The other day the Birmingham News wrote an article recognizing our achievements at the indoor state track meet. The praise offered to our student athletes was wonderful and seeing our students’ names and pictures in the paper was exciting. However, it was interesting that they referred to us as “Tiny Westminster.” Without a doubt, it is true. We are a small school- the second smallest school in the AHSAA. It is just that praise predicated on surprise at the source of the greatness is confusing. It is like finishing dinner and exclaiming with excitement that Mom made a great meal. While one might hope she will enjoy the praise, she is probably going to be a little annoyed her family is so surprised by the source.
Westminster will always be small. Our goal to grow Westminster to 3 sections per grade with only 16 students per section means Westminster will never have more than 624 students and will barely be a 2A school.
We could, of course, take comfort in the tendency of Americans to celebrate underdogs and Cinderella stories. While we most certainly will celebrate every time we catch some big, overconfident school sleeping, the significance of the celebration will be greater if it establishes a tradition. I have no desire for our wins to be dismissed as anomalies or merely exceptions to the rule that larger is better. Larger is not better. Better is better.
For some reason we cannot help but to be impressed when a David-sized school wallops a Goliath. Here’s the point: While David’s small size stunned the Israelites, it was his superiority as a warrior and as a leader that convinced Israel to follow him. Somehow, too many Christians walk away from this text believing this was an accident. David did not just show up so that God could miraculously give him supernatural giant- killing powers. Since God could have killed Goliath anyway he wanted, we should find it instructive that he used David who had been taught as a child to face difficult challenges (like lions and bears) by using the right tools (a sling, a rock, and his bare hands) and by trusting in God (1 Samuel 17:34-37). It was this inculcated habit of trusting God to help him to overcome difficult tasks that prepared him for Goliath and made his size irrelevant. In David’s story, it was not long before all that mattered was that “Saul has killed his thousands, David his ten thousands.”
This is the secret of tiny Westminster: we are not afraid to ask our students to face difficult challenges. Learning to face skills that appear to be beyond one’s ability is the perfect way to inculcate the habit of seeking grace from God. What David learned from facing lions and bears, Westminster students learn by studying the times tables or writing essays. This inculcated habit of seeking grace to master skills at a level that leaves others shaking in their boots will prepare our students to do what is extraordinary.
Tiny Westminster stunned the Birmingham News last week. I cannot wait to see their reaction to the fact that 25% of this year’s graduating class earned National Merit Scholarships.
As Robbie mentioned in his blog “The Peculiar Beauty of an Opportunity”, we recently enjoyed a visit from Westminster Alumnus Calvin Nixon. At the upper school chapel, he spoke to our students about the benefits of a classical education and the importance of hard work.
We have had a lot of requests for the video from those that couldn’t make it that day, so here you go!
Enjoy!
The athletic arena is a developmental opportunity. It is a place where athletes are challenged to understand their physical bodies, to strengthen and expand their physical capacity. It is also a place where mental toughness is developed, as well as the fine art of synergy, balance and strategy. There are rules of engagement to be obeyed, philosophy of process to be followed, and explosive execution to master. For an athlete, there is much to gain.
And I have noticed that the demands of this development lead athletes to generally respect one another–even when battling a rival. Who has not felt a little bit strange witnessing the sweaty embrace of rivals on the field of competition after a hard fought contest? One of these guys has just suffered a bitter defeat, and the other is filled with exult and triumph. Yet they suspend for a moment their display of emotions to genuinely embrace and engage eye to eye. Fans can learn from this moment.
Which brings me to the under appreciated opportunity that a sports arena can be for all of us. The players get it better than we do. If I have learned anything about sports here in the South it is this–we tend to exhibit our worst behavior as fans. It is as if we allow ourselves to get a pass on civility and chivalry when it comes to sports. As a fan, I have said things and treated others much more poorly as a fan than I ever would as a host or guest. I am so much more likely to suspend logic and fairness when it comes to a judgement call on the field or to verbally assault another person who sees thing differently than me. Why is this so? I believe it has something to do with our “it’s just a game” approach to sports. And I believe we are missing a glorious opportunity.
What if fans approached the sports arena as a developmental opportunity as well? What if we assumed the posture of host or guest at each venue? What if we used our natural bent to see every call through our loyal colored lenses as a check on our self centered hearts? What if we appreciated the efforts on both sides of the contest with admiration and encouragement? Please don’t hear me wrong here. I am not promoting wimpy passivity. I want to cheer my team on better than the other guys. I want to be a true fan with all the emotion and passion directed in our favor that I can muster. I do not want it to be close when it comes to home field advantage on our turf. But I think I should stop short of poor behavior, internally or externally directed, just because I am a sports fan. The sports arena should not be a place where I suspend civility, but where it is tempered, strengthened, and generously displayed. I should be a better man because of sports, not a lesser one.
