The School of Barbiana

(La scuola di Barbiana). This place has a really inspiring history and story behind it. It tells as follows:

Lorenzo Don Milani, a priest and writer, was banished by the cardinal of Florence to live in the hills of Barbiana, overlooking Vicchio. This was in the 1950s btw. Having a lot of time in his hands he decided to make the best of it by helping others. He opened up a "school" in his residence for the farmer-children who couldn't afford to go to school. Paraphrasing him on what he thought of the school system at the time: "a hospital which cures the healthy and rejects the sick". That's what he set out to change. His motto were the English words "I care".

The students trecked up and down the steep crumbly paths for hours each day to rejoice in the knowledge he was enlightening them with. No matter the conditions, come ice, come snow, no downpour could stop them.

He was the first to adopt the "whole day" school system because of the effort and time it took the children to attend his lessons.

He died at the age of 44 due to linfoma but spent his last moments in the company of his students. His reasoning: "so that they would learn what death is".

In summary: Don Milani was a quiet but crucial part in solidifying equality and modernisation into the Italian school system and is a source of pride to the people living in and around Vicchio.