Live from Music Row Friday morning on The Tennessee Star Report with Michael Patrick Leahy – broadcast on Nashville’s Talk Radio 98.3 and 1510 WLAC weekdays from 5:00 a.m. to 8:00 a.m. – host Leahy welcomed Principal Phil Schwenk of American Classical Academy Montgomery, in studio to discuss his background in teaching and the move to public charter and classical education.
Leahy: We are delighted now to welcome to our microphones our new friend, Phil Schwenk, the principal of American Classical Academy and a very accomplished educator.
He has taught history for a long time, and has been the founding principal of a public charter school that’s affiliated with Hillsdale College up in Toledo, Ohio. Welcome, Phil Schwenk, to our microphones.
Schwenk: Michael, thank you for having me. It’s really a lot of fun to have you in studio.
Leahy: We had you on the newsmaker line, but you’re based here in Middle Tennessee now, and there was, I don’t know how to say this. We’ve tracked the career of a propagandist for the left wing who works at News Channel 5. His name is Phil Williams.
We’ve seen his work for a long time. If you want to know what the Democratic Party and the teachers union is thinking, just watch Phil Williams. He did what I can only describe as a very dishonest, attempted hit piece on American Classical Academy.
And what I was struck with on that it was on last night, I was struck with how he actually went about distorting what your curriculum is about. And in essence, he tried to say that your curriculum at the American Classical Academy doesn’t talk about race.
That’s what he tried to get across. And you’re laughing here because it’s exactly the opposite. Tell us a little bit about your background first, your teaching of history, and then your background as a founding principal of a similar public charter school up in Toledo.
Now recruited to come down here to Tennessee, tell us about your teaching history and then what will be taught in these public charter schools.
Schwenck: Sure, I can do that. Well, talking a little bit about myself, I’ve been education for close to 30 years now as both an administrator, as a teacher; as you said, I was a high school teacher for 12 years where I taught history.
Leahy: Now, where are you from originally, Phil?
Schwenck: Well, originally from New Mexico, I went to college in Philadelphia.
Leahy: Where did you go to college in Philadelphia?
Schwenk: I went to the University of Pennsylvania for my undergrad.
Leahy: A Quaker!
Schwenk: I am a Quaker.
Leahy: Oh, no. Another Ivy Leaguer.
Schwenk: Yes.
Leahy: They’re all over the place.
Schwenk: Yes, we are.
Leahy: I went to Harvard way back when. Here’s the thing about this. Neither you nor I would probably be able to speak at our alma mater. I think at Harvard; I wouldn’t be able to speak right now. They wouldn’t allow me in.
Schwenck: Oh, they would struggle with much of what I have to say.
Leahy: Because you just tell the truth.
Schwenk: Yes.
Leahy: So you grew up in New Mexico?
Schwenk: I did, yes. Born in Denver, I grew up in Albuquerque. I went to college in Philly. After my undergraduate, I went to LA. And I was in LA for 16 years.
Leahy: No kidding. You taught history in LA.
Schwenk: I taught in LASD before starting three separate charter schools.
Leahy: Los Angeles School District. Oh, my goodness. What was that like?
Schwenk: Well, the kids are fantastic. I love the kids. Usually much of the struggles and educators with what’s going on at the top, it’s not the kids.
The kids were wonderful. And I worked all over the city, not only in the city schools there in LA but in three different charter schools in various parts of the city.
Leahy: So at some point after teaching in the public schools you said this isn’t working.
Schwenk: Yes. I don’t think that it gets as specific to the child as it needs to be, and it’s more focused on indoctrination than it is on the actual education of the child.
Leahy: So you decided to go to work and teach at a public charter school in LA.
Schwenk: That was actually part of my move from the classroom, was into a charter school where we established a school for high school kids. As far as moving towards what I’m doing now with Hillsdale, it’s been in progress. So that was really my kind of step into the charter world.
So this idea of community schools where parents say that they’d like an option, that was that move. As far as my move into classical education, it’s really been the move. There are really two parts that are the move into what I’m doing with the Barney Charter School Initiative.
Leahy: The Barney Charter School Initiative is designed to help and support public charter schools that are affiliated with Hillsdale College but not run by Hillsdale College.
Schwenk: Exactly. And perfectly so.
Listen to today’s show highlights, including this interview:
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Tune in weekdays from 5:00 – 8:00 a.m. to The Tennessee Star Report with Michael Patrick Leahy on Talk Radio 98.3 FM WLAC 1510. Listen online at iHeart Radio.
Photo “Phil Schwenk” by Northwest Ohio Classical Academy. Background Photo “Classroom” by Pixabay.
[Editor’s Note: American Classical Education is an advertiser in The Tennessee Star.]
