Berkshire Foothills, Massachusetts
Join us in this global giving movement to open the doors of a therapeutic high school
in 2025 that will support LGBTQ+ students.
We will nurture their curiosity and passion, grow their personal power and wellness, and support their physical and emotional needs. Together we can make this vision a reality.
This year we have an exciting match to help us reach our goal - between now and Giving Tuesday, every dollar (up to $50,000) will be matched by an anonymous donor.
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Help us raise $285,000 for capital improvement funds for this next important phase - the building renovation of our health, wellness, and learning campus. This includes accessible bathrooms, threshold ramps, fire alarms, basement repair, parking, fencing, and more! These renovations are key to us opening our door in the Fall of 2025!
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The school is a 501(c)3 not-for-profit organization. Your donation is tax deductible. The J.S. Bryant School is incorporated in the state of Massachusetts with a seven-person board of directors. We plan to open our doors to students in the fall of 2025.
What is the J.S. Bryant School?
The first therapeutic gender-affirming high school for LGBTQ+ teens
The J.S. Bryant School will serve LGBTQ+ teens suffering from anxiety and depression. This school will provide a learning community that is affirming and supportive of identity development. Through academic excellence that emphasizes creative exploration, farming entrepreneurship, and climate innovation, students will graduate ready for college or the future workforce.
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The school includes two campuses, minutes away from each other. A former Inn will be the initial home for the school when it opens Fall 2025 as a day school for 36 students. Spaces for learning, wellness, the arts, and eating will be housed in this 5,300 sq ft building on 5 acres of land adjacent to a river and wildlife management area.
For the first few years, this property will be the primary location for learning and wellness with all students shuttled to the 300-acre farm for field studies and afternoon school-wide farming arts.
Once new construction of buildings takes place at the farm, the primary location for the school will move to the farm. Then the former Inn property will become a "transition house" for 19-24 year old students for workforce development and/or additional college-readiness experience.
Meet our Founders
The founders, Dr. Allison Druin and Dr. Ben Bederson, are life-long educators and innovators with a commitment to experiential learning and listening to the voices of young people. They are lovers of craft, creativity, and the healing properties of outdoor education and life. They are also the parents of a college student who has walked this journey and attended a therapeutic boarding school. As they sought a supportive environment for their child, they learned what was and wasn’t available. Coupled with their history of living in the Berkshires, they have been inspired by their family journey to create a much-needed learning community in the northeast.
