October 25, 2005 — It's not often that students have the privilege of meeting a prominent character who could have stepped from the pages of their history books. Students at Brewster Academy, however, had this privilege recently when Dr. Nikolai Arjannikov, a former Russian Duma Deputy (Senator) and founder of Russia's democracy movement, visited campus to speak with students.

Arjannikov distinguished himself as an activist for social change while serving as a policeman in St. Petersburg, formerly Leningrad. He was then elected as a member of the Parliament of the Republic of Russia. In the 1989 Parliamentary elections he was elected a deputy, representing Leningrad to the Supreme Soviet of the Republic – the equivalent of the United States Congress. Arjannikov played a leading role in the movement toward human rights in the former Soviet Republics, representing a democratic approach while rejecting the Lenin communist model. In 1991 Arjannikov led the heroic defense of the Russian White House when it was besieged during a coup attempt on the eve of the collapse of the Soviet Union.

Students in Charlie Hossack's Early World History class welcomed Dr. Nikolai Arjannikov, a former Russian Duma Deputy (Senator) and founder of the Russian democracy movement, to class.

For Read Scott '09 (Wilmington, Delaware) a student in Charlie Hossack's Early World History class the one thing that stood out in Arjannikov's talk was that students from Russia and the United States are more similar than different and that opportunities like the Rusamer phone bridges are crucial to gaining an understanding of both worlds.

In addition to being a guest in Brewster history classes, Arjannikov spoke (through a translator) to juniors, seniors, and postgraduate students about the Rusamer phone bridge between the youth of Grozny and the youth of Brewster Academy and Wolfeboro and the work of Access to Ideas, Inc., founded by Arjannikov and Jeannie Ferber of Alton, New Hampshire. The goal of Access to Ideas is to open libraries in Russian villages and open understanding between America and Russia. Arjannikov and Ferber have written a book, "A Hole in the Fence," which describes the importance of this work to bringing peace in the world.

Brewster Academy is an international leader in independent secondary education and is widely recognized for its success in using advanced learning and information technologies to accelerate student growth in a vigorous college preparatory environment. Brewster provides its 367 students (Grades 9-12 and post-graduate) with a personalized curriculum based on individual mastery and best-teaching practices in a sophisticated technology-rich learning environment.

Brewster Academy is accredited as a secondary school by the New England Association of Schools & Colleges, Inc.

The Academy is located on the shores of Lake Winnipesaukee in the resort community of Wolfeboro, N.H. Learn more about the Brewster difference by visiting us at www.brewsteracademy.org or giving us a call at 603.569.7494.