Gail Foster, Ed.D., founded Morningside Immersion Playcare in 2015 after a career dedicated to education and the Black community. In the 1990s, she established the Toussaint Institute Fund to help place “troubled” young Black boys in either Black-owned private schools or specific white private institutions. She organized fairs for Black parents, providing guidance on navigating private school admissions and saving for college.
Foster’s vision for her school came from her desire for her daughter to learn French at a young age. Moving from New York City to rural upstate New York, she embraced a screen-free, nature-oriented, wholesome lifestyle. During this time, she connected with Flying Deer Nature Center and served as a consultant for rural schools in New York.
For middle school, Foster pursued diversity for her daughter, enrolling her in a Black school, then later taking her daughter to Belgium to immerse her in French. Although she found high school too late for her daughter to absorb the language quickly, Foster was inspired by the experience to advocate for early language immersion in education. An encounter with a Chinese American woman on a flight back to the U.S. further inspired her, as the woman emphasized the importance of Mandarin over French.
Foster attempted to integrate Mandarin into existing schools with previous connections to principals but eventually decided to create a new program. She aimed for a diverse and inclusive environment. Foster developed a business plan for the New York Public Library’s Business Plan contest. However, she didn’t win, but she used her connections to launch her plan into action with her school, starting from her Harlem apartment. She began with just one child and promoted her school in local parks, hiring interns from Teachers College at Columbia University to assist with Mandarin and Spanish immersion.
Foster’s dedication paid off when she secured a contract with the Department of Education, enabling her to relocate the school to the Upper West Side and increase tuition to its now $47,000. The idea for establishing a forest school originated when parents struggled to find schools that matched the playcare’s unique approach. Thus, she developed a K-2 program that emphasizes outdoor learning, featuring daily outdoor classes alongside individualized indoor academic instruction.
Inspired and co-designed by Flying Deer Nature Center, The Forest School curriculum dedicates 70% of each week to outdoor activities. Children engage in activities such as hiking, shelter building, practicing yoga, reading in the grass, and other outdoor problem-solving exercises. Indoor learning accounts for 30% of the week, focusing on academic activities tailored to the children’s strengths. “I wasn’t doing this because I wanted to make money; I was doing this because I happened to need employment, and I wanted to make a difference in the world,” stated Foster.
Currently, the Forest School has openings for two more students and hopes to expand into a full-time elementary school. Reflecting on her journey, Foster expresses a sense of accomplishment for her contributions to early childhood education.