Anyone involved in education over the last decade has had to adjust to a program known as Common Core. It was a cornerstone in President Barack Obama’s “Every Student Succeeds Act,” passed in 2015. School administrators throughout the United States trumpeted the brilliance of Common Core as the hope of the future. Both major national … Read more
In a parents’ mind there are few horrors that come close to the sense that their child could be senselessly and seriously harmed. That is the reason that the attempted stabbings of middle school students in Polk County, Florida is so compelling. A Violent Eruption of Evil The would-be assailants were female students at Bartow … Read more
In the pantheon of emotions, loneliness is one of the most debilitating. Nothing equals the sense of isolation more than knowing that something terrible could happen to you and that no one would know about it for hours – or even days. I hope that readers will pardon a personal illustration. In 1981, a terrible … Read more
Today’s problems often seem to be the worst ever faced by the human race. Thus, It is easy to be overwhelmed by focusing on the division, apostasy, scandal, and confusion of the current age. One antidote to this sensation is history. The study of the past provides a perspective that cannot be gained by looking … Read more
Change is very much a factor in modern society. Many of those changes have undermined the traditional family. The results are all around us. Children are more emotionally isolated from parents. Social media has replaced the extended family. Broken homes seem to outnumber those that are intact. Once in a while, though, there is a … Read more
Like most teachers, I spent the first few years of my career just trying to keep my head above water, running as fast as I could to keep from falling behind. Then came a horrible realization. Nobody cared how hard I worked as long as enough students got A’s. Give grades that were high enough, … Read more
The New York City Council recently passed a bill that allows New Yorkers to designate an “X” for their sex on their birth certificates if they don’t identify as either male or female. Additionally, a parent can do the same thing for their newborn children. The measure was passed by a vote of 41-6. City … Read more
Although it is not new, a trend called “Gray Divorce” is growing. Charles Schwab’s Advisor Services recently ran an article in which they point out that, “People are living longer, and divorces after age 50 are happening at twice the rate they did just a generation ago.” This statement is based on a Pew Foundation … Read more
If there are “rags to riches” stories in the Church, surely the story of John Joseph Hughes is one of them. He is one of the most inspiring figures from the history of American Catholicism. If you have ever stepped into the vastness of St. Patrick’s Cathedral on Fifth Avenue in New York City, you have experienced … Read more
One sign of a disordered society is a disordered educational system. “We can teach anybody,” is one of the most common catchphrases in American Education. Consider the names of the education programs of the last two presidents. Government Education Programs President Bush wanted to be known as the education president. When he took office, he … Read more
