Virginia described herself as someone who was always very curious about what took place around her. Having taught herself to read by age three, she had read all the books in the school library by the time she was nine. "When I was five," she wrote, "I decided that when I grew up I’d be a ‘children’s detective on parents.’ I didn’t quite know what I would look for, but I realized a lot went on in families that didn’t meet the eye. There were a lot of puzzles I did not know how to understand" (The New Peoplemaking 1). She continued through her life with this thirst for knowledge, always wondering what was possible, and pursuing the possibilities she found.

When she died, her personal library had over 3,000 books. Besides the many books about psychology & human behavior there were books, pamphlets, and audiocassettes on topics ranging from music and art to religion, the world, and its people.

Virginia never stopped learning and was always looking for answers. In 1988 she wrote, "Now, many years later, after working with some thousands of families, I find there are still a lot of puzzles. I have learned from my work, and learning opens up new possibilities and new directions for discovery" (The New Peoplemaking 2).

Formal schooling for Virginia began in a consolidated one-room school. "There were eighteen kids in the class and we made our own pea soup at lunch time" (Russell 4). She spoke of the seven years spent there as a time when she learned easily and enjoyed herself. When it came time for Virginia to go to high school, the Pagenkopfs relocated to Milwaukee. Virginia enrolled at South Division High School, where her love of knowledge continued to develop. Years later, "Ginger" as she is called in her senior annual, still remembered one teacher in particular, Estelle Stone. In addition to being a good geometry teacher, Ms. Stone taught Virginia that she could use any opportunity, even if something went wrong, as an opportunity to learn (5).

Attending high school during the depression meant that Virginia had to work while going to school. She also took as many credits as she could, and finished high school in 1932 just before she turned 16 (Russell 5). Rearing to go to college however she could, Virginia set her sights on the Milwaukee State Teachers College (now University of Wisconsin), which she believed to be one of the best schools in Milwaukee.

I went to Milwaukee State Teacher’s College to see the registrar of admissions. I will never forget him. I showed him my diploma and told him I wanted to register as a college student. He said to me, "Well, how much money do you have?" I said, "I’ve got three dollars." He said, "How are you going to go to college on that?" I replied, "Well, I always can do what I am going to do." He registered me, and when I left, he called my mother and told her, "Your daughter is here and she has only three dollars in her pocket and I have already registered her in school. What about that?" My mother said, "Look, if Virginia says she’s going to do it, she will do it." (King 20)

Virginia worked diligently both in and out of college to make enough money for tuition, books, and everyday expenses. She worked for the Work Projects Administration (WPA) and Gimbel’s department store. On weekends she took care of children. Despite her busy schedule, Virginia still managed to do very well in college. One sociology professor, Alma Allison, encouraged Virginia’s efforts outside the classroom, because she believed that education benefited from experience.

One very important experience for Virginia was working at the Abraham Lincoln House(ALH), a community center for African-Americans. Virginia was drawn to ALH because she wanted to work with and learn from people who were different from her. She began her work there as a second-year student and stayed until she graduated from the Teacher’s College. She explained her experience to Laurel King this way:

I had not met any black people where I was. I didn’t know them from anything. So, I said, I wanted to do that. I started out working there the second year I was in college and I stayed all the rest of the years. I did all kinds of stuff there. I started a nursery school; I did a play group; I did a dramatic group with young adolescents. Some of them were older than I was. (Russell 6)

Through her work at the Abraham Lincoln House Virginia had several experiences that opened her eyes to the reality of racism. She began to see the prejudice and harassment that black people confronted on a daily basis.

Virginia finished third in her class at the Milwaukee State Teacher’s College in 1936 with a B.A. in Education.

Continues on:

Snap Shots of Virginia

Family of Origin

Education

Teaching Career

Marriage & Children

Graduate School

Virginia's Career in Therapy

Virginia's Philosophy

The Pioneer

Illness & Death

The Legacy

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