Man is tame but needs proper instruction

I was thinking of a little something Plato said some 400 years before Christ, "Man...is a tame or civilized animal; never the less, he requires proper instruction and a fortunate nature, and then of all animals he becomes the most divine and most civilized; but if he be insufficiently or ill- educated he is the most savage of earthly creatures."

That gentleman Plato was a pretty intelligent fellow. Maybe, just maybe there in lies the rub.  It is not in the lack of doing that we are failing.  It is in the fact that we are concentrating our efforts toward everyone succeeding in exactly the same way that we are failing each other; and by each other I mean our students, our children and our own legacy.  We have so standardized education that we are not seeing the specialized talents that individuals have. We are too busy trying to push everyone through the cylindrical mold that will allow even the square pegs into the standardized round holes our society has supplied us with that we don't see that everyone is different and each of us has our own talents, skills and expertise that we should cultivate from a young age.  

It is no wonder they are successful.  Look at this menu.  I only wish I could
 "write" how wonderful the aroma was in this little shop.

We should recognize that not everyone should be headed to college and that some should master the trades and capitalize on their own skills, talents and interests.  It is individual specialties that have built this country into what it is...melting pot of people, cultures, skills, faiths,beliefs and ethnicities.

I went to the high school with Dre' on Thursday and visited the little coffee shop, Mocha Loca, that she a couple of fellow teachers and their students founded, developed, created and are successfully running everyday.  They have created a working business inside their school that operates when classes are not going on in the morning.  This business is already in the black and it is raising money for special programs in the school. This is an experiment of sorts, stemming from the new "Business Academy" curriculum they have implemented in their school.  They are not only teaching the courses required to direct these young people toward a career in business but are also teaching them the basics of the entrepreneurial spirit by doing what they are learning.  This model will be successful.  

Young people are starving for direction and responsibility as they always have.  In the Business Academy they are given responsibility they are craving and the authority to make the decisions to see their plans turn into a success.  Could this be a portion of the foundation of the "proper instruction" that Mr. Plato spoke of some 2,500 years ago?  Maybe we are finally learning a little from the old guy's words.  Maybe this next generation will surpass us and our parents and their parents in building our nation's strength, economy and sustaining this constitutional republic we call the United States of America.

This little school in Florence, Mississippi has also started another academy and it is in its second year.  The Health Science Academy is successfully directing students to future careers in the medical fields.

I salute Dre',  Florence High School, its administration, faculty and staff and all of its students and the fine teachers who are working to prepare the future leaders for society. Most of all I salute Dre' for her untiring work and dedication to her students and her family.

Until next time.....John