Anchored by the Classic Learning Test

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.

On this episode of Anchored, Soren is joined by Dr. Brian Polk, Associate Professor of Science at College of the Ozarks in Point Lookout, MO. Dr. Polk discusses how his encounter with the liberal arts at the University of Southern Mississippi Honors College changed the course of his education, going from a pre-medical program as an undergraduate to specializing in chemistry and classical pedagogy as a doctoral student. He shares about his experiences as a classical educator, including his contributions to FASTly - a resource for teachers to provide quality science education within the context of Christian faithfulness. He also shares his perspective on the important role that science and natural philosophy play among the humanities in classical education.

On this episode of Anchored, Jeremy is joined by Stephen Minnis, President of Benedictine College in Atchison, KS. President Minnis shares his perspective on the state of Catholic higher education, emphasizing the importance of faithful Catholic education that cultivates both faith and intellect. He discusses many of the changes that Benedictine College has seen under his leadership, including the establishment of the College’s Center for Beauty and Culture and the expansion of the College’s core curriculum. He further details the unique and devoted relationship that exists between the College and the Benedictine Order, highlighting the important role that the Order plays in developing student faith life and furthering the mission of the College.

On this episode of Anchored, Jeremy is joined by Seth Dillon, CEO of The Babylon Bee. Seth describes his journey to starting The Babylon Bee after almost being suspended from college for a satirical email he sent to his entire school. Seth discusses why satire is so effective in communicating the truth, and highlights the difference between a comedian and a propagandist. Seth also shares what he believes to be an increasing danger in modern society: people's inability to distinguish between satire and reality. 

On this episode of Anchored, Soren is joined by Dr. Jerome Foss, Associate Professor of Political Science at Saint Vincent College and Director of the Saint Vincent Center for Catholic Thought and Culture. Dr. Foss discusses the pitfalls many high school students encounter when preparing for college. He shares Saint Vincent College's radically different approach to education which roots itself in the heritage of Benedictine monasticism. Dr. Foss states that the goal of this approach is to create an environment where students can trust one another and engage together in challenging, meaningful conversation.