We are very pleased to have Mr. Vigen Guroian as our commencement speaker. Mr. Guroian is a University of Virginia professor, and a leading advocate, writer and speaker on the value of a classical and Christian education. Ad Fontes and other classical schools have included his writings as part of our teacher training. He has a deep walk with the Lord, and a great love for young people. He can speak poignantly about classical education and the transition to college life. His full bio is at the end of this article.

I would recommend two of his books to you that speak directly to the values of a classical Christian education.

Tending the Heart of Virtue: How Classic Stories Awaken a Child’s Moral Imagination, published in 1998, received national attention in newspapers and on radio, including NPR’s “Talk of the Nation,” and “The Mark Steiner Show.” It has continued to be read and used as an educational resource by parents, homeschoolers, religious instructors, and classical school faculties.

In 2005, ISI Books issued a collection of Dr. Guroian’s essays on literature, politics, education, and ethics. The book’s title is Rallying the Really Human Things. It includes such chapters as “On Fairy Tales and the Moral Imagination,” “On the Office of Being a Good Son or Daughter,”  and “Why Should Businessmen Read Great Literature?”

We hope you will join us!

One of the evening speakers shared a personal testimony of the Ad Fontes vision , “We discovered that our daughter can have an education where Christ is the Lord of all things, where her teachers can be mentors and her classmates brothers and sisters, where character and intelligence both mattered, and where history, great books, and articulate thinking, writing and speaking were highly valued.”

2012 Senior Greg Barton and 2005 Graduate Samantha Ward then came forward to share their stories. They both embodied the AFA student vision – a young servant leaders of faith, character, intelligence, and wisdom.

Greg shared his AFA experience and four aspects of leadership which you can’t find at any other school:  Immersion, Closeness, Construction, and and Correction. His full presentation is below.

Samantha shared how the immersion in original sources at Ad Fontes influences her life on a daily basis.

Read Greg’s Senior Profile and his Benefit presentation: Note: There is a file embedded within this post, please visit this post to download the file.

Read a past profile of Samantha and  her Benefit presentation: Note: There is a file embedded within this post, please visit this post to download the file.

“You don’t usually go to a school and get a hug by someone you’ve never met before [Mrs. Carey], or have Hershey’s Kisses thrown at you during [Mrs. Solomon’s] Latin class,” says Decker, who goes by Danee. “It just felt like home immediately.”

Now a graduating senior who has been accepted into the Virginia Tech Corps of Cadets, Decker says she is leaving AFA with fond memories of the strong camaraderie between students of all grades. “At first I couldn’t figure out which people were in which grades because everyone talked to everyone,” says Decker.

Decker had come from another private school, and found AFA’s academics more challenging than she expected.  “I was not completely prepared for how rigorous the academics would be, but help is always available as long as you’re willing to look for it,” she says. She describes her favorite subjects—Chemistry and Physics—as “really fun”, and plans to pursue studies in chemical and structural engineering at Virginia Tech in order to someday work with energetic materials. “It’s a nice way of saying explosives,” she explains.

In the Corps of Cadets Decker has the option of enlisting in the military, something she is considering. “I’m not sure if God is leading me to be in the military or to go the civilian track,” she says. But she knows that the leadership training she’ll receive will be invaluable for either.

Decker says her parents’ patriotism inspired her to join the Corps, as well as her mother’s background as an immigrant who served as a marine in Singapore. “Naturally I’m a defensive person, and if I love something, I want to defend it,” she says. “My Dad has always told me, ‘You never fight for fear of what’s in front of you, but for the love of what’s behind you.’”

In her spare time Decker serves as a sound tech for school and church events. She enjoys hunting and hiking, along with “building or destroying things.” She is likely to be found behind a jackhammer working on a home renovation project, or behind the barrel of her 243 Savage Arms riffle. “I’ve been hunting with my Dad since I was eight,” she says. She admits that her fascination and desire to work with explosives was aided by her hunting and by “playing with fireworks in ways I probably shouldn’t have” during various Fourth of July celebrations.

