Anchored by the Classic Learning Test

On this episode of Anchored, Tracy is joined by Inga Cotton, Founder and Executive Director of San Antonio Charter Moms, a nonprofit organization that helps parents learn about different kinds of schools. Inga discusses the motivation behind founding the organization, and the importance of parents being able to choose the school that best fits their child's needs. She also discusses how parents can advocate for school choice within their states, and gives advice to parents on finding out their school choice options. 

On this episode of Anchored, Soren is joined by Albert Cheng, Assistant Professor at the Department of Education Reform in the College of Education and Health Professions at the University of Arkansas. Dr. Cheng discusses his work and interest in assessing school choice policy, and its impact on character and virtue formation. Eventually, he also became interested in classical education and its benefits in teaching students civic knowledge. Dr. Cheng has published research on the effects of poetry on learning as well. 

On this episode of Anchored, Jeremy is joined by Ron Jung, Headmaster at Providence Academy. He discusses the contrast in public school education between when he was a child and now, and how the removal of God and truth from education compelled him to homeschool his children. He states that every parent must ask themselves what their obligation is to God in raising their children, and how that plays out in the education their children are receiving. Ron states that the goal of Providence Academy is to teach students reality as it is. 

On this episode of Anchored, Jeremy is joined by Roosevelt Montás, Author of  Rescuing Socrates: How the Great Books Changed My Life and Why They Matter for a New Generation. Roosevelt discusses immigrating to the United States, studying at public schools, and attending Columbia University. He states that although he was academically driven and successful, as a teacher he has realized that public schools fail by design. Roosevelt explains that the inspiration behind his book was the work of the various thinkers he read during his lifetime that addressed him as a human being. 

On this episode of Anchored, Jeremy is joined by Ignat Solzhenitsyn, a critically acclaimed conductor and son of Russian author Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn. Ignat discusses his father's life in the Russian gulag system, how it inspired his father to write The Gulag Archipelago, and the role poetry played in his father's survival. He critiques the American education system, claiming that it does not educate students about the gulags, but rather instills a superficial appeal of certain Communist notions. Ignat states that his father Aleksandr also thought that American society was not living up to its own promises made in the founding documents. He discusses his father's journey from Marxism to Orthodox Christianity. 

On this episode of Anchored, Jeremy is joined by Morénike Giwa Onaiwu, a parent at the Saint Constantine School in Houston. Morénike explains the definition of the word "woke" in the black community, and how it has been misconstrued in mainstream politics as a consequence of creating labels to define political opinions. She discusses the polarization of political thought and states that most people are more nuanced than they are given credit for. Morénike also shares her thoughts on demonizing one group of people, and the inability of many individuals to view life from a non-political lens. 

On this episode of Anchored, Soren is joined by Dr. David Withun, the founding Head of School at Jacksonville Classical Academy and a W.E.B DuBois scholar. He discusses his journey to discovering the Classics, studying W.E.B DuBois, and becoming head of school. Dr. Withun states that it was his desire to help every student have access to a quality classical education that compelled him to take on a leadership position. He also answers questions about the diversity of classical education and military families attending classical schools. 

On this episode of Anchored, Jeremy is joined by Dr. Dan Peterson, Head of School at Regents School of Austin. Dr. Peterson explains that his mission is to not just prepare students to receive higher education, rather it is to prepare them for life. He also discusses the fracturing of what education was really designed for, the importance of a test like CLT, and helping students take ownership of their education. He emphasizes that students should have the freedom to fail because the best way to learn is by failing. 

On this episode of Anchored, Jeremy is joined by Alex Petkas, Princeton graduate and host of the podcast Cost of Glory. He discusses his journey to discovering Christianity and the Classics, ultimately studying at Princeton University and receiving his PhD. Alex states that he noticed a split between the Classics and the Christian tradition in relation to how it was taught in the classroom, and It wasn't until he began his own ancient Greek language program that he became disillusioned with Academia.

On this episode of Anchored, Soren is joined by Matthew Ryan, Host of #CanonChat: a Twitter-based book club for lovers of great literature. He shares his journey to becoming a Catholic school teacher, and explains the difference in teaching at a public school vs. a Catholic school. He also discusses movements that want to cancel the Classics, the universality of the Great Books, and his Twitter book club.