I speak not as one who has yet mastered this approach. As an Alabama fan, I have drunk deeply the intoxicating mixture of idolatry. My mind has defended our record and approach with amazing speed and mental dexterity. I have equaled this speed in my tearing down of my opponents and pointing out any weakness or flaw. I have engaged the arena of fandom as if the goal were to convince my opponent that my sports heritage is superior and that that their only right response would be to lay down their colors and join me on the Side of Right. How silly.
And so I prepare now to enter our sports arena and developmental challenge tonight. How can I support my sons while encouraging the behaviors on the other team that are good and wholesome as well? How can I encourage our boys when things are not going the best in a way that allows them to reach deep into themselves and master their will to execute well? And how can I do it in a way that does not embarrass or shut down another man’s son in this same battle? How can I model for my other children the joy of victorious moments in a way that makes them better people and not arrogant asses? How can I help an official feel the good weight of impartial accountability while also being generously benevolent in the exchange? I am sure I will not do these things perfectly, but oh to do it well.
And to do it well in a community of others is perhaps the most beautiful benefit of the sports arena. We can all engage fully in this developmental opportunity and be a part of something truly remarkable.
Go Knights!
Jim Doggett – Westminster Parent
While leading chapel, Calvin Nixon (Westminster Class of 2010) told the students how several members of our community offered him the opportunity to attend Westminster. He explained how he embraced that opportunity, worked hard, and earned a scholarship to study at Marquette University. While just seeing Calvin succeed justifies the investment many of you made in Calvin, in chapel we discovered a second reward as he used his story to encourage current students to take advantage of the opportunity Westminster is offering them.
Calvin’s speech reminded me of Langston Hughes’s poem Harlem that asks “What happens to a dream deferred?” In vivid language, Hughes warns that dreams that are not given any opportunity for fulfillment will fester like sores not allowed to heal or rot like meat that is not eaten. One could see in Calvin the answer to the final question of the poem: “Maybe it just sags/like a heavy load/ Or does it explode?” Only a fool would stand between Calvin and opportunity.
Every time I discuss Hughes’s poem, at least one student scoffs at the idea that someone in America lives without opportunity. I am always stunned by this. It is not that I expect humility. I am stunned that they thought Hughes’s point was pity. To counter their misconception, I follow this poem with Updike’s Ex-Basketball Player. It is a poem about a once extraordinary basketball player named Flick. “He was good: in fact, the best. In ’46/ He bucketed three hundred ninety points/ A county record still.” Updike finishes this line with an expression that so perfectly describes not only Flick’s skill but the admiration of every Wizard fan: “The ball loved Flick.” The line also conveys a common American assumption that if a teenager can handle a ball, he will conquer life. Sadly, “he never learned a trade, he just sells gas,/ Checks oil, and changes flats.” All of his potential can now only be seen when “once in a while/ As a gag, he dribbles an inner tube.” When teaching this poem, someone always assumes Updike might be belittling mechanics. Flick is not a mechanic. “His hands are fine and nervous on the lug wrench.” He represents those for whom high school was a time of extraordinary potential that ended in squandered opportunity.
Calvin’s story tempts me to lecture my kids. However, I have always found illustrations more effective than lectures. Let’s start praying that God would provide more young men or women like Calvin to teach all of us about the particular beauty of an opportunity.
It is difficult to put into words how much we have seen our daughter grow in confidence and knowledge with the help of the academic support program. Our daughter Saddler entered first grade with a deficit in mathematics which lead to many tears when it came time for homework. She was totally overwhelmed and lacked the confidence to even attempt to work on her lessons at night. Through the wisdom of the school’s leadership and the Lord’s provision her beloved kindergarten teacher accepted this charter role of assisting children in areas of weakness.
Our daughter has gone from fearing math to absolutely loving it and excelling in the subject. Not only has she gained skills and confidence, going to “math club” is the highlight of her week. Our experience can best be summed up with this example: Last week our oldest three children were asked what fun activities they were involved in. Our oldest said soccer, the next said gymnastics, and Saddler quickly chimed in, “I’m in the math club.”
