As many of you know, we are in the process of founding a private classical school in Lansing sometime 2019-2021. We hosted an introduction to classical education on April 22 and visited two Michigan classical schools on May 1 and May 8. We have spent a lot of time this month talking pros and cons of this endeavor. Amidst all the financial and administrative landmines, in spite of all the philosophical and personal adjustments it would require, what makes this idea — opening a classical school — worth pursuing? We keep coming back to the same thing: education’s purpose is the cultivation of human beings in the pursuit of the Good, the True, and the Beautiful, and that purpose is not being achieved by the typical school for the typical kid. So we are convinced of classical education as a philosophy, but what happens when the reasons for doing something on paper become a real-life student body (or “studentry,” as E.B. White would say), faculty lounge, schedule, etc.?
While both Oakdale and Hillsdale Academies answered questions for us, the Hillsdale Academy visit was the most inspiring. The first thing we noticed was the absence of something that every public school prominently features: bells. Nothing seemed to signal the transition from one class or activity to another. The times on our itinerary and on the teachers’ chalkboards were laughably specific: 8:20 Opening Ceremony. 9:23-10:08 Advanced Physics. 10:59-11:44 Latin II. Yet, as we skeptically kept track on our watches, we saw it happen; no bells or teachers spurred kids on to their next task. Students did what was expected of them.
Our itinerary said that the opening ceremony would happen at 8:20. It was raining, so the Upper School gathered in the library and the Lower School gathered in the lobby. On the walls were the American flag and the Hillsdale Academy logo and motto, Virtus et Sapientia (virtue and wisdom). Dr. Calvert, the headmaster, was outside in a suit and overcoat at the carpool drop off, opening car doors and greeting parents and students. Apparently he does this every morning. He was still outside at 8:20, but inside a hush came over the entire school. The teachers did not shh, straighten the lines of students, or remind students of the time. At 8:20, headmaster still outside, the teachers and students quietly waited for the day to begin. Once Dr. Calvert came in, they said the Pledge of Allegiance, sang, heard a 5th grader recite a poem, heard the top grades from last week’s spelling tests, and sang happy birthday to two kids.
By the way, besides lacking bells and tardiness, Hillsdale Academy also lacks locks on lockers (as Dr. Seuss would say). Sometimes Dr. Calvert randomly checks the lockers, so the students know not to keep anything in them which would “make their teachers unhappy.”
On our tour, we heard all about the Academy curriculum. Academy students study French from 1st to 6th grade and Latin from 9th to 12th grade, leaving 7th and 8th grade to exclusively study English grammar. They take four years of science: biology, chemistry, physics, and either advanced physics or advanced biochemistry. Every student does two capstone projects: one in the sciences and one in the humanities. They may take AP exams if they wish, but there are no AP classes; the Academy’s administration is confident that their normal curriculum will leave students over-prepared for the AP exams. Academy students advance through math classes based on ability, not age; a B- or better is required. Out of the Academy’s 24 teachers, 20 teach math. It is not just a humanities school.
We asked how much children in the Lower School are allowed to fidget. They get 4 recesses: 15 minutes in the morning, 30 minutes at lunch, and 15 minutes in the afternoon. They don’t just run circles in a fenced-in gravel area either. They build forts in the woods behind the building (Dr. Calvert says it’s his job to patrol the woods during recesses) and in the winter they go sledding. What about the Upper School kids? There’s a surprisingly robust athletic program between 6th and 12th grade; 97% of students participate in athletics. The Academy offers “the cheaper sports”: soccer, basketball, and cross-country, for example, but not baseball or football. Dr. Calvert explains that physical training is important to keep kids healthy, physically and mentally, to do the work they need to do. Physical training gets kids “ready for battle.” He picks up this language again when he explains the purpose of uniforms: “You wear uniforms when you’re on a mission,” he says.
A common theme shared by Dr. Calvert’s comments on our tour and the classes we observed was “language.” In describing the classical approach to math and science, Dr. Calvert described the trivium and the quadrivium as interrelated “languages.” By learning its many languages — not just Latin and English, but numbers and poetry and rhythm and color — the human person can more capably and joyfully observe, know, participate in, and affect the world around him. The result? Worship.
All students, then, learn many “languages.” Choir is required through sophomore year so that students can read music and know the basics of music theory (drama and orchestra are graded electives). In Advanced Physics, Mr. Nikkila presents computer programming as a new language to learn. In Latin III, in a room that clearly houses more than one subject (its walls display Roman maps, a Ronald Reagan poster, and a sign that says “GET BUSY”; its chalkboard is covered in algebra), Mr. Holm explains the history of palimpsest and vellum in order to explain a joke in a Latin text they’re reading. In 6th Grade Grammar & Literature, Mrs. Somerville chokes up while discussing vocabulary in The Children’s Homer at the part when Hector’s body is dragged in front of the gates of Troy. The kids are struck by it. “That’s so sad,” they all say. All of these students, from 6th Grade Grammar to Advanced Physics, have arrived at school with their homework done. But their homework wasn’t busy work; it wasn’t assigned for the purpose of AP testing or a future job application. The definitions list that Mrs. Somerville’s students filled out the night before have now given them a window not only into Homer and his place in cultural literacy, but also a window into a unique and poignant scene from human nature: the grief of parents at the death of their son.
We think classical education is worthwhile. Because of these visits and your interest, we are going ahead with the next steps of starting this school.
In addition to these notes on our observation visits, we thought that the resources below would be helpful to cast a vision for the culture of a real-life classical school.
Paideia and Piety
This is an excerpt from Kevin Clark & Ravi Jain’s excellent book The Liberal Arts Tradition, on passing on a culture of piety through education:
“For the Greeks, paideia [often translated education] meant something more like enculturation. To undergo paideia then is to be initiated into the culture of the city-state, or as Paul used it in Ephesians, to raise children up in the paideia of the Lord. Those who seek to renew the Christian classical educational tradition must keep this full-orbed understanding of education in mind, understanding that transmitting culture is a central aspect of the educational task. In order to pass on a culture there must be something of substance to transmit. Thus, a Christian classical school will not thrive without developing and embodying a proper school culture… As suggested earlier, piety [proper love of God and man] is at the center of our entire endeavor.”
“The Desired Culture”
Here is an inspiring lecture from Terrence Moore (principal of Atlanta Classical Academy) on the culture of a classical school and why it’s worth building. (The audience is other principals, but what better way to hear what a school is like?)