Saxifrage School hopes to bloom in Pittsburgh

Tim Cook was used to wielding a pen, but he felt inept when it came to using a hammer.

“After… Tim Cook was used to wielding a pen, but he felt inept when it came to using a hammer.

“After college I was prepared to write a poem or an essay, but I couldn’t build a house,” the Washington & Jefferson graduate reflected. He points to this thought as his inspiration for “the best idea I’ve ever had.”

The Saxifrage School, a new college to be located in Pittsburgh, is Cook’s creation, currently in the developmental stage. Saxifrage will offer an alternative to higher education, Cook says — one that provides liberal arts training, trade skill acquisition and foreign language fluency. With current operating locations termed as “nomad campuses,” Cook plans to open the doors to Saxifrage in 2014.

Cook’s preoccupation with the vertical structure of higher education started during his time as an undergraduate at Washington & Jefferson College, a liberal arts school of 1,500 students located in Washington, Pa.

“Even before I graduated, I started to ask questions like, ‘What’s the point of this college experience? To get a job? To live better after we graduate? So we can change the world? Or just so we can be really smart? Is that why I paid $120,000?’ There seemed to be so many mixed messages as to why we were there,” he said.

Cook’s idea for the new school came about when he realized he lacked what he considers crucial skill sets.

While working on a community development program with a local nonprofit, Cook recruited volunteers to help build and repair local homes. During the process, he realized that while he was skilled at recruiting and supervising volunteers, he lacked the technical trade skills needed for the work.

Using his own home as a testing ground, Cook attempted to complete repair and construction jobs on his own. He jokes about how quickly he contracted a professional to complete the work. But instead of then sitting back and relaxing, Cook asked questions and learned from the contractor. Through trial and error, Cook came to appreciate the benefits of having practical skills such as the ability to rewire a house and put up drywall.

“I started to realize the gap between the theoretical and the real in the world. What if college could teach us both to make and to think? What if it could teach us how to produce a very valuable, tangible product, but also how to judge whether this project is valuable, how it should be used, and if it is necessary for the good of society?”

So began Cook’s mission to develop a new, academic model combining liberal arts training and practical trade skills.

Saxifrage, although taking its own approach, is not alone it its pursuit to redefine higher education. “DIY U” is a blog created by Yale graduate Anya Kamenetz as an interactive alternative learning option that appeals to students who “don’t fit the traditional mold” of the structured four-year matriculation design.

Pushing the envelope perhaps even further, MIT has been working on providing undergraduate and graduate courses for free online since 2002. Currently, over 2,000 courses are available to the browsing public directly from MIT’s website. Both Harvard and Yale offer open courses to those interested as well.

But Cook hasn’t found anything quite like Saxifrage. Cook terms the new school’s mission as “productive inquiry,” a combination of the intellectual and the practical all in one.

Cook named his school after the saxifrage flower, and he argues that the flower is a paradigm breaker. William Carlos Williams, in his poem “A Sort of a Song,” uses the flower as a symbol for its gritty determination to grow in seemingly infertile ground. The flower, says Cook, “represents the convergence between ideas and things.”

As of yet, the Saxifrage School has some struggles to overcome. It has recently filed with the IRS for status as a non-profit. It has neither been accredited by any higher education association nor has it been granted status as a college of higher learning. Such distinctions are yet to come, according to Cook. But until then, students will not earn a degree.

But the school has taken a test run.

Andrew Heffner, a member of the Saxifrage board, said that this past spring the Saxifrage team moved into a space in the Mattress Factory — a North Side art museum — in order “show the prototype and give an idea of what the school could be.” Over the course of six weeks in April and May, the Saxifrage team held outreach and marketing sessions, taught art classes and held concerts with open conversations following the events.

“We want these locations and events to serve as easy entry points for people nearby in the community. We’re confident that we will gain momentum as we open up new locations. At least that’s the hope. We feel if we can do well in these locations, then we can build toward larger and more densely populated neighborhoods.”

The concerts and a clothing swap during this six week period were especially big draws in regards to generating interest, Heffner said.

“Everyone that has come to Saxifrage has felt that there was a shortcoming in the undergraduate experience or higher education in general and are looking at ways to reconcile those limitations.” The desire is to invite people to talk about the big questions pertaining to the current state of “college” and to generate a larger conversation and inspire people, says Heffner.

