Deacon Brad Watkins, Dr. Jake Noland, Mr. Charles McCants, and Mr. Rob Kirkendall continue discussing the idea of "Classical Education," and our collective reflections on what it is and isn't from years of experience. Part two of a two part con

#43 Classical Education: What It Is and Isn't (Part 1)

28 days ago 46m 20s

Deacon Brad Watkins, Dr. Jake Noland, Mr. Charles McCants, and Mr. Rob Kirkendall discuss the idea of "Classical Education," and our collective reflections on what it is and isn't from years of experience. Part one of a two part conversation.

#42 Purpose and Care

Mar 27th, 2024 46m 50s

After a four month (unplanned) hiatus, Deacon Brad Watkins, Dr. Jake Noland, and Mr. Charles McCants dust off the podcast equipment and talk about Purpose and Care.

#41 Gratitude

Nov 22nd, 2023 43m 3s

As we prepare to celebrate Thanksgiving as a nation, Deacon Brad Watkins, Dr. Jake Noland, and Mr. Charles McCants discuss the virtue of gratitude. Short video with the voice of Br. David Steindl-Rast on gratefulness.

#40 Five Attributes of Outstanding Students

Nov 8th, 2023 33m 4s

In this episode, Deacon Brad Watkins, Dr. Jake Noland, and Mr. Charles McCants try something a little different. Before recording we each listed what we believe are five attributes of outstanding students - those all around 95th percentile stud

#39 Mr. Bob Luddy, STMA Founder and Chairman

Nov 1st, 2023 55m 35s

Deacon Brad Watkins, Dr. Jake Noland, and Mr. Charles McCants are joined today by Mr. Bob Luddy, Founder and Chairman of STMA, for a conversation about culture, standards, and integrity among other points of discussion. We remain ever grateful

#38 Self-Discipline

Oct 25th, 2023 39m 56s

In this episode, Deacon Brad Watkins, Dr. Jake Noland, and Mr. Charles McCants discuss the topic of self-discipline as it relates to student outcomes.

#37 Holy Obedience

Sep 15th, 2023 54m 16s

In this episode, Deacon Brad Watkins, Dr. Jake Noland, and Mr. Charles McCants discuss the topic of Holy Obedience as it relates to our faith and lives, especially in connection to the young people we are working to form to the greater glory of

#36 Adriana Watkins lecture - "The Life Is Given Eventually: Joseph Dutton’s Story”

May 30th, 2023 31m 50s

This episode features the story of Joseph Dutton, an American veteran who spent the last half of his life working with leprosy patients in Molokai, Hawaii. This lecture by Ms. Adriana Watkins was given to students at STMA in April 2023. Dutton’

#35 Robert Kirkendall lecture: Becoming Prayer: Adoration and the Life of St. Titus Brandsma

May 19th, 2023 41m 50s

This episode features Mr. Rob Kirkendall, Instructor in the Humanities, delivering a lecture to the student body titled “Becoming Prayer: Adoration and the Life of St. Titus Brandsma.” St. Titus, canonized a year ago by Pope Francis, was a Du

#34 Girls On The Edge

May 7th, 2023 59m 48s

In this episode, Deacon Brad Watkins, Dr. Jake Noland, and Mr. Charles McCants shift the discussion from Boys Adrift to the topic of girls and young women as related to Dr. Leonard Sax's book, Girls on the Edge: Why So Many Girls Are Anxious,

#33 Boys Adrift (part 2)

Apr 27th, 2023 34m 56s

Apologies, for some reason the recording of this podcast cut off at the 33 minute mark, and we didn't realize it until later. In this episode, Deacon Brad Watkins, Dr. Jake Noland, and Mr. Charles McCants continue discussing the topic of boys a

#32 Boys Adrift (part 1)

Nov 14th, 2022 39m 54s

In this episode, Deacon Brad Watkins, Dr. Jake Noland, and Mr. Charles McCants discuss the topic of boys and young men that struggle (or more appropriately, don't) with positive engagement in life and arrested development. Over the years we've

#31 Paying Attention

Oct 4th, 2022 34m

In this episode, Deacon Brad Watkins, Dr. Jake Noland, and Mr. Charles McCants discuss the topic of paying attention. The ability to pay attention is a critical life skill, but not unlike prayer it is one of those things we tell people (especia

Deacon (Soon to be Father) John De Guzman

May 19th, 2022 1h 5m

Deacon Brad Watkins, Dr. Jake Noland, and Mr. Charles McCants sit down for a conversation with STMA Alumnus Deacon John De Guzman ('14) about his time at the Academy, his studies at St. Charles Borromeo College Seminary, and Theological College

#29 Gratitude for Students

Apr 12th, 2022 27m 22s

In this episode, Deacon Brad Watkins, Dr. Jake Noland, and Charles McCants express gratitude for the wonderful students we get to build relationships with at STMA.

#28 Nihilism and Apathy

Feb 23rd, 2022 1h 4m

In this episode, Deacon Brad Watkins, Dr. Jake Noland, and Charles McCants discuss the parent suggested topic of nihilism. We ended up discussing both nihilism and apathy as they are closely related and often overlap. They are both topics wort

#27 Discerning Talents

Feb 3rd, 2022 59m 48s

In this episode, Deacon Brad Watkins, Dr. Jake Noland, Charles McCants and Adriana Watkins discuss the discernment of gifts and talents. We have all been given unique gifts and talents by Our Lord and are expected to multiply them throughout ou

Conversation With Alumnus: Andrew Mistele

Nov 30th, 2021 1h 19m

Deacon Brad Watkins, Dr. Jake Noland, and Mr. Charles McCants sit down for a conversation with STMA Alumnus Andrew Mistele ('18) about his time at the Academy, his studies in Aerospace Engineering at North Carolina State University ('22), and w

Accreditation: Is It Necessary?

Nov 5th, 2021 29m 50s

Deacon Brad Watkins, Dr. Jake Noland, and Charles McCants discuss accreditation and the fact that is neither necessary nor a guarantor of excellence in schools. It is commonly held that "Schools must be accredited." But who says, and what is ac

Developing a Work Ethic

Oct 13th, 2021 1h 2m

Deacon Brad Watkins, Dr. Jake Noland, Charles McCants and Kelly Jackson discuss work ethic as it relates to being a student with good academic outcomes. As teachers and administrators an ongoing challenge is trying to understand why some otherw

Leadership Formation for Children

Sep 29th, 2021 50m 38s

In response to a parent request, Deacon Brad Watkins, Dr. Jake Noland, and Charles McCants discuss leadership formation for children. Upon reflection, it seems that leadership really comes down to some very fundamental ideas: Authority, trust,

How We Handle Academic and Behavioral Formation

Sep 17th, 2021 1h 14m

Deacon Brad Watkins, Dr. Jake Noland, and Charles McCants discuss how STMA handles academic and behavioral formation conversations. Understanding that we should properly model relationships on the Holy Trinity, and by extension the family as a

Extreme Ownership

Aug 23rd, 2021 1h 37m

Deacon Brad Watkins, Dr. Jake Noland, and Charles McCants discuss Extreme Ownership: How U.S. Navy Seals Lead and Win by Jocko Willink and Lief Babin. Going chapter by chapter we discuss how the leadership principles learned by officers leadin

Trust The Process part 2

Jul 13th, 2021 1h 4m

Deacon Brad Watkins, Dr. Jake Noland, and Charles McCants continue discussing what it means to trust the process at STMA. Pastores Dabo Vobis - Pope St. John Paul II Art of Manliness Podcast: The Power of Team Captains