Alayna Franklin
Where are you from and what kind of schooling experiences did you have growing up?
I am from West County here in Saint Louis, Missouri! My schooling experience K-12 was through Parkway public schools. After graduation, I attended Mizzou for less than one year. I recall my years in school as some of the darkest of my life. The levels of anxiety and depression I faced felt insurmountable and crippling. I struggled socially and with attendance, but somehow managed to perform academically quite well, at a cost I think no child should face.
How did you come to be a part of Saint Louis Sudbury School?
My sister, Alexis Franklin, founded the school in 2019. I attended the inaugural board meeting with my then infant in 2017, where admittedly I first learned about the Sudbury model of education. I was eager to join the movement as I knew I needed an educational opportunity for my kid when he came of age. Previously, I had considered homeschool as my only option since I knew I would not be subjecting my kid to compulsory education and I hadn’t yet fully explored alternative or self-directed education. I briefly held a position on the board, taking a step back after some time as the hours of work competed with my existing part-time job as a hairstylist and full-time job mothering a baby. Years later, I began part-time staffing at the school, bringing my toddler along. Eventually, I became a full-time staff member and later Board Co-President.
What do you enjoy about it?
I love working with young people, helping to provide them a safe environment to find themselves and their way. I enjoy being in community, learning from mistakes, building relationships, and seeing the project grow and evolve from its infancy. As a bonus, I love that I was able to find a job that supports young mothers, one that allowed me to bring my toddler with me and practice attachment parenting while earning a modest income. Mothering is meant to happen communally!
What are some of your life experiences that have helped prepare you and guide you as a Sudbury staff member?
At the most basic level, I have childcare experience through staffing at a daycare before I had my own baby, though countering the greater culture through parenting my kid has been the largest impetus for what I do here. I adamantly advocate for the respect of my own child, which I find woefully difficult within this culture which often views young people as blank slates, to be coerced into compliance, to fall in line and pursue the “dreams” of their predecessors (compulsory hierarchical education followed by a 9-to-5 for life).
Further, I find that my interests in mental/emotional health, trauma awareness, healing in relationship, sovereignty, lifelong learning, and community building translate very nicely to our mission here at the Saint Louis Sudbury School.
Do you feel like you have changed since becoming a part of Saint Louis Sudbury School? If yes, how so?
I have changed in innumerable ways. When I began working on the project, I was a brand new mother. My experience with Saint Louis Sudbury School has overlapped with many formative years of my young adulthood; embarking on parenthood, facing chronic illness, changing careers, etc.
Regarding my experience growing within the school, I often express that working here is “confronting” in the most challenging and expansive way. What I mean by that is that there’s no hiding from yourself in a community like this. Adults in traditional institutions working with young people are often expected to be neutral, emotionally private, and to a degree, without flaws. This is a rare opportunity where I exist as an adult in an institution with young people, without imposed hierarchy, while expressing myself authentically and pursuing my own passions and interests amongst others doing the same. I wish everyone had this opportunity. It is hard! I make mistakes often. The conflict resolution and relational skills I’ve learned here along with the self-exploration I’ve been afforded permeate every facet of my life. In fact, within my own household, my 5 year old often calls family members to unofficial “Judicial Committee” meetings to deal with interpersonal conflict!
What do you like to do for fun?
Due to my own and my family’s background with mental and physical chronic illness, I love learning about holistic health. I have healed significantly from many chronic symptoms that medical professionals once told me I would spend a lifetime managing pharmaceutically. I spend a lot of my free time studying different modalities including homeopathy, herbalism, ayurveda, food as medicine, iridology, reiki, etc. and have more recently delved into the Emotion Code and German New Medicine. As nerdy or “woo” as it sounds, integrating and honoring the four bodies (physical, emotional, mental, and spiritual) is my favorite hobby!
Beyond that, I adore spending time with my 5 year old son. I love to cook and bake healthy, nourishing food. Before motherhood, I spent a lot of my free time making art, with a focus on figure and portraiture, creative writing, jewelry, and interior design. I suspect that as my kid ages and requires less output from me, I will fall into these creative outlets again.
Dreaming big, how would you like to see Saint Louis Sudbury School ten years from now?
Ten years from now, I see the Saint Louis Sudbury School in our own space, with access to nature and ample off-campus opportunities, with many more students and staff. I would love to still be a staff member here. With many successful graduates and scholarship opportunities, I envision a thriving community in symbiosis within the larger community. Perhaps Sudbury will become a household word and we won’t have to work quite as hard to convince the masses to trust young people! I suspect sovereignty and respect will become far less radical in ten years, for young people and adults alike.
