The Backstory of Kampelmann Academy

by Ulli Kampelmann

I grew up behind the Iron Curtain in Halle, East Germany. Despite the highly restrictive socialist/communist system which imposed tight limitations on so many aspects of life, I was lucky to be accepted into a fine teaching university nearby. After four years of study and training, I earned my degree as a Master of Education and went to work teaching various subjects to students of all grade levels.

Essentially, I always used very successful education methods which, unfortunately, deviated from the view held by the rigid, old-line German school system. As a result, I was repeatedly upbraided in front of the staff. It got to the point that I would soon get into real trouble. And 'real trouble' in communist East Germany is not something to take lightly.

So, to dodge the inevitable disaster and gain my freedom, I escaped to West Berlin by hiding in the trunk of this little red Renault R4.

After some months, I found a nice, well paying teaching job. But there, too, I ran headlong into the similarly rigid West German school system. Eventually this, too, became too much, so I quit teaching. I love teaching; my students made great progress, they learned more than they ever expected.

I then studied art and opened my studio, created art, wrote articles and gave lectures. I never took my eye off education.

After moving to the USA I spent two years' evenings and weekends writing and publishing a complete K-12 visual arts education which I sold to a few schools in the US and Australia.

Over time, I continued to see the alarming headlines about the crisis in education worldwide and I began to reconsider my priorities. I decided to apply my know-how in the science of education and combine it with modern media and communications technologies to develop an affordable comprehensive online subscription-based education called Kampelmann Academy.

 With a touch of creativity in education, our students will gain fantastic levels of understanding of their school subjects.