Reflecting on her years at AFA, Decker says she is particularly thankful for Dr. Schultz, her Biology and Chemistry teacher, who she describes as a “close friend”.  She is also grateful for her Worldview and Ethics, and Apologetics and Discipleship classes, where she says she had the freedom to ask questions that helped her to think more deeply about her faith. “There’s no fear of asking a wrong question, or a tough question,” she says. Decker believes that this freedom to question, along with the fellowship of other Christian students has significantly impacted her Christian faith. “It’s become more real to me,” Decker says. “I’m walking, and I’ll never stop walking.”

“I love sports,” Paul comments.  “And I love hitting people in sports.  I also like to eat.”  In fact, Paul can boast the Fairfax regional record for IHOP pancake consumption, eating a total of 23 in one sitting.  But Paul might surprise some, for when he reflects on his life, he observes that, “It all comes back to techno music.”

Techno music?

“The music uses a lot of technology,” Paul comments, “but what I like about is its consistency, and the simple progression of a common theme.  The songs build to something, which I don’t find in most other musical genres.”  Paul continues, “the music builds tension, and that tension creates an emotional connection that I don’t find in other music.  The artists convey a message without words.  I feel like I’m on a journey.  I feel like I’m going towards a definite goal (or ‘the bass drop,’ as the techno industry calls it).”

Paul has two older siblings, each of which either did homeschooling or public school their entire high school career.  In contrast, Paul has gone to several different schools, few longer than one year.  “I’m the experiment child,” he muses.  “I’m always looking for something new, and I’m rarely content.  I always think, ‘there’s something more, beyond what I see.’  I did not enjoy military school because there only the next thing was important, and I could never see a greater purpose beyond the day-to-day.”

The first difficult adjustment Paul made when coming to Ad Fontes as a junior was, “the idea that I would be here two years.  I realized that I had gotten used to doing half-way jobs and then moving on, never really making it to the ‘bass-drop.’  Well, graduation will be the bass-drop for my high school career.  Paul also discovered that smaller classes meant that, “I had to learn to get along with everyone.  Before if I didn’t mesh with someone I could easily avoid them, but here I learned you can make progress with people you don’t immediately connect with.  That too can be a journey.”  Another surprise has been, “that the teachers here care about you, not just the grade.  You can be a ‘C’ student and teachers still appreciate who you are, which has been unique in my many school experiences.”

Though he experienced some academic challenges initially at AFA, Paul found that the classes nurtured his love for writing.  “Sports taught me to realize where my talents lie,” he reflects.  “That self-awareness has helped me find a niche in my classes.  I like that you can craft something to connect with others in words.”  Paul can even make the rare claim that, “I am one of the few who actually enjoys Senior Thesis.  I like how I got to take ownership of the project and have the chance to argue creatively.” He looks forward to presenting his paper on the relationship between the U.S., Taiwan, and China in mid-May.

For college Paul plans to attend NOVA for the first two years, and then transfer to GMU or JMU to study economics and writing.  “I do enjoy writing, but usually about things we can observe.  What interests me about economics is not the math, but the human behavior.  I want to use the technical stuff of the discipline to better relate to people.”

Paul’s eyes perk up for a moment as he notices a connection.  “I guess in the end, it really does all come back to techno!”

This contrarian side shows itself in his musical tastes, which he describes as “indie.”  “I usually don’t relate much to popular music,” he describes, “and I admit that if a band is popular, I probably hold it against them subconsciously.”  An accomplished guitarist, he credits his involvement with music at church with helping him stay connected there.  “Music has given me a lot great experiences in youth group, and I’ve even managed to write songs,” both for his church, and the band he co-founded with fellow seniors Doug Schultz and Greg Barton called Swell Daze.

Addison came to AFA in 7^th grade and immediately found “challenging” academics.  “But it’s good to be pushed, and good to take academics seriously.”  Like others the small environment initially threw him.  “When I first got here I wasn’t too enthused.  I stepped back and said to myself, ‘Wait a second. . .’”  In time, he tried to see the positives.  “I have built really good friendships with classmates.  You don’t have much choice [to get along]!  The environment here is pro-brotherhood.”

He has been most surprised by the teachers.  “In the school I came from, I got the impression that most teachers didn’t want to be there, and were not interested in any individual.  Perhaps with the size and the system, they had no choice.  But [at AFA] teachers want to be here and enjoy talking to students, and they make an effort to connect with them.”  He has found that, “many teachers work to make the subject interesting, and I have grown interest in subjects just because of how they were taught.”

