appeared in several videos on the Lab School and teaching methods for students with learning disabilities.

Books

 * 'A Child’s Guide to a Parent’s Mind''' – Schuman, 1951
 * Nobody Said It's Easy: Can the Years Between 13 and 19 Be the Best Years of a Child's Life? – The Macmillan Company, 1965
 * Succeeding Against the Odds: How the Learning-Disabled Child Can Realize Their Promise – Tarcher/Perigee, 1993
 * Different Is Not Bad, Different Is the World: A Book About Disabilities – Sopris West, 1994
 * No Easy Answers: The Learning Disabled Child At Home and At School – Bantam new edition February, 1995 and Sin Respuestas Simples: El Niño con Problemas de Aprendizaje En El Hogar Y En La Escuela – Editorial Plaza Mayor, Inc., 1999
 * The Power of the Arts: Creative Strategies for Teaching Exceptional Learners – Paul H Brookes Publishing, 2001
 * Live It, Learn It: The Academic Club Methodology For Students With Learning Disabilities and ADHD – Brookes Publishing, 2005

Articles

 * What Do Parents of Children with Learning Disabilities, ADHD, and Related Disorders Deal With? – Pediatric Nursing, May/June 2002 issue
 * Learning Disabilities – The Encyclopedia Britannia, 1985 Medical and Health Annual

Video

 * Teach Me Different – PBS series, 2002
 * Lab School: Sally Smith – Today Show, 2007

Smith has also been featured in numerous publications:
 * Creativity and Learning Disabilities – National Center for Learning Disabilities (NCLD), 2002
 * Extraordinary Women: Fantasies Revealed 58 Women of Accomplishment Portray Hidden Dreams and Real Hopes – Stewart, Tobari, and Chang, 2005
 * Teaching, Schools, and Society (8th Edition) – David Miller Sadker, Myra Pollack Sadker, Karen R. Zittleman, 2007
 * Baltimore Sun, Smart Woman Magazine, Washington Home and Garden Magazine, American, the magazine of American University, Washington’s Finest Magazine, Education Update, and Child Magazine

Accolades

 * Living Legacy Award: Women’s International Center – 1990
 * LDA Award: Learning Disabilities of Association of America – 1993
 * Principal of Excellence: Washington Post – 1999
 * 25 Years of Outstanding Service: American University – 2001
 * Mentor of the Month: Learning Disabled Online – June 2003

The Lab School
Founded by Sally Smith in 1967 the Lab School is an internationally recognized innovative K-12 school for students with learning disabilities and ADHD. The Lab School is based in Washington, DC and currently hosts 323 students as of 2008. The Lab School Day School serves students from grades K-12 with an innovative structure using Smith’s Academic Club Method. The Lab School Night School opens up educational opportunities for adults with learning disabilities to improve their education, understanding and ability to unlock their talented minds. The Lab School is based on integrating the arts into academic learning. Students interact with rigorous subject matter through art, drama, computers, story-telling, and writing. An impressive 90% of Lab School Day School students go on to college upon graduation.