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Homeschooling on the rise

Jeremy — Wed, 04 Feb 2009 15:44:05 +0000

An editorial by Michael Smith, president of the Home School Legal Defense Association, with some recent statistics about the growing popularity of homeschooling.

Read Homeschooling Popularity Grows in the Washington Times Op-Ed

Great article on Homeschooling

Jeremy — Thu, 04 Sep 2008 19:27:50 +0000

I saw this article at LifeSiteNews.com and really enjoyed it. For those of you who don't know about homeschooling, this article addresses some of the main reasons homeschooling is on the rise and why parents might choose to educate their children at home.

A couple of my favorite parts of the article...

Homeschooling is a way we can ensure that we are the primary educators of our children and that we take full responsibility for our children’s formation and religious upbringing.

and

On the other hand, our local Catholic home school group is full of families that share our beliefs, morals and values. In this group, the children find friends with whom they have much in common and meet older kids who are good role models. In fact, it may be that the best way to “socialize” our children is to surround them with love, first in the home and then in warm, caring environments outside the home.

I can't say enough how important it is to have the support and friendship of other Catholic Homeschooling families. It's been a real help to us on our homeschooling journey.

Read Homeschooling: a learning experience for the whole family at MercatorNet

Erica's students receive award from Sierra Club

Jeremy — Wed, 05 Dec 2007 19:38:38 +0000

I was sent this article about Erica Peplinski's class earning an award from the Sierra Club for their work on a wetlands project. Congrats to Erica and her students. Check out the article below.

Read Nature's Way - Sierra Club honors Saline students in The Saline Reporter

Neat article on Casey Truelove

Jeremy — Mon, 08 Oct 2007 17:44:47 +0000

Here's a look at the career path of a friend of mine, Casey Truelove. He is the Director of Religious Education at Lake Leelanau St. Mary. It's amazing how God works to bring people together.

Read Following His Faith in the Record Eagle

Precor ut illa Vis Vobiscum sit*

Jeremy — Tue, 26 Jun 2007 14:46:31 +0000

*May The Force be with you.

Charlie McNamara is the talk of the Star Wars world after delivering a speech at his Harvard Graduation in Latin with a Star Wars theme. The 2003 Grayling High School graduate's speech is 8 minutes long and drew a standing ovation.

"The tradition at Harvard has always been for the Latin orator to speak on a subject that is funny. I thought it would be fun to compare the Harvard experience to the adventures of a 'Star Wars' movie,” said McNamara.

As I am beginning to learn Catholic prayers and parts of the Catholic mass in Latin, I can get a sense of the excitement that McNamara shows for the language. I'm not into Star Wars as much as I was growing up (or as a young adult), but it's a pretty cool speech.

Here's the video...

Read Grayling grad wows crowd — in Latin — at Harvard graduation with 'Star Wars'-themed speech in the Record Eagle

Father Fessio forced to leave Ave Maria

Jeremy — Thu, 22 Mar 2007 18:15:34 +0000

Just got a call from Chris about the news that Father Joseph Fessio resigned from Ave Maria University. Of course resigned really means fired!

"I think it was a mistake to fire me," he said in a telephone interview this morning.

Father Fessio is a former student of Pope Benedict and still maintains contact with him. We heard him speak about Ave Maria last fall and he was great. He's one of the "good ones" in my opinion and I am sure he will be sorely missed at Ave Maria University.

Check out the article below for more info and comments...

Read Former Ave Maria provost: 'I think it was a mistake to fire me' at Naples Daily News

Update: Apparently he's back!

Read Father rehired after controversial firing at NBC-2.com

Cool movie about the Maritime Academy

Jeremy — Tue, 02 Jan 2007 18:54:49 +0000

Helped the Great Lakes Maritime Academy get this movie onto YouTube and Google Video to help promote their maritime college. It's always good to help someone. Anyway, check it out and see what they are all about!

Visit Official Site

TV does have some good uses…

Jeremy — Thu, 16 Nov 2006 19:05:58 +0000

Sure there is alot of garbage on TV these days, but that doesn't mean the medium can't be used for some good. Suttons Bay Elementary School setup a "virtual field trip" via TV to the Smithsonian American Art Museum in Washington D.C to learn about American Indians and art.

An interactive machine with a voice-sensitive camera atop the television in their classroom linked them to a museum expert.

The fifth-grade students were able to ask questions and talk with the museum expert. Pretty cool!

Read Suttons Bay students visit the Smithsonian - via TV in the Record Eagle

Check out Ave Maria University

Jeremy — Fri, 11 Aug 2006 14:00:21 +0000

Mary and I, and some friends, went to a special night at the Holiday Inn to learn more about Ave Maria University and the new community Ave Maria, both of which are currently under construction. We had a great time. The evening started out with mass led by Fr. Joseph Fessio. Then we enjoyed dinner (great food!) and the first speaker of the night, former Detroit Tigers owner Tom Monaghan. He's probably more famous for starting Domino's Pizza and turning it into a pizza empire. He told some stories of spending part of his youth in Traverse City and some of the struggles he went through growing up. Next we heard about the university and why he has invested so much in it. It was a terrific speech.

Next up, was Father Fessio and he talked about his history with Pope Benedict and how he became involved with Ave Maria. We were shown some pictures of the university construction and then he answered some questions from some of the guests. If you get a chance to hear him speak, do it!

The entire project is pretty amazing, they are basically building an entire town and university near Naples. A university that teaches the true Catholic faith and helps the youth of today and tomorrow become good Catholic leaders.

Ave Maria University
Ave Maria, Florida

I wish Mr. Monoghan would have been able to continue building his dream in Michigan, but he explained that Florida is a great fit!