With the Christmas decorations up and finals fast approaching, Patrick Henry College seniors are looking forward now more than ever to graduation in May. Only one semester left!
We asked a few of them what concepts they learned in class over the last four years made the most prominent impression. Here’s what they said…
Arynn Andrews, Political Theory
"The concept I think about the most is one I learned in Conservative Political Thought with Dr. Mark Mitchell, and one I continue to learn in Democracy's Prospects & Challenges. It is the idea that man is connected to a wider narrative; that none of us exist independently from one another. Because God has literally set 'eternity in the human heart,' we naturally strive to find ourselves within some kind of story that is greater than ourselves. Humans are the only story-telling creatures; we need stories of our history, family, and culture to understand our own identity.
"On the contrary, when we detach ourselves from community and other people to pursue purely our own good, we actually end up losing our sense of purpose. Self-absorption leads to misery, ironically, because in ourselves we cannot find relevancy."
Ian Schmidt, Economics and Business Analytics
"Entrepreneurship class with Vice President Howard Schmidt: Few people understand the value of being comprehensive and disciplined—comprehensive in knowledge and ability, while also being disciplined to execute little details over and over and over again."
Keith Zimmerman, American Politics and Policy
"Dr. Michael Haynes always gives us somewhat vague instructions when it comes to projects and assignments. The reason he does that is when you actually get into the real world all of your projects are going to be vague and you have to figure things out for yourselves. Him letting us figure things out for ourselves has been really helpful. It has probably been one of the most practical concepts I learned at PHC and it helped me so much in the internships that I’ve had."
Hannah Waters, Economics and Business Analytics
"Occasionally, Dr. Mark Mitchell would stop Freedoms Foundations class to play a Requiem Mass or some other enchanting piece of music, and it was really only for the beauty of it. At the end of one of the first times he did this he simply said—something along the lines of, 'Isn't it interesting how music can reveal longings you never knew you had?' And as I sat there, I realized I would never get this anywhere else. Whenever I stop to appreciate beauty now, I remember those moments when I sat in a political philosophy class listening to a requiem mass. Honestly, that has been one of the most memorable things."
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PHC takes pride in providing its students with a broad-based education that stresses content, the imitation of excellence, and the pursuit of knowledge in a godly fashion. It's thanks to our esteemed faculty that this kind of education is possible.
