Please join the Willowbrook Legacy Project for the Willowbrook Mile’s Open Day 2025, our annual commemoration of the history of the College of Staten Island’s campus on the site of the former Willowbrook State School. The Open Day will be held on Saturday, October 11, 2025, from 10am to noon at the CSI campus (2800 Victory Boulevard) with the Center for the Arts/1P as its home base. The Mile encompasses 2.1 miles of walking trails with informative historical Milestones on the beautiful CSI grounds, as well as forays onto the sites of the Institute for Basic Research and the Office for People with Developmental Disabilities (OPWDD). Maps of the Mile will be available at 1P.
We will be answering questions, offering information, and leading free guided tours of the stations of the Willowbrook Mile, a public history project that tells the story of the College site from its days as a military hospital and POW camp during WWII through its history as the largest institution in the world for persons with Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities (IDD), through the unprecedented social and legal struggle to close what had become an infamous and inhumane site of suffering, to becoming the home of CSI/CUNY, the phoenix of inclusive higher education that rose from the ashes.
Come and hear the stories of human suffering, struggle, and triumph that must not ever be forgotten. Understand the deep history of disability and the work of generations to build a nation accessible to all of its citizens. Learn about how today we can continue in advocacy for ourselves and for others, for justice and inclusion of people of all abilities in a more just society.
We will walk the Mile rain or shine; in event of rain, there will be an alternate version of the Mile in 1C that will allow anyone to see all of the Milestones. This option is also the most accessible version for visitors who may be challenged by the distances covered by the 2.1 mile Willowbrook Mile trail or due to ongoing upgrades to the paving on our campus. Please be assured that CSI professional staff member Timothy Smolka, a powered wheelchair user who has served as the Mile’s accessibility “beta tester,” has traversed the Mile many times and can attest to its physical accessibility for almost all who wish to visit.
Visitors are welcome to visit one station or all, and we will be there to help you with any questions that you may have.
Many thanks to the staff, students, and faculty of CSI who support the Mile, especially to Public Safety, the CSI Library, and Buildings and Grounds who always show up for our open events. Thank you!
Nora Santiago and Catherine Lavender, Co-Chairs, the Willowbrook Legacy Project
