Kolbecast

AMDG. When the Kolbe years come to an end, students have big decisions to make. With that in mind, Kolbe’s academic services director, Everett Buyarski, and Erica Treat, who works as an academic advisor at Kolbe, return to the Kolbecast to consider the big picture, the discernment process of a student’s post-Kolbe options, the complexities that accompany that process, and the particulars for craft...

AMDG. Kolbe Academy Technical Assistant Lauren Hoang shares five takeaways about the technology that makes it possible for families all over the world to utilize Kolbe Academy’s materials and services. Beyond the specs and hardware, Lauren highlights how the technological dimension offers ample opportunity for growth in virtue and holiness. She has practical suggestions to help families and studen...

AMDG. The Faias are longtime members of the Kolbe Academy family. Their youngest child is a 2021 alumna. In this episode, Mrs. Margaret Faia shares both the long view and the detailed approach she took to educating her 14 children at home. Consider her a mentor to anyone seeking to keep God at the center of family life while tending to the temporal needs of everyone involved.   Mrs. Faia reference...

AMDG. Maria and her family were among many who turned on a dime in response to the pandemic-related impact on their schooling choices. This episode details the path that led Maria and her family to Kolbe and how her daughter’s experience in the inaugural year of the  online elementary program  went. With candor and grace, Maria shares how she and her husband worked through sticking points, how the...

AMDG. Heather, a longtime Kolbe Academy homeschooling mom, takes Bonnie back in time to the start of Heather’s family’s homeschooling experience. Along the way, Heather shares some of the struggles and sorrows they encountered. With much humor and compassion, Heather offers her pragmatic suggestions on how to deal with the opinions of others about family educational choices, when spouses aren’t on...

AMDG. Kolbe Academy’s Curriculum Development Manager Deana Muth sits down with Jordan and Bonnie to underscore the accessibility – and relevance – of Kolbe’s high caliber liberal arts curriculum to everyone, the principle of subsidiarity in the service of homeschooling families, and the role of Kolbe’s dedicated, skilled advisors in helping families customize and implement curriculum choices.   Ch...

AMDG. In this episode, Jordan, Bonnie, and Brigid are fielding questions and addressing common homeschooling sticking points. From looking back in time to trace how we got to the point of thinking parents aren’t qualified to teach their own children to demystifying the day-in, day-out homeschooling experience, this conversation covers a lot of ground and delivers a hefty dose of encouragement to h...

AMDG. Longtime Kolbe Academy online instructor and chair of the English and Literature Department Kim Crawford shines a light on the  philosophy of Kolbe’s literature curriculum , which employs four attitudes and a four-fold test to construct a lens through which to evaluate any piece of literature, from the timeless classic to the latest beach read. Kim and Bonnie also discuss the true meaning of...

AMDG. This episode of the Kolbecast features the speeches from Kolbe Academy’s 2021 live-streamed graduation ceremony with an opening prayer offered by Ryan Ma. Student speaker Caroline Painter, faculty speaker Wil Frey, and commencement speaker Bill Donaghy address the Kolbe Academy community with eloquence, wit, and sagacity. From the purpose of education to the importance of reflection on the t...

AMDG. Hats off to our 50th episode! Tune in today to hear the more casual side of the cast as we welcome back some of the guests we’ve had the pleasure of having on the show during our first rebooted season. We let our hair down, reminisce about the past year, and sketch out big dreams for the next. Ever heard the Socratic method applied to Star Wars combat walkers? Listen in and you will. On this...

AMDG. We are thrilled to welcome the keynote speaker of our portable homeschool convention: Joseph Pearce. With clear enthusiasm for the subjects he teaches, Joseph describes how God conveys the greatest lessons to us--theological, philosophical, moral, and historical--in terms of story and literature. He explains how humility gives us a sense of gratitude, gratitude opens the eyes in wonder, wond...

AMDG. Today Chrissy Almanzar,  theology department  chair and Jordan's wife, shares her experience of the richness of grace and faith as a convert to Christianity and intercultural theology scholar who is now a high school teacher. We discuss head knowledge versus heart knowledge of religion, why Kolbe’s high school theology curriculum does not use a catechetical approach, the connection between h...

