Developing Classical Thinkers

A conversation with Andrew Abela and Robert Luddy on the nature of virtue ethics, human flourishing, and the small, incremental but invaluable steps we should take each day for personal improvement and growth.Andrew Abela is the founding dean of the Busch School of Business and Ordinary Professor of Marketing at The Catholic University of America, in Washington, D.C. He holds a B.Sc. from the University of Toronto, an MBA from the Institute for Management Development (IMD) in Switzerland, and a Ph.D. in Marketing and Ethics from the Darden Business School at the University of Virginia. He and his wife, Kathleen, have six children, three of whom (so far) have graduated from Catholic U.Robert "Bob" Luddy is the Founder and Chairman of Thales Academy, Thales College, Franklin Academy, and St. Thomas More Academy, and is the Founder and President of CaptiveAire Systems, North America's leading manufacturer of commercial kitchen ventilation equipment and a quickly growing manufacturer of commercial and industrial HVAC systems.

In this episode, Winston Brady speaks with Tiffany Whitaker about her experience teaching elementary school at the Thales Academy Wake Forest campus.Tiffany Whitaker is a Franklinton, North Carolina resident, East Carolina University alumnus, and seventh-year teacher at Thales Academy. She holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Elementary Education with a reading concentration and has had teaching experience in third and second grade. Ms. Whitaker teaches second grade at the Thales Academy Wake Forest campus. Interested in teaching at Thales Academy? Check out job postings across our network at https://www.thalesacademy.org/contact/careers

In this lecture, Kellie Scripter addresses the virtue of justice in the context of a content-rich classical education. A classical education provides students with opportunities to understand virtues like justice by encouraging them to develop intellectual discipline, exercise their moral imagination, and thus establish the patterns by which they can strive to pursue a just life.Mrs. Scripter received a B.A. in History and French from the University of Rochester and an M.A. in American History from Binghamton University. She teaches History and Humane Letters.Kellie Scripter delivered this presentation at the Conference of Miletus on July 14, 2025. The Conference of Miletus was a series of short, informative lectures given by members of the Thales Academy leadership team on ideas relating to classical education. Interested in teaching at Thales Academy? Please check out our website if you are interested in pursuing a career at Thales Academy and learning about needs across our network. Find out more at https://www.thalesacademy.org/contact/careers.

Winston Brady, director of Thales Press, addresses the virtue of temperance and why students should cultivate this important virtue.Temperance is the virtue of self-control and moderation, a habit people can achieve by bringing their appetites into harmony with their reason.Winston Brady delivered this presentation at the Conference of Miletus on July 14, 2025. The Conference of Miletus was a series of short, informative lectures given by members of the Thales Academy leadership team on ideas relating to classical education.Interested in teaching at Thales Academy? Please check out our website if you are interested in pursuing a career at Thales Academy and learning about needs across our network. Find out more at https://www.thalesacademy.org/contact....

Anthony Esolen, distinguished professor of the humanities at Thales College, addresses the virtue of prudence.  Dr. Anthony Esolen received his A.B. in English Literature from Princeton University and his M.A. and Ph.D. in Renaissance English Literature from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Dr. Esolen has been a professor of literature and humanities for 35 years and is the author or translator of more than 30 books, which include a range of English translations, analyses of culture, literary and Biblical criticisms, meditations on modern education, meditations on the Christian life, and original poetry. Dr. Esolen serves as a Distinguished Professor of Humanities at Thales College.Dr. Esolen delivered this presentation at the Conference of Miletus on July 14, 2025. The Conference of Miletus is a series of short, informative lectures given by members of the Thales Academy leadership team on ideas relating to classical education.Interested in teaching at Thales Academy? Please check out our website if you are interested in pursuing a career at Thales Academy and learning about needs across our network. Find out more at https://www.thalesacademy.org/contact/careers.

Robert Luddy, founder of Thales Academy, addresses the virtue of courage and how important it is for students to face their fears, overcome adversity, and take small, practical steps to cultivate this cardinal virtue.Robert "Bob" Luddy is the Founder and Chairman of Thales Academy, Thales College, Franklin Academy, and St. Thomas More Academy, and is the Founder and President of CaptiveAire Systems, North America's leading manufacturer of commercial kitchen ventilation equipment and a quickly growing manufacturer of commercial and industrial HVAC systems.Bob Luddy delivered this presentation at the Conference of Miletus on July 14, 2025. The Conference of Miletus was a series of short, informative lectures given by members of the Thales Academy leadership team on ideas relating to classical education.Interested in teaching at Thales Academy? Please check out our website if you are interested in pursuing a career at Thales Academy and learning about the needs across our network. Find out more at https://www.thalesacademy.org/contact/careers.

Eric Wearne is a Visiting Associate Professor with the Education Economics Center at Kennesaw State University. In line with his work on the intersection of statistics, school choice, and classical education, Professor Wearne conducted a survey of parents with children in a wide variety of classical schools.In this survey, Professor Wearne examined what parents want in a classical school and the benefits they see from their children being classically educated. Professor Wearne served previously as Provost at Holy Spirit College, Associate Professor of Education at Georgia Gwinnett College, and Deputy Director of the Governor's Office of Student Achievement in Atlanta.Dr. Wearne’s research work focuses on education policy, school choice, and the history of American education. Find out more about his work at https://sites.google.com/view/eric-wearne/home

A special episode on the history behind the celebrations of the Fourth of July, plus some of the most significant people in American history who have been born on, or departed from this Earth on, the 4th of July. 

On March 13-15, several Thales faculty members participated in the 2025 annual meeting of the Ciceronian Society in Harrisonburg, Virginia. This lecture comes from Winston Brady, director of Thales Press. In this address, Winston examined the relationship between limits and liberty, for the purpose of understanding what it means to be human, with insights drawn from C.S. Lewis and The Abolition of Man, particularly about the "conditioners" Lewis describes at the end of this groundbreaking book on education. The Ciceronian Society exists to equip and encourage Christian scholars to serve the church as a center of cultural and civic renewal. Find out more about their mission and work at https://ciceroniansociety.org/

Author David Bahnsen joins Developing Classical Thinkers to talk about the importance of work for our health and happiness, with insights drawn from his book, "Full Time: Work and the Meaning of Life."In "Full Time," Bahnsen argues that the time has come to stop tip-toeing around the issues that matter and to encourage students to look at a theology of work in its fullness to discover our meaning and purpose, a significant and successful life being one rooted in full-time productivity and cultivation of God’s created world.Check out https://www.fulltimebook.com/ to find out more about "Full Time" and David Bahsen's work.David L. Bahnsen is the founder, Managing Partner, and Chief Investment Officer of The Bahnsen Group, a national private wealth management firm with offices nationwide, managing over $7 billion in client assets. He is a frequent guest on CNBC, Bloomberg, Fox News, and Fox Business and regularly contributes to National Review. He hosts the popular weekly podcast Capital Record and writes daily investment commentary and weekly macro commentary at The Dividend Cafe website.