The creative voice of visionaries in the late 20th century: Performing arts and the birth of University of Phoenix

The last quarter of the 20th century has been a watershed period for avant-garde visionary thought and expression in music, theatre, and dance, it has also been an important era for creative ideas in education. The birth and early life of the University of Phoenix represents this creativity, from its founding by Dr. John Sperling to today.

Setting the stage for innovation in higher education, music, theatre, and dance: John Sperling and University of Phoenix

In 1976, Dr. John Sperling stepped off of a plane and walked into Phoenix, Arizona — “the valley of the sun” — beginning the final steps in a journey that would ultimately transform higher education and solidify the formation of the University of Phoenix—heralded symbolically by Apollo, the god of the sun. By the 1970’s, this dynamic young humanities professor would revolutionize the face of higher education and later blaze the path of higher education into the digital age. Sperling was driven by an inner core charged with social awareness, conscience, and a mission.

“I am an idealist . . . I fought . . . because I was passionate about it.”

For Sperling, reinventing higher education involved rethinking how individuals learn regardless of their life context and age. This led him to create a unique and revolutionary learning model. This model stressed the importance of collaborative learning through small intimate groups and shared decision-making, assuring a challenging, rigorous, efficient, and continuously relevant curriculum. Sperling’s model also focusing upon problem-solving skills regardless of subject matter, and high levels of written and spoken communication skills, taught by a highly credentialed practitioner faculty. This cutting-edge and revolutionary concept depended on Sperling’s optimistic view that everyone should have access to higher education through a multi-layered, highly diverse university culture. The ever-emerging technology of the digital age and the growing need for knowledge-workers also provided the perfect landscape for this educational model.

John Sperling completely rethought the way that education models were carried out. His revolutionary work forms an interesting parallel to transformative changes in artistic styles in music, theatre and dance during the final quarter of the 20th century. In music, theatre, and dance, creative artists were launching into entirely new forms for the first time. In the end, these artists completely rethought the accepted substance and materials of their art forms. After discussing each of these artists, we will return to the parallels that are evident in John Sperling’s own work and how his innovations revolutionized education.

Visionary concepts beyond higher education, as seen in music, theatre, and dance

In order to better understand Sperling’s work, including his formation of the University of Phoenix, it is helpful to look at three important artistic visionaries during approximately the same period: Krzyzstof Penderecki in the area of music, Peter Brook in theatre, and Alwin Nikolais in dance.

Krzyzstof Penderecki—A visionary in music

The early 20th century had provided concert-goers an array of musical experiences. Aleatorism and atonality (the absence of tonality or key) also cohabitated with the multiplicity of other styles during the eclectic, multi-styled mid-20th century. The presence of a number of these styles were apparent in yet another innovation to come from the vision of a young Polish composer, Krzyzstof Penderecki. His dramatic new sounds and musical notation were foreshadowed in his experiments of the late 1950’s and early 1960’s (Orlando, 1989). In the 1960’s and 1970’s, composers such as Penderecki began to reposition the locus of art music by focusing on its sonic phenomena, breaking the bonds of the serialism of Anton Weber, Alban Berg, and Olivier Messiaen. Penderecki’s experiments with all aspects of sound, languages, textures, and rhythms required him to create entirely new techniques for traditional instruments and he also experimented with vocalists using their voices in unconventional and sometimes abstract ways (Orlando, 1989). In order to accomplish many of these innovative techniques he developed new notational symbols, integrated into the traditional system of scoring, to represent these new sounds. His experimentation and complete rethinking of musical norms is apparent even from a cursory glance at one his scores.

Peter Brook—A visionary in theatre

Comparable to Penderecki’s transformative work in the area of music, English director Peter Brook’s had a remarkable impact on the creative expression of classic dramatic works. His creative catharsis yielded a number of new concepts and techniques. For instance, he juxtaposed portions of ideas and the language of characters out of traditional linear context within the plot-line and relocating them at other points within the life of the character and script. He also experimented with actors creating non-verbal sounds to convey abstract impressions of ideas. Like Penderecki, Brook sought to redefine the very substance of artistic communication and expression. The main focus of a performance during this period shifted from the classical actor to small ensembles. Performances began to be held in unusual spaces such as subway cars and on the streets, and large proscenium performance spaces gave way to smaller and more intimate sets. In dance and choreography, likewise, the rejection of the older, classic European styles in theatre gave way to new structures, frameworks, and aesthetic reconsiderations of what the essence of the new forms should be (McCormick and Reynolds, 2003).

