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This issue of Georgetown Days highlights the 80th anniversary of the School’s founding in 1945. Conceived as a parent-owned, nonprofit institution, GDS was designed to offer a top-tier, integrated education at a price civil servants could afford. The founders’ vision was radical, but its beginnings were humble: just a dozen students and a mere $25 in the bank. The School’s 80th anniversary invites us to reflect on its audacious beginnings and the people, values, and milestones that have shaped GDS across the decades.
Features
![A middle-aged man with a beard and a red and white polka dot tie stands in front of a colorful, striped background.]([{"url":"https://resources.finalsite.net/images/f_auto,q_auto,t_image_size_1/v1666642428/gdsorg/svwjr4dz1vptqzxvkgbq/RussellShawheadshot.jpg","width":256},{"url":"https://resources.finalsite.net/images/f_auto,q_auto,t_image_size_2/v1666642428/gdsorg/svwjr4dz1vptqzxvkgbq/RussellShawheadshot.jpg","width":512},{"url":"https://resources.finalsite.net/images/f_auto,q_auto,t_image_size_3/v1666642428/gdsorg/svwjr4dz1vptqzxvkgbq/RussellShawheadshot.jpg","width":800},{"url":"https://resources.finalsite.net/images/f_auto,q_auto,t_image_size_4/v1666642428/gdsorg/svwjr4dz1vptqzxvkgbq/RussellShawheadshot.jpg","width":1200},{"url":"https://resources.finalsite.net/images/f_auto,q_auto/v1666642428/gdsorg/svwjr4dz1vptqzxvkgbq/RussellShawheadshot.jpg","width":1500}])
GDS lives in its stories. Eighty years of history means a lot of stories. It’s been a privilege to be part of an institution for the past 16 years that carries so many stories. And how exciting to think of all of the stories that have yet to be written.
![Through the Generations]([{"url":"https://resources.finalsite.net/images/f_auto,q_auto,t_image_size_1/v1784826840/gdsorg/clz3vco5uutqcozuaufd/GrasslandMainBldg1.jpg","width":256},{"url":"https://resources.finalsite.net/images/f_auto,q_auto,t_image_size_2/v1784826840/gdsorg/clz3vco5uutqcozuaufd/GrasslandMainBldg1.jpg","width":512},{"url":"https://resources.finalsite.net/images/f_auto,q_auto,t_image_size_3/v1784826840/gdsorg/clz3vco5uutqcozuaufd/GrasslandMainBldg1.jpg","width":800},{"url":"https://resources.finalsite.net/images/f_auto,q_auto/v1784826840/gdsorg/clz3vco5uutqcozuaufd/GrasslandMainBldg1.jpg","width":1000}])
The GDS story is best told through the lives of the families who have walked our halls since the very first chapter. For them, GDS is more than an alma mater; it is a shared inheritance that links the pioneers of the 1940s to the students of today.
![A group of young children, both boys and girls, are gathered in a colorful and lively classroom setting, surrounded by educational materials and displays on the walls.]([{"url":"https://resources.finalsite.net/images/f_auto,q_auto,t_image_size_1/v1720303420/gdsorg/eoqgtlkqopr2koqpiz6l/CEEL_SpringMagazine2024-2.jpg","width":256},{"url":"https://resources.finalsite.net/images/f_auto,q_auto,t_image_size_2/v1720303420/gdsorg/eoqgtlkqopr2koqpiz6l/CEEL_SpringMagazine2024-2.jpg","width":512},{"url":"https://resources.finalsite.net/images/f_auto,q_auto,t_image_size_3/v1720303420/gdsorg/eoqgtlkqopr2koqpiz6l/CEEL_SpringMagazine2024-2.jpg","width":800},{"url":"https://resources.finalsite.net/images/f_auto,q_auto/v1720303420/gdsorg/eoqgtlkqopr2koqpiz6l/CEEL_SpringMagazine2024-2.jpg","width":1000}])
Since its founding, GDS has held a steadfast commitment to civic engagement and the belief that education should be a catalyst for social good. Today, that legacy of activism is anchored by two powerhouse initiatives launched in the 2010s.
