News
Alumni in the News: Eric Klinenberg ’89
Eric Klinenberg ’89 is director of The Institute for Public Knowledge at NYU and author of a new book, Palaces for the People.
Just as certain hard infrastructures, such as those for power and water, are “lifeline systems” that make modern societies possible, so too are certain social infrastructures especially crucial for democratic life. Colonel Francis Wayland Parker, whom John Dewey called the “father of progressive education,” believed that the neighborhood school was a vital space that, when organized properly, served as a “model home, a complete community, an embryonic democracy.” Schools, Parker and Dewey believed, teach young people not only their roles and responsibilities within the larger and more diverse society, but also the skills and dispositions required to participate as citizens.
In addition, in The Atlantic article, Eric references the American Society of Civil Engineers, where Casey Dinges ’75 is the senior managing director. Click here to view the TV interview with Dinges.
Francis W. Parker School educates students to think and act with empathy, courage and clarity as responsible citizens and leaders in a diverse democratic society and global community.