The GDS Founding Story
In 1945, a group of courageous parents in Washington, DC came together with a revolutionary idea: to open a school where children of all races, religions, and backgrounds could learn side by side. At a time when segregation was the law, they envisioned something radically different—a community rooted in equity, intellectual freedom, and shared humanity.
That idea became Georgetown Day School—the first integrated school in the District of Columbia, and one of the first in the nation. With just seven students gathered in a small house on G Place, NW, the school’s founding families set out to build something bold: an institution that would prepare young people not just for college, but for a life of purpose and justice.
Visionaries at the Helm
The founders of GDS were civil rights leaders, educators, and advocates for social change. They believed education could be a powerful force for equity—and that students should grow up learning not only how to think critically, but how to act ethically. From the very beginning, GDS was as committed to community and character as it was to academic rigor.
A Living Legacy
Today, GDS remains true to its founding mission. Our community is intentionally diverse. Our classrooms are inclusive and vibrant. And our students are challenged to speak out, ask big questions, and lead with empathy.
More than just a school, GDS is a movement that continues to model what a just, inclusive, and dynamic learning environment can look like. The vision that sparked our founding lives on in every student who walks through our doors—and carries that vision out into the world.
GDS Founding Charter, October 1945
Washington needs, and we are trying to provide, a school which:
- Provides the best in modern education at a price government workers can afford.
- Has an educational program that makes full use of Washington's resources and potentialities.
- Is international and interracial in its outlook and membership.
To attain this goal, Georgetown Day School is building a curriculum that begins with thorough proficiency in the fundamental skills of reading, writing, computations and spelling, but goes on to a study of the home, the community, the nation, and the community of nations.
At the same time, the school is building up a faculty and student body which is broadly representative of the many racial, cultural, and national groups which make up the Washington community.
The children in the Georgetown Day School should and do work hard to become proficient in fundamental skills, but they do it in a warm and friendly atmosphere which is as free of strain as the staff can make it. In a world in which cooperation and flexibility of approach are increasingly more necessary and difficult, we believe that children should begin as early as possible to learn about their relationships to the wider world of community and nation.