![The image shows two young women standing in front of a building with the name "Georgetown" displayed on it. They appear to be engaged in conversation or some form of interaction.]([{"url":"https://resources.finalsite.net/images/f_auto,q_auto,t_image_size_1/v1785885683/gdsorg/l5afzhituzppisxa4zfz/GirlsatSchool6tiff41.jpg","width":256},{"url":"https://resources.finalsite.net/images/f_auto,q_auto,t_image_size_2/v1785885683/gdsorg/l5afzhituzppisxa4zfz/GirlsatSchool6tiff41.jpg","width":512},{"url":"https://resources.finalsite.net/images/f_auto,q_auto,t_image_size_3/v1785885683/gdsorg/l5afzhituzppisxa4zfz/GirlsatSchool6tiff41.jpg","width":800},{"url":"https://resources.finalsite.net/images/f_auto,q_auto/v1785885683/gdsorg/l5afzhituzppisxa4zfz/GirlsatSchool6tiff41.jpg","width":1000}])
In 1961, a group of GDS 9th graders initiated a dialogue with Black students in Virginia that sparked an exchange of visits to one another’s turf. Years after the Supreme Court outlawed public school segregation, GDS students got a firsthand look at ongoing resistance.
![Michelle Cobb Retires after 20 Years at GDS]([{"url":"https://resources.finalsite.net/images/f_auto,q_auto,t_image_size_1/v1784828847/gdsorg/sxewe6vy0lrqiypjihyt/MichelleCobb_retirement-9.jpg","width":256},{"url":"https://resources.finalsite.net/images/f_auto,q_auto,t_image_size_2/v1784828847/gdsorg/sxewe6vy0lrqiypjihyt/MichelleCobb_retirement-9.jpg","width":512},{"url":"https://resources.finalsite.net/images/f_auto,q_auto,t_image_size_3/v1784828847/gdsorg/sxewe6vy0lrqiypjihyt/MichelleCobb_retirement-9.jpg","width":800},{"url":"https://resources.finalsite.net/images/f_auto,q_auto/v1784828847/gdsorg/sxewe6vy0lrqiypjihyt/MichelleCobb_retirement-9.jpg","width":1000}])
![Conor McDermott-Mostowy ’17: Cheering on a Champion]([{"url":"https://resources.finalsite.net/images/f_auto,q_auto,t_image_size_1/v1784897567/gdsorg/ymiagtzen6l9emsl7so3/Conor_McDermott_Mostowy17.jpg","width":256},{"url":"https://resources.finalsite.net/images/f_auto,q_auto,t_image_size_2/v1784897567/gdsorg/ymiagtzen6l9emsl7so3/Conor_McDermott_Mostowy17.jpg","width":512},{"url":"https://resources.finalsite.net/images/f_auto,q_auto,t_image_size_3/v1784897567/gdsorg/ymiagtzen6l9emsl7so3/Conor_McDermott_Mostowy17.jpg","width":800},{"url":"https://resources.finalsite.net/images/f_auto,q_auto/v1784897567/gdsorg/ymiagtzen6l9emsl7so3/Conor_McDermott_Mostowy17.jpg","width":1000}])
![Two smiling women, one in a blue vest and beanie, stand in the foreground with a blurred background of snow-covered trees.]([{"url":"https://resources.finalsite.net/images/f_auto,q_auto,t_image_size_1/v1784903914/gdsorg/uvusrsg8negpmxm9j3aq/breezy-johnson-mom-heather.jpg","width":256},{"url":"https://resources.finalsite.net/images/f_auto,q_auto,t_image_size_2/v1784903914/gdsorg/uvusrsg8negpmxm9j3aq/breezy-johnson-mom-heather.jpg","width":512},{"url":"https://resources.finalsite.net/images/f_auto,q_auto,t_image_size_3/v1784903914/gdsorg/uvusrsg8negpmxm9j3aq/breezy-johnson-mom-heather.jpg","width":800},{"url":"https://resources.finalsite.net/images/f_auto,q_auto/v1784903914/gdsorg/uvusrsg8negpmxm9j3aq/breezy-johnson-mom-heather.jpg","width":1000}])
![Remembering Victor Vazquez Vincent]([{"url":"https://resources.finalsite.net/images/f_auto,q_auto,t_image_size_1/v1784824066/gdsorg/gv49eay3q6d5bskeemit/VazquezVincent_Victor_2558253.jpg","width":256},{"url":"https://resources.finalsite.net/images/f_auto,q_auto,t_image_size_2/v1784824066/gdsorg/gv49eay3q6d5bskeemit/VazquezVincent_Victor_2558253.jpg","width":512},{"url":"https://resources.finalsite.net/images/f_auto,q_auto,t_image_size_3/v1784824066/gdsorg/gv49eay3q6d5bskeemit/VazquezVincent_Victor_2558253.jpg","width":800},{"url":"https://resources.finalsite.net/images/f_auto,q_auto/v1784824066/gdsorg/gv49eay3q6d5bskeemit/VazquezVincent_Victor_2558253.jpg","width":1000}])