- Cord Sachs
If you missed the homecoming game Saturday night, you missed something special. We have a wonderful community. I appreciated the coaches and players, the painted up student section, the numerous lower school fans, the parents and grandparents, and the friends- all of whom made for an exhilarating evening. It helped that we won by 30 points, that Hope and Sylvia did such a wonderful job singing the national anthem, and that over 400 people came to support the team. If you want to know the difference you made, consider that the last time we played, Whitesburg took us into overtime. Thank you for offering your energy to the boys.
I wonder what would happen if we took this same energy to Parkway this Friday. There is nothing like facing a foe you have never beaten to increase the need for grace. Even if you cannot come, I would ask that you would contemplate the following petitions I have put together from quotes from Remember Why We Play. Use them to pray for Coach Butler and the boys:
1. Pray that Coach Butler “can accept whatever the results are, as long as he and his players give their very best effort.”
2. Pray that “We represent first and play [basketball] second.”
3. Pray that the boys learn that “The more selfish you are, the less satisfying life is. Your life is only enriched when you live it for a purpose bigger than yourself. ”
4. Pray that Coach Butler will remember that his “duty is to facilitate and cultivate lifelong behaviors that lead to success in every area of life, and if that means being unpopular for a period of time with a few teenage boys, so be it.”
5. Pray that our boys will embrace the following resolution: “Let others lead small lives but not you. Let others argue over small things but not you. Let others leave their future in the hands of others but not you.”
Whether we beat Parkway is not nearly as important as having a community to encourage these boys to grow in grace. So come out and see what happens.
- Robbie Hinton
Forget Tebow and “The Rematch.” If you want sports in its best and purest form, join us Saturday at 6pm at the Samford University gym for the annual homecoming game against Whitesburg Christian.
When you attend a Westminster basketball game, you enter the arena of the young athlete. On that court and during that game our young men will embrace virtues normally deemed uncool. They will work hard, make sacrifices, take the lead. They will even show respect for authority. And for the rest of their lives they will either tell stories of regret or greatness about what happens Saturday. Of course, if the basketball court is truly this important in their lives, it is a perfect place to find Christ at work.
Without a doubt, many adults have made an idol of high school sports and high school athletes. This weird form of idolatry explains why so many adults refuse to grow up. In one of the greatest and most absurd acts of folly, the arena of sports has become an opportunity for men to act like boys. At Westminster we want to turn this trend on its head. We want to use these games to teach boys to act like men.
If you join us on Saturday, I cannot promise a victory. But I can promise you a front row seat in the crucible of sanctification.
- Robbie Hinton
In his book Arts with the Brain in Mind, Eric Jensen outlines the benefits for children who participate in the arts. This topic is not new in the educational debate, however, Jensen’s research focuses specifically on how the brain is affected by what he terms as the three arts; musical, visual and kinesthetic. According to Jensen, the arts have “positive emotional, social, cultural, creative, collaborative, and neurological effects” and “are about life, growth, and expanding who we can become as human beings” (p. 110).
Creating a strong emphasis on the arts program at Westminster should be a priority as it only enhances an already rich curriculum. The addition of dramatic arts to our school adds a different perspective on the cultures and civilizations that the students study and gives them an outlet to actively compare their culture to that of the past. Students need guidance and support from parents and teachers to help them establish a well-organized drama department that will be sustainable for the years ahead. I am confident that we are well on our way to creating a drama department that will grow into a successful program. I am encouraged by the seeds that have already been planted this year for a future drama department. I am very proud of our two pioneers, Hope Thompson and Sylvia Welch who represented our school at the state level in the Trumbauer Drama Competition. This is our school’s first year to ever send representatives to the competition, and both girls received a superior rating advancing them to the state level where they placed in their event. We have many more plans for growing a drama department. At the heart of this pursuit is the desire of our students to use this as a forum to reach out to those who have never heard the Gospel. Greater participation in events like this would provide them that opportunity.
Plans are in the works to start an International Thespian Society, an annual one act play competition, greater participation in state and local drama competitions, and even possibly a Shakespeare in the Park! As for the visual and musical arts, who knows? Maybe somewhere down the road we will establish this in our upper school. Even though most of our students are involved in the arts through city wide programs or church events, it doesn’t take the place of school fine arts programs. The sense of community that is created through the arts is a valuable part of the school culture. Students need an opportunity to express themselves in a group that is united in its purpose to glorify God. They need to see this purpose exemplified through all areas: academics, sports, socially, and the arts as well.
I have always been an advocate for the arts. If anyone has ever seen me play a sport, you would certainly guess why. There are many children out there who also need the same opportunity for what may be similar reasons. I hope we can give students a choice when it comes to extracurricular activities. Our students are very well rounded and usually seek ways to learn about many different subject areas. Our extracurricular offerings should reflect this desire. The addition of the arts would not only offer students the chance to grow in other areas but it would also provide them the chance to engage in leadership activities as well.
