Midpeninsula Free University
| Active | 1966–1971 |
|---|---|
| Students | Between 1,000 and 1,275, quarterly, 1968-1969 |
| Location | San Francisco Midpeninsula (Palo Alto, Menlo Park, Mountain View) |
The Midpeninsula Free University (MFU) was one of the largest and most successful of the many free universities that sprang up on and around college campuses in the mid-1960s in the wake of the Free Speech Movement at UC-Berkeley and the nationwide anti-war Teach-ins which followed. Like other free universities, it featured an open curriculum—anyone who paid the nominal membership fee ($10) could offer a course in anything—marxism, pacifism, candle making, computers, encounter, dance, literature, walking in the woods, whatever. Courses were publicized in illustrated catalogs, issued quarterly and widely distributed. It had no campus; classes were taught in homes and storefronts. Its magazine-style, illustrated newsletter, The Free You, published articles, features, fiction, poetry, and reviews contributed by both members and nonmembers. The MFU sponsored, Be-Ins, street concerts, a restaurant, a store, and was actively involved in every aspect of the flourishing counterculture on the Midpeninsula, including the anti-war movement at Stanford.
Its original Preamble focused on the criticism of education found in SDS's Port Huron Statement. Later, as its courses and interests expanded to include the full range of 1960s counterculture—especially the burgeoning human potential movement—the MFU adopted a revised Preamble reflecting a more expansive vision—a document which one commentator characterized as "a compelling and almost classical manifesto" of the aspirations of 1960s counterculture.
In so far as the MFU had a concrete political philosophy, it was the belief that the counterculture harbored the potential for a new politics—open, more humane, and more creative—one that could lead to a true community and a better society. Realizing that potential would require a radical transformation of personal and interpersonal relationships. Eventually the MFU came to focus on the encounter group and the psychodrama as the primary vehicle for that transformation.
In its most active and successful years—1968-1969—enrollment varied between 1,000 and 1,275. Between 150 and 300 courses were offered each quarter, covering a variety of categories: Encounter/Sensitivity (26%), Arts (15%), Philosophy & Religion (13%), Crafts (12%), Politics & Economics (12%), Leisure (10%), Whole Earth Studies (8%), Education (4%). It was known for its intriguing and disparate mix of classes.
The MFU strove for full participatory democracy. All significant decisions were made by the membership, either at monthly membership meetings or weekly Coordinating Committee meetings open to any member who wished to participate and presided over by an elected Coordinator.
...
Wikipedia