Anchored by the Classic Learning Test

On this episode of Anchored, Jeremy is joined by Dr. Justin Smith, Head of the Upper School at Little Rock Christian Academy in Little Rock, AR. Justin shares about his educational and professional background, including his studies at the University of San Diego, Sam Houston State University, and the University of Oxford. He recounts how an encounter with the Harkness Method of Pedagogy at the Phillips Exeter Academy in New Hampshire changed the course of his career. He also discusses the significance of education as a formative experience for students, emphasizing the importance of good school leadership in cultivating virtue and genuine learning.

On this episode of Anchored, Jeremy is joined by Tsh Oxenreider, who is an author of books, a long-time podcast host, and creator of The Common Place newsletter. Tsh recounts her time spent abroad in Turkey, emphasizing the value of cross-cultural experiences. She explains why living abroad led her to homeschool her children and take a year-long educational journey with her entire family after moving back to the U.S. She shares about the educational group trips that she leads for students and adults of all ages, connecting history and literature to lived experience. She also discusses her journey with the Christian faith and her eventual conversion to Catholicism.

On this special episode of Anchored, Jeremy is joined by two leaders in the classical renewal movement. Dr. Anika Prather is the founder of The Living Water School and Professor of Classics and English at Howard University. Douglas Wilson is a Senior Fellow at New St. Andrews College, founder of the Logos School, and Senior Minister at Christ Church in Moscow, ID. Together, they discuss Dr. Prather’s book The Black Intellectual Tradition, the legacy of Anna Julia Cooper, the importance of classical education, and the lived experiences of black and white Americans throughout history.

On this episode of Anchored, Soren is joined by Andrew Brummett, Founder of The Wayside School and of Wayside Educational, an educational services company serving a network of micro high schools. Andrew shares about his journey through public and private education, which included graduate studies in military history and theology that ultimately led him to become a classical educator. He discusses the importance of making classical education accessible, explaining how micro schools provide an affordable alternative to traditional private schools. He also shares about his interest in the works of Nathaniel Hawthorne and H.W. Longfellow, discussing their influence on his educational philosophy.

On this episode of Anchored, Jeremy is joined by Dr. Joshua Hochschild, Director of the Philosophy, Politics, and Economics program at Mount Saint Mary’s University in Emmitsburg, MD. Dr. Hochschild shares about his educational journey, including his introduction to the Great Books as part of an undergraduate honors program at Yale. He details the interdisciplinary Philosophy, Politics, and Economics major offered at the Mount, emphasizing the extent that these fields influence and rely on one another. He also discusses his walk with the Christian faith and his eventual conversion to Catholicism.

On this episode of Anchored, Jeremy is joined by Dr. John Boyle, Chair of the Catholic Studies Department at the University of St. Thomas in St. Paul, MN, as well as current student Lucia Rosales. Lucia shares about her experience as a Catholic Studies student at St. Thomas, including her opportunity to study in Rome. Dr. Boyle describes the interdisciplinary nature of the Catholic Studies program, helping students understand the impact of the Incarnation on human thought and culture. He and Lucia further discuss student life at St. Thomas, the importance of intentional community, and formative books from their educational journeys.

On this episode of Anchored, Jeremy is joined by David Nokes, CEO of Classreach: a new school management software platform designed to better meet the needs of private and independent schools. He shares about the decision to enroll his children at a private classical school and how this experience made him recognize the need for better school management software. He explains how his career developing crisis response software for fire departments prepared him to join Classreach, and details many of the features that make Classreach a better option for parents, teachers, and students.

On this episode of Anchored, Soren is joined by Dr. Daniel Coupland, Dean of Hillsdale College’s new Graduate School of Classical Education. Dr. Coupland shares about his own unique journey through education, during which he spent time at public schools, private schools, and homeschool programs. He discusses his upcoming book, Tried and True: a Primer on Sound Pedagogy, and how he hopes it will serve as a valuable resource for new classical educators, akin to Strunk and White’s resource for new writers, The Elements of Style. He also discusses the important role that children’s literature plays in forming concepts of good and evil, preparing children to navigate a morally confusing world.

On this episode of Anchored, Jeremy is joined by Dr. Derek Halvorson, President of Covenant College in Lookout Mountain, GA. President Halvorson shares about his educational journey, including his motivations for attending Covenant College as an undergraduate despite receiving lucrative scholarship offers to study elsewhere. He discusses the Reformed Christian identity that is central to Covenant College, detailing the ways this identity influences the College’s view of the liberal arts and its core curriculum. He also discusses the Summer Institute at Covenant College, a one-week, residential program for motivated high school students.

On this episode of Anchored, Katie is joined by Dr. John Cuddeback, Professor of Philosophy at Christendom College in Front Royal, VA. Dr. Cuddeback is also the founder of Life-Craft.org, a website where he shares practical philosophy and other wisdom for building good habits and crafting well-formed lives. Dr. Cuddeback shares his perspective on what he calls the “Epidemic of Loneliness”: the widespread absence of higher-order friendships in contemporary everyday life. He further emphasizes the important role that classical liberal education plays in forming and preserving a well-ordered society, highlighting many of the ways that Christendom College prepares their students for the world.