Alwin Nikolais—A visionary in dance

Like Penderecki and Brooks, Alwin Nikolais was also a revolutionary, but his work was in the area of dance and theatre. The 1960’s-1970’s were a fertile time for modernity and innovation in choreographic aesthetics. Through creative and innovative techniques in choreography, Nikolais began to shift the traditional dance focus away from the human form, refocusing upon abstract, amorphic visual shapes and images. He also explored and investigated the essential properties of physical space and movement in his view of the new avant-garde aesthetic of modern dance.

John Sperling—A visionary in higher education

Just as these three key figures literally transformed the landscapes of their respective arts, John Sperling was destined to reshape the educational landscape by reimagining the nature of education and its constituents. This vision was shaped long before his arrival in Phoenix, Arizona.

Rearing and education

Born in 1921, John Sperling was raised in the Ozarks. He graduated from Reed College in 1948 and entered graduate school at University of California, Berkeley where he earned a masters degree in history. Sperling went on to fill a three-year endowed position at Kings College in Cambridge, England where he earned his Ph.D. in 1955 at age 34.

Ultimately, Sperling decided to write his doctoral dissertation on English financial history in the 17th and 18th centuries (Sperling, 2000). It is significant to note that during this time, he also solidified his sense of social mission that remains within the four pillars of the University of Phoenix and characterize the institution today. “Socialism had an emotional appeal to my sense of social justice and equality that was absent from capitalism . . .” (Sperling 2000). It was during the London years that he also traveled to Munich, Florence, Venice, Rome, Naples and other cities throughout Italy, enriching his life experiences and expanding his academic roots in the humanities. After completing his doctorate, Sperling assumed a post with the University of Maryland’s European programs. He was then appointed as a faculty member at Ohio State University at the Columbus campus.

During the beginning of the civil rights movement in the United States, Sperling joined the American Civil Liberties Union (Sperling, 2000). Soon he became the president of the Central Ohio Chapter of the Civil Liberties Union, which provided him with opportunities to grow in his social activism. He returned to California and took a position at San Jose State University. His experiences during the 1960s and 1970s helped pave the way for the revolutionary concepts and prototypes that evolved into the University of Phoenix.

Revolutionizing higher education

From his work during the 1960s and 1970s at San Jose State University as well as in Santa Barbara and San Francisco, Sperling repositioned the locus of higher education. He accomplished this by focusing on the student as the central phenomenon of the higher educational culture, breaking the bonds of the faculty-centric, post-European, professorial instruction model. While content and curriculum remained rich, deep and rigorous, the structure of the system was adapted and reconceived in order to serve the educational, generational needs of the students in keeping with their diverse lifestyles. The student learning model at the University of Phoenix as well as the faculty instructional model and curriculum design incorporated Sperling’s concern with collaboration, communication skills, considerations for diverse learning and instructional styles, and analytical, conceptual problem-solving (University of Phoenix Mission Statement, 2009).

In opposition to established higher educational pedagogy and structures, Sperling created entirely new ways to conceive of, develop, and deliver higher educational experiences to students. In order to accomplish these new ideas and configurations, the educational model was integrated into the system of learning and instruction to create a new landscape and to facilitate delivery of these new concepts. His first efforts and successes in California were watersheds in curricular, instructional, and educational design as he reinvented the art and science of education. He shifted from a classic structure of hierarchy to a pluralistic and collaborative smaller group setting parallel. Sperling also recognized that providing open access and access to non-traditional students would provide a massive shift in the demographics of students pursuing higher education. Each of these changes had parallels in shifts happening in the arts during the same time.

