At this week's Round Table, Inica, Jack, and Kenisha spoke withIan Rowewho, with apologies to Dos Equis, may be the most interesting man in the world. Ianis a senior fellow at the American Enterprise Institute, where he focuses on education and upward mobility, family formation, and adoption. Family, Ian underscores, is the first Institution every child is exposed to and the stability or instability of it influences everything else. Ian’s academic and professional trajectory are the stuff that dreams are made of, and ultimately led to him heading the Public Prep network of charter schools for 10 years. School choice is not a theoretical construct, especially in places like the South Bronx where only 2% (!) of students graduate on time and at college-ready level. This informs his newest and most exciting endeavor launching a virtues based International Baccalaureate High School called Vertex Academies in the South Bronx in Fall 2022. Ian explained that schools are ALWAYS helping forge the character of students by the practices they put in place. They are ALWAYS sending messages about “what is the way we want you to operate in the world” so why not be explicit and intentional about it? Vertex will be oriented around four cardinal virtues–courage, wisdom, justice, and temperance–with an emphasis on how to live these virtues in action and across all curriculum for both the diploma and career pathways. One of the most important things students can learn is how to gain insights to make decisions that are right for you, which Vertex Academies aims to do. Ian noted that young people today are caught between two narratives: blame the system or blame the victim, both of which are very disempowering. He aims to counter this with his FREE framework– Family, Religion, Education, and Entrepreneurship–underscoring that young people who live by a moral code tend to do better. You’ll be riveted by this episode. Thank you for joining us!
