Old order mennonites of the horse and buggy variety keep their formal education basic and simple. Since establishing their first grade one through eight school in 1968, they have pretty much kept things that way. Our conservative-minded old orders deserve much credit, among other things, for preserving one of the most picturesque and unspoiled regions of family farms in all of the south. And chief among their contributions to our community are their offspring, honest, hard working, law-abiding citizens who require few government services, take care of their own aging (without relying on social security and medicare) and provide for their own education.
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abstract: in 1977, a group of parents from the weaverland mennonite conference (horning mennonites) in lancaster country, pennsylvania, purchased an old public school building and started farmersville mennonite school, the first of what would become the weaverland mennonite schools. Although not formally administered by the weaverland mennonite conference, the weaverland mennonite schools are dedicated to providing an education that instills in horning mennonite children the values and beliefs of the weaverland mennonite conference.
Drawing on archival research, observations in weaverland mennonite schools and interviews with horning parents, teachers, and educators, this article asserts that, through the weaverland mennonite schools, weaverland conference mennonite actively construct an identity as old order mennonites that reinforces historical and everyday links to their horse-and-buggy brethren while, at the same time, accommodating a more technologically modern lifestyle.
The austin e. Knowlton science center, which opened in fall 2023, features teaching labs for biology, chemistry, and nutrition and dietetics.