Growing up, Addison planned on going to the Air Force, and even joined the Civil Air Patrol.  Now his plans have changed.  “For starters, I have bad eyesight.  But also, I did not enjoy the military lifestyle.  I didn’t like the drill, and I felt part of a system.”  Having abandoned one path, he hopes now to become a dentist, the same career choice as his father.

But wait a minute, what happened to the self-described, “inner contrarian” who “reacts instinctively against what others around me do”?  Addison states, “I admit I can’t quite explain why I would choose the same career as my dad.  But it does fit with my appreciation of science.  I also like talking to people.   I don’t think I want to go the ‘medical doctor’ route.  I’m more comfortable with the thought of working on people’s mouths than cutting open their abdomens, and you can’t talk to someone under anesthesia.”  He elaborated, “I really enjoy making personal connections with others.  If I knock out a patient, work on them, and then sew them up, in a sense I’ve done my job.  But I have noticed that the people I admire have the wisdom they do because of their own personal interactions with others.  I want the chance to develop the same connections with people in my vocation.”

To help accomplish this, Addison plans on pursuing a a biology based major either at James Madison or Grove City College.  He knows that “they are very different schools, but I think I could be happy at either place.”  Although undecided at the moment, he leans towards JMU.   “Grove City is small and distinctly Christian, and as much as I value that, I feel like I’ve already had that experience.  I think it’s time for something new.”

Addison will say one of the best ways to know him is through the music he writes.  He cites a recent composition, “Move,” as one of his favorites.  “I visited UVA’s campus on St. Patrick’s Day, and let’s just say that I saw many students do a lot of stupid things.  ‘Move’ is about that experience, and satirizes what people do under peer pressure.”

Once again we have the inner-contrarian, stepping back, evaluating, and finding his path.

“I’m going to VMI [Virginia Military Institute],” said Hughes, adding that he “wanted something more” than a conventional college experience. “The military has a purpose. It gives you a duty and an opportunity to give—a chance to be a servant leader.”

Hughes relishes a challenge and the opportunity to lead through service. Last year, he accomplished a longtime goal and became an Eagle Scout. For his service project he built and organized a school library for AFA.

Hughes plans to study mechanical engineering and join the Army or the Air Force after completing his training.  He said he inherited his military mindset from his father—a retired Air Force Colonel—and is not phased by what he knows will be a strict and grueling schedule. “I’m actually looking forward to physical training,” he said.  “I thrive in that environment.  It really strips you down to your core, raw being. I think this experience will help me grow and mature in my understanding of God’s word, and mature my faith. I pray that God will give me a greater dependence on Him.”

In addition to acting, he enjoys singing and playing the piano—gifts passed down from his mother, a concert vocalist who teaches music at Ad Fontes.  “I’ve been singing ever since I can remember,” said Hughes.  “I guess some might say that I came out of the womb singing and tap dancing!” After participating in his church’s youth choir, Hughes went on to sing with the Virginia Choral Director’s Association District XI All-District Chorus.

His onstage school acting performances are still talked about, including his uproarious portrayal of Charles I, and more recently, as Algernon in Oscar Wilde’s “The Importance of Being Earnest,” when Hughes became known for his brilliant ad-libbing and impromptu script changes. He used these talents for three years on AFA’s Mock Trial team where he won the Most Outstanding Witness Award at the state level each year he competed.

Selecting just a few of his fondest AFA memories was difficult, said Hughes. “It’s the whole experience. Just every day, really,” he said. “Every lunch period there is something new to discuss and laugh about.”  But it was reading Beowulf aloud with other students around a big fire pit at the Decker’s when Hughes said he knew he was forming lasting relationships.

Hughes said he found the community created by school’s small size to be particularly inviting. “You can’t have anonymity here, and I love that,” he said. “Because of the community here you can’t be alone. Even on my first day, I didn’t fade into the background. It was quite a shock. People wanted to know me. They asked me questions about things like what I liked to read. I didn’t even have to introduce myself.”

Hughes said he’s been blessed by his AFA teachers, particularly Mr. Popp and Mr. Blunt. Hughes had Upper School Principal Mr. Popp for Logic, Physics and Pre-Calculus, and soon discovered they shared a mutual love of Star Wars and Star Trek. “I’ll never forget how one day in class he launched off into the physics behind Star Trek,” said Hughes.  “I just love that. He showed me through his own example that you can be a nerd or a geek and still be funny and cool.”

