Elenore Freedman
Elenore S. Freedman (born January 15, 1926) was an American educator. She was called the "dean" of educational reform and advocacy in New Hampshire, is a former New Hampshire education executive and was a co-founder of The Derryfield School in Manchester, New Hampshire. In 1990, Freedman received the Granite State Award for Outstanding Public Service from the University of New Hampshire, and she was included in "Notables in NH" as one of 422 people who "helped shape the character of the state." Early life. Born in 1926 to Benjamin and Dora (Markovitz) Finklestein, Freedman graduated from Brockton  High School (Massachusetts) in 1943 and Radcliffe College (B.A.) in 1947. She married Peter S. Freedman in 1947. Career. Early volunteer work. Living in Marion, Massachusetts, she co-founded (as a volunteer) the local chapter of the League of Women Voters, and was elected its first president. NH Council for Better Schools (1957 - 1969). Moving to Bedford, New Hampshire, she became Executive Director of the New Hampshire Council for Better Schools in 1957. During this time, she: NH School Boards Association (1970 - 1974). In 1970, Freedman became program coordinator, publications director and administrative assistant for the Center for Educational Field  Services (a joint office of the N.H. School Boards Association and the University of New Hampshire). While there, she coordinated an annual education conference (co-sponsored by the four state Associations of School Boards and which featured keynote speakers such as Ralph Nader), and lobbied on behalf of issues impacting education. NH Association of School Principals (1974 – 1988). In 1974, Freedman was appointed Executive Director of the newly formed NH Association of School Principals, which merged the two former Associations of Elementary and Secondary School Principals. The association ran state-wide conferences and workshops for New Hampshire school principals, sometimes  as joint conferences with the NH School Boards Association. These conferences provided training as well as a forum to discuss some of the most pressing educational issues at that time. As director, Freedman also lobbied in Concord and in the media on behalf of New Hampshire education-related legislation. Association for Effective Schools / School Improvement Program (1988 – 1991). In 1988, Freedman was chosen to be director of the newly formed NH School Improvement Program, directed by the NH Alliance for Effective Schools. This program was offered to New Hampshire schools as a collaborative venture by 19 educational, business and governmental  organizations, including the New Hampshire legislature, the N.H. Charitable Fund, the Federation of Teachers, the N.H. Leadership in Educational Administration Development (LEAD) Center, the Business and Industry Association, the University System of New Hampshire, and local school districts. Freedman retired from the program in 1991 but it continued through its two-year term. At its 1993 Governor and Executive Council meeting, the contract was awarded to a private consulting firm, primarily citing its "...method for evaluating schools." SIP was, however, given a "continued voice and role" in the program. Two years later, the program was eliminated from the NH budget . The Derryfield School. Along with her husband Peter, Elenore Freedman was a founder of the Derryfield School in Manchester, New Hampshire, a private, independent, non-sectarian, college preparatory day school, serving families in southern New Hampshire. Elenore Freedman had known R. Philip Hugny from the NH Council for Better Schools, and he was recruited as the first headmaster of Derryfield. The school opened in September 1965 with 108 students and 11 faculty members. Classes were initially held in space rented from the Manchester Institute of Arts and Science and the nearby Boys Club. The school then bought of land on  River Road and moved to newly built facilities on this land in 1967. As of 2019, Derryfield had grown to serve nearly 400 students from grades 6-12 with a student/faculty ration of 8/1 and an average class size of 15. The school campus has grown to .