In addition to making connections with neighborhoods, the Saxifrage team has to build its reputation  and make enough money to get started. Aside from developing interest, Cook acknowledges the obstacles that remain before Saxifrage officially opens its doors. He still has to raise $2 million, get accredited, search for faculty and finalize the curriculum, projects, location and admission standards. At face value, the to-do list seems daunting.

But there are already believers in and funders of Saxifrage. The Sprout Fund, a nonprofit located in Pittsburgh’s East End, has given Saxifrage a Seed Award grant of about $5,000 to assist in the founding of three nomad locations. A nomadic campus is one where the school utilizes community buildings and encourages students to live within the neighborhoods so that the school doesn’t necessarily have its own buildings or space. Mac Howison — who has been with the Sprout Fund for seven years and currently serves as the organization’s funding programs manager — sees potential in the new idea.

“Saxifrage has long-lasting, sustainable characteristics — dedicated leadership, great dialogue and strong community support. We believe in helping to facilitate the conversation about affordable educational alternatives that Saxifrage has started. We have the confidence that they are the right people working on this job.”

Furthermore, Howison insists that Saxifrage has a novel idea — one that deserves support. “By allocating funding to Saxifrage, we’re offering a point of entry. We were willing to take a risk on them when other traditional foundations were not. Hopefully Saxifrage can continue to leverage their success, develop their ideas and become eligible for other forms of funding.”

As with all new ideas, the prospective of failure can loom large. Though Howison feels that Saxifrage has what it takes to succeed, he mentions potential challenges.

“The sustainability in and of itself is the question. Are they able to fully develop a structure that is not reliant on the founders? Are they able to establish something that has longevity by design, and is not temporary by default? The sweat equity of the founders of Saxifrage has gone a great way to establish the tone and direction of the organization.”

Regardless of the difficulties associated with starting a new school, Cook feels that he and his team are innovators with a mission and a message.

“We’re realistic: People are going to go to college,” he says. “We’re trying to reinvent higher education as it is. We don’t want to destroy the model. We like it, actually. Let’s take that and make it as good as possible and get back to what really matters. Let’s make college as good and as inexpensive as it can possibly be.”

The Facts

The Campus

The Saxifrage school will have a nontraditional campus that’s nomadic and integrates the students into the surrounding neighborhood.

Students will live in an academic community, but instead of dorms they will inhabit a neighborhood and attend classes in underutilized community buildings including churches, libraries and storefronts.

There will be three nomadic campuses, but project director Tim Cook has only chosen one location so far — a fledgling library in Millvale, Pa., which will be open this year from Oct. 1 to Nov. 31.

Cook and his affiliates are scouting the Manchester neighborhood, areas around the Mexican War Streets and a spot in the East End for the other two campuses. These locations are slated to open in the spring and summer of 2012, respectively.

The Curriculum

The Saxifrage curriculum combines both the practical know-how of trade skills and liberal-arts-inspired analytical judgment.

In four years students will complete two majors — one liberal arts and one trade skill major. On top of that, students must be fluent in Spanish to graduate.

At the moment, however, graduation will not include one thing virtually synonymous with such an accomplishment: a degree.

The Leaders

Cook has surrounded himself with 17 individuals serving in three capacities: the founding team, a board of directors and advisers.

According to the Saxifrage website, members of the board of directors collectively hold three Ph.D.s and five master’s degrees.

Those applying their expertise to the school’s development include an auditor and accountant from a private firm and a local nonprofit, an investment analyst from BNY Mellon and a computer programmer from Google, Inc.

The Tuition

The Saxifrage school’s tuition is already set. Here’s how it compares to other local schools.

Saxifrage’s annual cost: $6,500 ($5,000 tuition, $1,500 administrative fees)

Pitt’s annual in-state undergraduate tuition: $15,272 – $19,226 depending on the school attended

Penn State’s annual in-state undergraduate tuition: $16,000

Slippery Rock’s annual in-state undergraduate tuition (two semesters of 16 credits): $9,441.60

Community College of Allegheny County, Allegheny residents annual tuition (two 12-credit semesters): $2,000

Washington & Jefferson annual tuition (Cook’s alma mater): $35,960