I was on vacation with my family in Florida when I saw a man wearing a Masters Tournament golf hat. I started a brief conversation with this complete stranger by asking him if he was attending the tournament this year. This led to a very fun conversation and something that I think is a great reminder for us as we … Read More
Considering the Power of Bilingual Christian Education
Let’s say a world-renowned soccer expert happens to observe your preschooler, and then approaches you saying, “Excuse me, but I just have to tell you that your child has ridiculous potential to become a soccer star.” Odds are you will enroll your future standout in a soccer program before the end of the week. What if I told you that … Read More
Rooftop Perspectives – A Big Picture View for Christian Educators
Part of the way through Eric Reender’s wonderful book, Rooftop Perspectives, a character states: “A story is not about answers, but making you think.” Reenders succeeds in doing this in his book by taking us into not one but two stories – using the technique of a story within a story, and of all things, set in China upon two … Read More
The Pedagogy and Theology of Leadership: A Conversation with Andy Wolfe
Without excellent school leaders we can’t have excellent schools. – Andy Wolfe Introduction: I was recently introduced to Andy Wolfe of The Church of England Foundation for Educational Leadership who is eighteen months into the development of a process of training, developing, supporting, and networking school leaders in the 4,700 Church of England schools that serve over 1 million students … Read More
On the Deaths of Billy Graham and Stephen Hawking
These last two weeks saw the death of two great men; Stephen Hawking and Billy Graham. Both were men of great intellect and persuasion. Stephen Hawking was the great evangelist of science and Billy Graham was the great evangelist of Christian faith. Both men lived lives equally committed to their faith and both died firmly committed to a set of … Read More
Entrepreneurial Approach to Educational Needs: A Conversation with Andrew Neumann
Introduction: About a year ago I was introduced to Andrew Neumann and Open Sky Education at a Summit for urban schools. If you’ve read my blog over the years you’ll know my skepticism for Charter Schools, but I’d never come across an education provider that was a hybrid Charter School Management Organization as well as a Christian School operator. Over … Read More
A Time for Clarification: Religious Liberties and Religious Schools
With increasing frequency, religious congregations and ministries are facing unfamiliar challenges. Recent months have seen a major escalation in the willingness of political and other leaders to use cultural, political, and legal pressure against religious groups and individuals that resist the newest manifestations of the sexual revolution. (Eric Kniffin) Background: Recently, I had the opportunity to catch up with a … Read More
Teaching, Coaching, Administrating…Synonyms?
Earlier this year, I had a unique opportunity to accompany my father-in-law (Dr. Len Rhoda) on a trip to Southern California, to Valley Christian High School in Cerritos where he and my mother-in-law (Lee) began their teaching and coaching careers. The purpose of this trip was to meet up with a team he coached to the 1967-68 CIF State Basketball … Read More
School Safety and the Christian School
This past week was a particularly trying week with the loss of life of 17 students at Stoneman Douglas High School. With this tragedy now comes renewed discussions on guns, shootings, the Second Amendment, and school safety. For just a moment, I want to examine the latter while skipping over the others, so we can discuss the truth about whether … Read More
What Does It Mean To Be Successful?
February has never been my favorite month. Not because winter seems like it will never end; not because the dreary overcast skies match my mood; no, February is the month where I fall back into my “imposter” thinking. February is most often the month where the busyness and challenge of my work butts up against my own insecurities and my … Read More