Announcing our first teacher - Mr. Jack Carter!
Chesterton Academy of St. George is pleased to announce the hiring of our first teacher in anticipation of opening our doors this fall - Mr. Jack Carter!
Having earned his BA in Liberal Arts from Wyoming Catholic College in 2014, John (Jack) Carter moved to Ann Arbor in 2015 with his wife, Alena, to teach for St. Augustine's Homeschool Enrichment Program. He was a tutor with that program for seven years, teaching literature, latin, history, philosophy and the scriptures, among other subjects. Now, he brings his pedagogical joy and skill to bear for the Chesterton Academy of St. George, where he will be teaching the humanities.
During the summers, he enjoys manual labor as a carpenter with JMJ Residential Construction, and is currently completing his Masters in Theology with Christendom College. While raising three children, ages ranging from one to six years, he and his wife are deeply committed to the local community, hosting weekly "open-house" nights at their home in which they welcome young and old from the surrounding areas. Jack hopes to remain in southeast Michigan permanently, using his talent and passion for education and community to build God's kingdom and raise minds and souls to Christ.
When asked about the value of a classical education, Mr. Carter said, “A Classical Education (or an education that covers similar material with a similar method, regardless of the name it carries) is the only kind of education that can lift us from the fog of the present to see our common human condition clearly, that trains the powers of man and directs them toward their proper ends, that introduces its students into an intellectual tradition that defends the integrity and interconnectivity of the truth wherever it is found, and that leads us to ask the timeless questions whose answers, though mysterious, anchor our feet on the soil of sanity and draw our souls ever upward into the light.”
Mr. Anderson, headmaster for Chesterton Academy of St. George, pointed to Mr. Carter’s deep faith, joy, and expertise in his subject matter as reasons for why he is such a good fit for the school. “We are excited to have Jack coming on board to help get our school off the ground,” Mr. Anderson said. “We really feel that with his love for the truth and his Catholic ethos, he will help us establish a school culture where Christ permeates everything.”
Of all the subjects he has taught, Mr. Carter says that literature is his favorite in which to engage students. “I love teaching literature most of all subjects. There is nothing like a great story to teach, strengthen, and inspire us. Stories are a kind of experience, and so can form the hearer profoundly, training the memory, imagination, and passions towards the True, Good, and Beautiful. Teaching these stories, I consider it my duty to let the story be the principal teacher and to play the role instead of translator and guide. I help the students make the journey themselves, protecting them from false or dangerous interpretation, clearing up obscurity when necessary (although not too quickly!), and leading them on true paths through the text towards the treasures that I have found there, while frequently finding new wealth along the way. I am always surprised at what new treasures and paths appear to me with every fresh encounter with a great story!”
In your charity, please pray for Mr. Carter and for the rest of Chesterton Academy of St. George’s future faculty members.