Golda Meir School was built in 1890 as Fourth Street School. It was renamed and rededicated on May 4, 1979 in honor of Golda Meir who attended grade school here from 1906 to 1912. As Prime Minister of Israel, she visited the school again in 1969 and writes of her experience in her book "My Life."

"I started school in a huge, fortresslike building on Fourth Street near Milwaukee's famous Schlitz beer factory, and I loved it. I can't remember how long it took me to learn English but I have no recollection of the language ever being a real problem for me, so I must have picked it up quickly. I made friends quickly, too. I learned a lot at that school.

More than fifty years later -- when I was seventy-one and a prime minister -- I went back to that school for a few hours. It had not changed very much in all those years.They welcomed me as though I were a queen. They serenaded me with Yiddish and Hebrew songs and raised their voices to peal out the Israeli anthem "Hatikvah" which made my eyes fill with tears. Each one of the classrooms had been beautifully decorated with posters about Israel and signs reading SHALOM."

At Golda Meir School, where once children came from other countries and learned English, children now learn foreign languages and visit other countries.

What hasn't changed is that students still love Golda Meir School. While offering a strong academic program, the school has a long tradition of teaching students the value of friendship and the appreciation of others, starting with a warm welcome to new students and visitors. Our hope is that, in turn, our students and friends will strive to warmly welcome and understand others, and wherever they should travel, become ambassadors of PEACE.