History

By Elizabeth Laurent, Director of Historical Resources

Girard College holds a unique place in the story of American education.

Stephen Girard's Philanthropy

Girard College was formed by an unprecedented act of American philanthropy. The school was constructed and endowed from the fortune of Stephen Girard (1750 - 1831), a French immigrant who was probably the richest man in America at the time of his death. The money he left to create Girard College was the largest private charitable donation up to that time in American history.

Educating Poor Children

Girard's vision as a school for poor, orphan boys who had lost their fathers was unique in serving an entirely unserved population. Girard saw a chance to help educate boys who might otherwise be lost and to prepare them for useful, productive lives. Girard's vision for the school can best be understood in the context of early 19th century Philadelphia. The city was at the forefront of creating innovative American institutions designed to solve a specific social challenge: Eastern State Penitentiary (humane incarceration), the Pennsylvania Hospital (mental illness), the Pennsylvania Asylum for the Deaf and Dumb (disabilities), the Franklin Institute (scientific knowledge), among many others. Girard chose to dedicate his immense fortune to help educate Americans for the future.

Girard's Vision

Girard's unique vision, combined with his leaving a large sum of money to the City of Philadelphia, guaranteed that the school would become a lightening rod for controversy over the important social issues of each era. Girard's bequest has twice been challenged all the way up to the U. S. Supreme Court. In the 19th century, the challenge was over religious freedom. The 20th-century challenge was racial diversity. Since its opening in 1848, Girard College has always been under intense public scrutiny and we should expect that to continue as long as the school exists.

Evolving Curriculum

The ways Girard College has changed over the years reflects the ways America has changed. In its first century, for example, the school prepared boys for the trades and professions of their era with academic, mechanical-trades and apprenticeship training. In contemporary America, by contrast, we expect boys and girls to aspire to familiarity with technology and a college education to lead successful adult lives, so the Girard curriculum has evolved to provide that intense college and technological preparation.

Girard Today

It is unreasonable to expect Stephen Girard, born more than 250 years ago, to imagine the ways that our country would develop over time. Girard couldn't imagine female Justices of the United States Supreme Court, or a female as the U.S. Secretary of State, as we have in Condoleeza Rice. Nor could he have imagined a female as President of Philadelphia City Council, District Attorney, or U.S. Senator. As is only reasonable, the school Girard set up in 1831 reflected the customs of his own day. Like the rest of America, Girard College's reaction to societal change has sometimes been slow, painful and difficult. The great triumph of Girard College today has been its adaptation over time in response to changes in American society while maintaining Stephen Girard's original mission to educate children to become productive citizens.