Letter from the Director

The mission of Fanny Edel Falk Laboratory School is to focus on students. We are about learning well and complementing the work of one of the world's premier institutions of higher learning, the University of Pittsburgh. Our academic program is rigorous, but we are as interested in the development of character as we are in scholastic achievement. Our students and faculty members come from a rich variety of backgrounds. We view this diversity as a strength, representative of the world in which we live.

In 1931 the University of Pittsburgh and the Falk family entered into a charter agreement that resulted in the development of the Fanny Edel Falk Laboratory School. This charter delineated the conditions for the development and maintenance of a "progressive, experimental elementary school as part of the activity of an educational institution that provides prospective teachers with the opportunity to observe these methods of teaching."

Beginning with a handful of primary grade children from the Community School and growing to over 260 students by 2005, the Laboratory School has earned a well-deserved reputation for excellence, serving students from throughout the metropolitan Pittsburgh area. The multimillion dollar expansion and renovation, started in 2006, is now completed and will allow our kindergarten through grade eight population to ultimately grow to over four hundred.

Located on the highest point of the University of Pittsburgh's campus overlooking the Cathedral of Learning, the school has provided an environment designed to maximize the quality of learning for children through the elementary and middle school years. Through assisting with the preparation of new teachers; developing curriculum; providing a site for educational research; and, demonstrating best practice the functions performed as part of Falk's mission are tied directly to the mission and functions of the School of Education and the University of Pittsburgh as a whole.

We are proud of our school and would love to show you in person. To visit us, please contact the Admissions Office at 412-624-8024. We look forward to meeting you.

Wendell R. McConnaha

Director