John Stanford gathered a small group of deaf children to teach them the alphabet and basic language skills in New York City.

For half a century, tight formation drill was an everyday occurrence on the parade grounds.

[6] In 1952, the school dropped the military curriculum and welcomed girls again, and since then has expanded its programs to benefit both deaf and hard-of-hearing school children, and more recently, pre-school classes as well.

Since 1977, Fanwood uses the total communication method of deaf education, which employs multiple means of communication including sign language and other modes, as necessary for each child.

More recently the school has introduced video phones, interactive whiteboards and computer assisted learning.