Hughes also says he has also been encouraged by Mr. Blunt, his teacher for Worldview and Apologetics. “He’s really mentored me on a mental and spiritual level,” said Hughes. “He’s helped me to realize that God is faithful and just as He forgives us, we also need to forgive ourselves when we mess up, rather than dwell on what we did wrong.”

One of the Bible passages Hughes turns to for strength is James 1:2-4, and it is one Hughes knows by heart. “Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance. Let perseverance finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything.”

“Even though life can be painful and can sometimes feel like rocks falling on your head from above, you learn through this verse that the purpose is to persevere,” said Hughes. “So when more suffering comes, you won’t run away from it.”

Having attended AFA since the fifth grade, Greg has seen the school from many perspectives.  “The school is a small environment, and we don’t own our own space.  But I feel that both of these negatives are really positives.  My classmates have been the same for years, and if we don’t get along we have to deal with it and think about a Christian response.  I can’t just avoid it.  I have been challenged to think about what is really important about education.”  Over time, “I’ve also come to love the faculty.  They care and invest themselves in students’ lives, which I know is rare.  They have also helped us mature by giving us responsibility progressively, like allowing seniors to leave campus, help lead discussions, or plan events,” and this, “has really helped unite me to the school.”  Greg spoke of AFA as a “monastery, a safe haven.  I’m not saying that school is stress-free, but we know we’re cared for.”

His experience in AFA’s award winning mock trial team helped Greg find his calling.  As freshman he admitted that he “was pretty shy, and my role as a witness reflected that.  But I worked hard over the summer and my role increased,” which culminated when he assumed the most difficult team burdens his junior year of acting as attorney for both defense and prosecution teams. At the national competition last year the opposing teams gave him “Best Attorney” awards in three of the four cases he participated in.  He also had the special honor of meeting former Justice Sandra Day O’Connor.  “I got to ask her a question.  She questioned me in response, and then said that she agreed with me, which was pretty awesome!”  In law, Greg believes he has found his calling.  “When you understand the science of it, you have the structure to make [oral argument] an art, and when you arrive there it is really intellectually satisfying.”

For college, Greg has chosen to attend James Madison University. “Initially I admit to disappointment at being wait-listed at a couple schools.  But I’m comfortable going to any of the schools I applied to because I know it’s a ‘middle-man’ on my way to law school.”

The band “Swell Daze,” which Greg and two other AFA seniors (Doug Schultz and Addison Smith) help comprise, will soon release their first debut album on iTunes.  “The guys in the band asked me,  ‘What if we catch a crazy break and get signed?  Would you defer college for a while?’  I had to admit I was hesitant.  It took a lot of convincing to make me even consider being a rock star.  It seems too simple.  I’ve enjoyed school and don’t want it to be a mere footnote in my life. It needs to have a result.  I want to take what I’ve been given and go somewhere with it.  For me, trial advocacy could be that place.  But hey, I could be the band’s lawyer.”

Enjoy Greg’s Presentation at the Ad Fontes Spring Benefit: Note: There is a file embedded within this post, please visit this post to download the file.

Learn More About the Ad Fontes Class of 2012

Lower School (Grades K-5) Tours:  March 28, April 11 and April 25 at 9:30 a.m.
St. Johns Episcopal Church, 5649 Mount Gilead Road, Centreville

Upper School (Grades 6-12) Tours: March 27, April 10 and April 24 at 9:30 a.m.
Centreville Presbyterian Church, 15450 Lee Highway, Centreville

To RSVP for an event, schedule an alternate time or for questions, please contact Paula Sloan, AFA’s admissions director, at 571-345-4755 or admissions@adfontes.com. We look forward to meeting you!

When a student is able to do this—to analyze and synthesize, to answer a question in a way that shows depth of thinking and creativity—we want to recognize him or her. Thus, we created the Outside the Box award. Faculty can nominate students at any time and every week we will announce new winners in chapel. Every six weeks or so, we will have a special lunch in honor of Outside the Box nominees. At the end of the year, during our awards ceremony, we will recognize one or more students who have exhibited the essence of Outside the Box thinking throughout the year.

You can view all nominees and their work by clicking here.