AMDG. Gather around our metaphorical kitchen table as Kelly Powers and Chris Bates re-join Bonnie and Hope to talk about their shared love of cooking—both their own experience in the kitchen and the highs and lows of cooking with kids. We cover adapting meals to food sensitives and allergies, kids’ capabilities in the kitchen at various ages, safety habits for teaching children to work with knives...

AMDG and bonjour! Today, language department chair and French teacher Madame Jenni Mammola joins the cast to share her enthusiasm and insight into the field. She takes on the idea that French can have a reputation as a superfluous or overly romantic “elective” and describes how the language is set to be the third-most spoken language in the world, is important in a variety of industries (including...

AMDG. Today’s episode title comes from St. Thomas Aquinas by way of clinical psychologist Peter Malinoski, who joins us today along with registered clinical counselor Jody Garneau to discuss mental health and homeschooling. Dr. Peter and Jody speak from years of experience as both mental health practitioners and homeschool parents themselves—he, the father of seven children and she, the mother of...

AMDG. Last fall, we heard from three young men who are current Kolbe students. Today, we hear from three young women—Elena, Ellen, and Emily—who are active both in Kolbe academics and in Kolbe’s online clubs. They talk with Bonnie and Hope about their roles in putting together the monthly Kolbe Chronicle newsletter, as well as what they like and dislike about being homeschooled and what they spend...

AMDG. Are you staring down a pile of paperwork? Or maybe that pile feels more like an avalanche? Take a breath, cue up this episode, and listen in as Everett Buyarski and Erica Treat share with Bonnie and Hope what’s really necessary for grade reporting and record-keeping. With some insights from advisors who write letters of recommendation and tricks for PDF creation and viewing, the group discus...

AMDG. Today, voice of experience and mother of four Kolbe graduates Louise Deal visits with Bonnie and Hope about homeschooling with space for life to happen. She shares how she and her husband, who both have engineering backgrounds, chose Kolbe for their children and where those children are now, including one who is a Ph. D. student in robotics and another who is a Ph. D. student in philosophy....

AMDG. The Kolbe employees who make the social media magic happen join us today to discuss outreach and evangelization in the digital realm. Brigid Tebaldi and Lauren Hoang share their insights and experiences about reaching families and fostering community through various platforms, developing healthy interactions with social media, and using the internet to share the good, the true, and the beaut...

AMDG. After an enlightening conversation on higher education generally last week, Dr. Don Prudlo joins us again to discuss the specifics of college visits and college transition. We talk about how to look under a college’s hood, so to speak, beyond what admissions counselors pitch, as well as a few things to consider when discerning what size and type of school is best for individual students. Dr....

AMDG. Dr. Don Prudlo, Warren Chair of Catholic Studies at the University of Tulsa and way cool Gen X’er, joins the cast today to discuss higher education and human formation. We start with Dr. Prudlo and Jordan comparing their Ph. D. experiences through discussion of small Catholic schools and large research universities. From there, the group discusses how students can make a good impression on t...

AMDG. While standardized testing often elicits groans from students and anxiety from parents, what if it didn’t have to? Today Jordan and Bonnie visit with Jeremy Tate, President of the Classic Learning Test. He explains how high-stakes tests drive and dictate academic focus in America, how he decided to go up against the behemoth that is the College Board in designing a different kind of college...

AMDG. Last week, we visited with Therese Prudlo about structuring school weeks to reflect care of the whole person. Today, Therese rejoins us to go deeper on the need for refreshment and reflection. What does it mean that the sabbath was made for man, not man for the sabbath? What is the practice of “going to your desert” in the middle of busy family life? How do the movies Elf and Babette’s Feast...

AMDG. Ever wonder why Kolbe elementary and middle grade course plans are set up with four days, not five? Struggling to figure out how to divide up high school weekly course plans? Therese Prudlo rejoins the crew today to talk about how, yes, it’s important to get your work done, but it’s even more important to protect the margins of the day. Reflecting the Ignatian tenet of care of the whole pers...

AMDG. Today Bonnie and Hope visit with Carola, a current Kolbe mom from Spain whose family started homeschooling during the pandemic. While sharing insights from her own Princeton University education, Carola discusses how she’s found in homeschooling an opportunity to teach both her children and herself. She also talks about balancing time with toddlers in the house, navigating working from home ...