Long, long ago, a small but mighty school was created along the sandy shores and great blue waters of Lake Michigan. Nestled among tall pines and sturdy oaks and hugging the banks of a Crystal-clear river, students traveled from near and far to this magical spot in search of new and creative ways of learning from teachers of great cheer and understanding…

You know there will be adventure. You expect there will be drama. Twists and turns will thicken the plot, and missteps complicate the situation. You begin to connect with the characters and grow with them throughout the chapters. You hope for an inspiring journey and applaud a satisfying ending. With a really good book, you can’t wait for the sequel. 

The Leelanau School has been turning these pages for more than nine decades. Our main characters – faculty and students alike – are rich with intrigue, humor, complexity, and resilience. Somehow, seemingly unrelated narratives find ways to merge into shared experiences and authentic storylines. The plot develops by way of a full spectrum of motivations and colorful perspectives. And, of course, everything is enhanced by the enchanted forest where our story unfolds.

Surprisingly, and not surprisingly, each decade of The Leelanau School has produced new chapters with unique but hauntingly familiar characters. No matter the decade or reason, we open this book with similar dreams: the promise of opportunity, exploration, ideas, skills, and community.

These daydreams are more important now than ever. We live in a world where student success is often measured by test scores and standardization is the norm. Connection, found through screens and chat rooms, is transient and only schedules crammed with extracurriculars gain acclaim. Not surprisingly, this world is also a place where teenage mental health has been labeled “in crisis.” 

While we’d all prefer to skim over these realities and skip right to the part where they all live happily ever after, I am personally grateful that a place like Leelanau continues to exist. Our current world needs the wizardry of our faculty, the adventurous spirits of our students, and our magical wooded setting. Leelanau’s authorship shines light into darkness and continues to pen pages offering hope that learning can be a joyful process of discovery and that belonging can be authentic, sincere, and lasting.