From California to Phoenix

In 1976, John Sperling created the University of Phoenix. Sperling opened access to non-traditional students by not requiring them to take a standardized test to earn admission and by providing resources that allowed them to translate their life context into a meaningful and relevant classroom experience (Davies, 2006). For Sperling, the ability to research and investigate became the key to problem-solving, which foreshadowed the coming age of digital research through search engines. Sperling’s framework of courses allowed adult learners to attend classes after their work day, unlike the traditional configuration at daytime universities. It also offered diverse generational opportunities, allowing adults older than 18-22 years of age to earn entire degrees (Bartlett, 2009). This restructuring allowed for new curricular resources to be developed. Ultimately, this was reflected in the continually emerging technology that supports the platforms and instructional resources of the University of Phoenix as they exist today.

Conclusion: Penderecki, Brook and Nikolais, and Sperling—The voices of generations

The work of Sperling in education parallels the creative geniuses of Penderecki, Brook and Nikolais. All four of these men displayed attributes distinctly characterized as imaginative, visionary, non-traditional, passionate, content or substance focused, and highly expressive or passionate. The four also shared the rejection of older, classically-formed structures and frameworks—whether in the neo-classic and highly-mannered artistic forms of the first and second quarters of the twentieth century, or in the post-nineteenth century higher educational model employed by colleges and universities in Western Europe. Each explored areas outside of established parameters, seeking an imaginative vision and creating a passionately human-oriented setting for response and expression, whether in music, theater, choreography or education. John Sperling himself commented on the importance of the humanities in the evolution of his revolutionary concepts in higher education in his book Rebel With a Cause:

“I could not have undertaken the educational reforms embodied in the University of Phoenix without the Humanities Program experience. It taught me the importance of small intimate learning groups, the need to have a challenging curriculum, and the learning power of expecting a first-rate performance” (Sperling).

As Penderecki redefined the language and notation of music, Sperling redefined the essence of the educational experience in the late 20th century, developing a language, syntax and structure that continues to serve the needs of higher education. He approached the ideas of focusing upon human attributes and skills in communication— both written and oral—as tools that displayed and demonstrated that learning had taken place. The nature of the communication and focus changed for Sperling from faculty to learner (Davies, 2006).

As Brooks transformed theatre, shifting the main focus of a performance from the classical actor to small ensembles, Sperling also initiated a shift in educational structure from a classic hierarchy to a pluralistic and collaborative, smaller group setting. Where education had been monodirectional knowledge acquisition through lectures, Sperling moved the focus to learning through dialogue, collaborative conversations, and self-directed study, as well as problem-solving in the education rather than merely memorizing information. The new emphasis was on the meaning and significance of acquired knowledge, data, and skills.

Just as Nikolai transformed the language and approach to dance in the late 20th century, Sperling’s instructional model changed the shape of education with its refocus and shift in locus from the professor to the learner. Like transformations in the performing arts, his student-centric approach heralded the use of collaboration, small groups, and non-traditional configurations in the way courses were offered. This trend was also manifest in his introduction of rigorous accelerated programs within a diverse culture. Sperling also looked to a more abstract approach by intentionally blurring the lines. He broke down the inductive learning which was the byproduct of the instructional and student model and made learning more co-dependent, within teams of collaborative groups.

Like each of these visionaries who led the way in their respective fields, Sperling cast aside the conventional concepts of Western higher education in his quest to provide the most rich, qualitative, relevant, humanistic, educational experiences. He provided a nurturing setting for learning with high standards, a practitioner faculty, and continuous improvement. His work at the University of Phoenix led the way in this endeavor and still has continuing results. The university still maintains a futuristic spirit, innovating in higher education, embracing creativity in the arts, modeling diversity, engaging in continual acts of social consciousness, initiating collaborative relationships, and developing creative, cutting-edge technologies for higher education.

As the 19th century drew to a close and a new one began, it was only natural that the crescendo of educational development began to be symbolized and embodied in the innovative, dynamic, global explosion of the internet, irrevocably transforming the nature of learning as we know it. The University of Phoenix has been at the forefront of this culture-changing phenomenon, championing new digital technologies and globalized higher education by developing and leading the world in online education, facilitated by dynamic digital platforms. The University of Phoenix continues to lead the quest in higher education for Sperling’s ever-evolving ideal.