Bequest Will Help Ensure Future Generations Live and Learn in Design Masterpiece

Dana Schneider K'77

As a young girl, Dana Schneider K’77, knew Kingswood was the place for her after a Cranbrook admissions visit to her Ohio grade school. “I told my parents I HAD to go to Kingswood,” Schneider reminisces. And so began her four transformative years living and learning on the Kingswood Campus, an architectural masterpiece celebrated for its unity of design.

Following her years at Kingswood, which included much time in the weaving studios, Schneider earned her BFA in sculpture from the Rhode Island School of Design. She went on to build a successful career as a jewelry designer, specializing in creating pieces for some of Hollywood’s biggest movies. It’s safe to say the design elegance of Kingswood influenced Schneider’s development as an artist. Traces of Cranbrook can be seen in some of her creative work, including the Mockingjay pin and Peeta’s locket worn by characters Katniss Everdeen and Peeta Mellark in the blockbuster The Hunger Games trilogy.

Schneider credits Kingswood with showing her how environment can shape a person and how they view the world. “As you get older, you think back on the places that made an impact on you,” Schneider says. “For me, that was Kingswood. And I knew I wanted to make a gift that would impact the place that means so much to me.”

Schneider’s Mockingjay pin

Following a memorable visit to campus for her 45th reunion, Schneider’s determination to safeguard the enduring beauty of Kingswood galvanized her. Through her will, Schneider created a future gift for Cranbrook Schools directed to the repair, restoration, renovation, and general upkeep of the Kingswood School building and grounds. Schneider’s bequest, a gift that costs nothing during her lifetime, will help ensure that the beauty of Kingswood continues to inspire the next generation of Cranbrook Kingswood Upper School students.