Green Valley School, Orange City, Florida: America's Most Unusual School.

by Jack Dancer

Overview

This is a true story...

*Green Valley School, Orange City, Florida: America's Most Unusual School* unveils the captivating rise and fall of a revolutionary "free school" in 1960s America, founded by the visionary yet controversial Reverend George von Hilsheimer. Through Jack Dancer's personal memoir and extensive research, this compelling narrative explores a bold educational experiment, the fierce resistance it faced, and the ultimate clash between freedom and conformity in the quest for a new kind of learning.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9798989937394
Publisher:	W.S. Jones
Publication date:	09/09/2024
Pages:	376
Sales rank:	165,432
Product dimensions:	6.00(w) x 9.00(h) x 0.78(d)

About the Author

Jack Dancer is like a human pinball, bouncing through life with all the finesse of a drunk elephant. Born with a silver spoon (which he quickly pawned for beer money), Jack’s seen it all—from the gutter to the penthouse, sometimes in the same week.

By 11, he realized Santa was just Dad with better marketing. At 13, he discovered girls weren’t icky. By 14, God seemed as real as his dreams of becoming a pro yodeler.

At 16, high on hormones and low on common sense, Jack and a trio of teenage dreamers headed for New York. Instead of fame, they found themselves living in a basement with a wino until Jack’s dad dragged him back home.

Lesson learned? Hardly. It was just the opening chapter in Jack’s “How to Piss Off Authority” guide.

By 18, he’d landed at a Florida school for sociopaths, which earned him a “get out of Vietnam” pass. He hitched to Boston with a new wife and cat, dove into the counterculture, and worked as a welder for a defense contractor. Life’s full of contradictions.

Jack’s resume reads like a drunk’s dartboard: ice cream man, boardwalk barker, welder, snake oil salesman—sorry, advertising executive.

He’s been married four times (one lasted 28 years, one was a hiccup), and fatherhood taught him that kids are like tattoos on your face—seemed like a good idea at the time.

In Jack’s world, life’s simple: no sequel, no refunds.

Editorial Reviews

Through meticulous research and vivid storytelling, Dancer brings Reverend George von Hilsheimer's unconventional school to life. The book balances historical context, personal insight, and drama, capturing the spirit of the Free School Movement of the 60s and 70s. Reviewers commend Dancer's nuanced portrayal, making this a must-read for those interested in alternative education or counterculture history.

Amazon - Chat GPT

This book provides an insightful look at Green Valley School, a bold, unconventional institution for "throwaway kids" failed by traditional systems. Written by a former staff member, it explores both the successes and struggles of this unique experiment. As an educator with over 30 years of experience, I saw how traditional methods often fall short. Green Valley proved no child is a throwaway, challenging the status quo with a radically different approach to education.

Amazon - Debra Webb Rogers