Just like every team needs fans and supporters, the arts are no different. We need time, money, and support to have a successful program. I know we have some incredibly talented students at Westminster who are the best kept secrets in town. It is now time to give them the opportunity to let the secret out!
- Amy Hoaglund – Westminster Parent, Assistant Professor, Samford University
One of my daughters asked me if I ever drag raced like Shawn on the T.V. show Psych. Evasion seemed the wisest response. Thus, I asked her, “What do you think?” My other daughter responded with an unflattering tone, “No, Dad is too self-disciplined for that.” I must admit it was really hard not to tell her about racing down Collierville-Arlington Road or to give one of my classic dissertations on what it means to be an adult. The problem, however, is that whatever I said would have been heard as a comparison between fun-loving Shawn verses self-disciplined Dad. More than being bothered by their disapproval, I am disappointed by the dichotomy? Why do we believe fun and self-discipline are at odds?
I must admit that if the two traits can be merged, I am probably not the best example. Over time I have become quit skillful at staying under control. I like to think of this as maturity. However, I wonder if it has more to do with fear. I know if I become too interested in a cause I stammer and attack like a teenager about to lose his car keys. Thus, I tend to avoid causes rather than risk looking like a fool. People like me do the same thing with relationships. Relationships confuse us, distract us, or anger us. They create drama. Thus, we strive to maintain professionalism. And as much as I enjoy a good laugh, I have found that adult humor isn’t called adult because of its intellectual complexity. Thus, rather than risk being part of jokes that would leave senior boys blushing, I tend to keep busy and focused.
Teenagers, however, would never make such compromises. They would never let the fear of looking irrational stop the pursuit of something they wanted. Teenagers have this amazing ability to endure mind-numbing drama simply to spend time with friends, and they would rather laugh than win the lottery.
As the people who love them, we are often perplexed by their choices. We want them to grow up and make better decisions before they do irrevocable damage either to themselves or our mental well-being. However, how do we teach them to make better choices without forcing to give up on the pursuit of joy?
At Westminster, we believe this is one of the primary roles of a teacher. We strive to teach them about the real joys of life. More often then not this is simply pushing them to go deeper to pursue passions that are beyond their immediate reach. Sometimes I am bothered when my examples are scoffed at. Then, I remember that the true joys require a disciplined pursuit of life. Because here is the point, what has really created boring and jaded adults is that over time life became too hard. Instead of disciplining ourselves to learn the wisdom to choose wisely and the eloquence needed to bring others with us, it was easier just to stop trying.
May God give us the grace to equip students with wisdom and eloquence so they can enjoy what is truly beautiful.
- Robbie Hinton
I truly love serving in a school that will graduate 3 National Merit scholars this year and has averaged a 29 on the ACT for the last seven years. However, if that is all they had accomplished, I would be less than impressed.
The ACT is a fine test. It measures a student’s ability to stay focused on a Saturday morning for a considerable amount of time while doing some relatively difficult math problems and reading some less than intriguing writing. The ACT does a great job of distinguishing between those who can read, edit, and calculate under pressure and those who cannot. Certainly, these are useful skills that should not be dismissed, but are these skills really worth all of the hype the ACT receives?
To be clear, if we were doing poorly on standardized tests such as the ACT, I would be embarrassed. However, please do not confuse this with why we believe Westminster is so special.
The other day one of our founders was telling me that when they were starting Westminster, he was certain everyone assumed students would do well on standardized tests. At the same time he said he doesn’t remember a whole lot of discussion about it. This fits with everything I know about our school.
Westminster is an extraordinary school because it was started by people who refused to settle for less. Even though other schools could have helped their children perform well on standardized tests, they decided they wanted more. For now, I would like to define more as the summation of what Westminster offers that is not included in stats such as 29% of our graduates have received National Merit accolades. Now I know that in our materialistic and performance driven world Christian’s have rightfully become disenchanted with the word more and that as a word and as a concept more has fallen on hard times. We understandably think of any longing for more as simply referring to the idea that we deserve everything we want. For our community, I believe we use the word more to articulate our deep dissatisfaction with what was being offered. Of course, while it might be enjoyable, discussing what dissatisfies us probably isn’t very helpful. Thus, the purpose of this blog will be an attempt to define what we mean by the word more. I hope it will start a conversation about what we love about Westminster. I hope you enjoy it, and please join the conversation by sharing it with friends and making comments.
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