Established in 1900, the Blake School is a private, coeducational, nonsectarian PK-12 college preparatory school. It is consistently ranked as one of the ten best day schools in the country.
In 1936, Robert Pirsig received a scholarship to the Blake School. While at this school, his IQ tested at 170 when he was 9 1/2 years old (a 1 in 50,000 result).
Prior to attending the Blake School, Pirsig had been accelerated from kindergarten to second grade. This obviously caused friction with his classmates- he was bullied, forced to write with his right hand (although left-handed), and he developed a stammer. Entrance to the Blake School allowed Pirsig to develop at his own pace, and he quickly accelerated to attend the University of Minnesota High School at the age of 10.
