Arthur Swan

Elsa Barnouw was a pioneer in the field of early childhood education, convinced that children are naturally creative and possess an innate love of learning. Educated at Horace Mann School for Girls, Mt. Holyoke, and Columbia, she was engaged in the teaching of young children for most of the 20th century. After graduating from Teachers College at Columbia with a degree in elementary education, Barnouw opened a nursery school in Morningside Heights, Manhattan. The school is still open under the name the Children’s Learning Center. She lived in Manhattan to the age of 102, and is known for saying, “Planning that [nursery school] and working there, those were my best days.”