George Washington

I listened this morning to the BYU Forum speech given by Ron Chernow on March 19, 2013.  I had read his book about George Washington so hearing him speak was a special treat.  The following was written by Kaylee DeWitt for the Digital Universe.  I believe there is much we can learn from George Washington about how to lead Esperanza. 


Ron Chernow delved into the personality of George Washington by dispelling common myths at the university forum on Tuesday.
Chernow, a well-known journalist and historian, drew information from his biography, “Washington: A Life,” for which he received the 2011 Pulitzer Prize for Biography and the 2011 American History Book prize.
Chernow showed the BYU audience that there was more to Washington than the historical stereotype. Rather than the stoic and reserved figure many picture, Washington was a man with a strained relationship with his mother, who kept up morale in his army during the brutal winter at Valley Forge and was the only founding father to free his slaves in his will.

Ron Chernow spoke about George Washington at the forum on Tuesday. (Photo by Whitnie Soelberg)

“He was not this bland figure history has painted him as,” Chernow said. “Behind his laconic facade, he was man of fiery opinions. The misunderstanding comes from us. We have sanded down the corners of his personality and have created a rigid picture of him.”
Chernow said the man who accomplished such historical feats must have been “a force of nature.”
He then turned to retiring common myths about Washington.
The childhood story of George Washington cutting down the cherry tree was fabricated by Parson Weems, an author of the time.
Chernow said the story is destructive not only because it was used to terrorize school children, but because it creates a misleading and austere figure of Washington.
Furthermore, Washington didn’t have wooden teeth. According to Chernow, when Washington became president, he had one tooth left. His dentures were made out of elephant ivory and human teeth, which took on a grainy look that could be mistaken for wood.
Chernow said there is no evidence that Washington ever wore a wig; and he was only 6 feet tall, as opposed to accounts of him being 6 foot 3 inches or taller.
“Try to open yourself up completely to the facts,” Chernow said. “Find someone different than the stereotypes attached to the man.”
Chernow said when people ask what George Washington was like, he asks what stage of his life they are referring to.
“He was constantly growing and changing and deepening,” Chernow said.
Though others had more original and spectacular minds, Chernow said Washington was exceptional in other ways. He encouraged his army to live by high moral standards, telling them to give up drinking, gambling and swearing.
“He had unique focus, discipline and drive. In terms of persistence and fortitude, he had no equal,” Chernow said.
Chernow said Washington had good judgment and clarity of vision compared to the more hot-headed founders. He established the precedent of two terms in office.
“He shaped the office of presidency,” Chernow said. “We live by his legacy today.”

Leadership

I listened this morning to the BYU Forum given on 11-13-12 by Alison Davis-Blake.  It was excellent!  I recommend reading the whole talk once it is available at BYU speeches. 

BYU forum: Building a positive business career

Alison Davis-Blake, dean of the Ross School of Business at the University of Michigan, addressed BYU students and faculty Tuesday afternoon about the future of business.

Davis-Blake said that in a world full of business scandals, it is sometimes difficult for people to find a balance between doing business and doing good. Some students set goals to work for non-profit organizations once they graduate so they can do both, according to Davis-Blake.

However, she said this is not the only way students can be a positive business influence. By being a good leader, one can have a positive impact.

Alison Davis-Blake, dean of the Ross School of Business at the University of Michigan, presents campus forum address Tuesday afternoon in the Marriott Center.

“Leadership is nothing more than the ability to influence others to achieve a set of goals,” Davis-Blake said. “Leaders must have a positive impact on others one by one. They create organizations where people are thriving and bring their best selves to work everyday, and they use the enormous and positive power of business to make a difference for good.”
Davis-Blake identified the four characteristics that define a true leader as empathy, courage, integrity and drive. Davis-Blake also went on to describe these four characteristics in greater detail.
She said empathy is at the very core of leadership. A leader has to learn that it’s not about them, but rather, they need to focus on the people that they lead.

“As a leader, you must see the good that people do and want to do, and let them know how good they are doing,” Davis-Blake said. “Remember, wherever you are, if you want to have a positive impact on others, it starts by seeing the good.”

Davis-Blake said leadership is often mundane actions that are not always recognized, but these mundane times are punctuated by moments when leaders see opportunities to make a real difference. Davis-Blake talked about how these moments take courage, the second characteristic of a leader.
According to Davis-Blake, insights that people gain from empathy and courage should enable leaders to act with the third characteristic of leadership–integrity.
The last characteristic discussed was drive, and how it can motivate leaders to be a positive influence. Davis-Blake said with drive, leaders learn to not only work harder, but to work in a more flexible and resilient manner.
Through these four characteristics and hard work, Davis-Blake said anyone can learn to be a positive influence in the world of business.
“You don’t have to choose between doing business and doing good, you can do both,” Davis-Blake said. “See the good in others. Count the cost of incivility and do not tolerate it. Choose the best. You can choose to be a leader that makes a positive difference in the world. Inspire others to do more, dream more and be more.”

History Fascination

Civil War Still Relevant In Our Lives Today
by James McPherson           

November 29, 2011-- BYU Forum

From 1861 to 1865, more than 2 percent of the American population was killed in the Civil War. Although that was 150 years ago, Tuesday’s forum speaker told students why the Civil War has relevance and captures our interest, even today.
James M. McPherson, professor emeritus of American history at Princeton University, titled his remarks, “Why the Civil War Still Matters Today.”
“A bookstore owner in Falls Church, Va., said, also in the 1980s, for the last two years Civil War books have been flying out of here,” McPherson said. “It’s not just the buffs who buy, it’s the general public, from high school kids to retired people.”

Sarah Strobel

Princeton University professor and Civil War historian James M. McPherson addresses BYU students at Tuesday's forum about why the Civil War still matters.

McPherson received the 1989 Pulitzer Prize in history for his book, “Battle Cry of Freedom: The Civil War Era.” He also received the Pritzker Prize for Lifetime Achievement in Military Writing in 2007.

McPherson discussed the history and significance of the Civil War today and in the Civil War era. He also recounted several statistical examples to explain why people are still fascinated with the Civil War.
More than 620,000 soldiers and unnumbered civilians were killed during the war, McPherson said. To relate that to today’s population, if 2 percent of the population were to die that would equal about 6 million individuals.
Individuals are continually interested in the Civil War, especially with the 150th anniversary of the Civil War approaching.
“Then there are the larger-than-life near mythical individuals on both sides whose lives and careers continue to fascinate us today — Abraham Lincoln, Robert E. Lee, Clara Barton and on and on,” McPherson said. “There’s a kind of romance as well as tragedy about those people and their times that is hard to resist.”
McPherson also discussed the importance of the civil rights movement and amendments to the Constitution.
“The Civil War accomplished a historic shift in American values in the direction of positive liberty,” McPherson said. “The change from all those ‘shall nots’ in the first 10 amendments to the Constitution to the phrase ‘Congress shall have the power’ is indicative of that shift.”
McPherson has authored 16 books and edited others as well. He focuses his writing mostly on the era of the American Civil War and Reconstruction period.

Recreation

I listened this morning to the BYU Forum speech given by Patti Freeman on July 17, 2012.  It was about the importance of recreation.  Freeman's insights may influence how we want to approach recess and outdoor education at Esperanza. 

Counsel from Dr. Ben Carson

Dr. Ben Carson was the February 28, 2012 BYU Forum Speaker.  He as well as his speech are an inspiration. 

Students were challenged to raise their hands at this week’s University Forum to pledge to be nice for one week.
Dr. Benjamin Carson is director of the Division of Pediatric Neurosurgery at Johns Hopkins School of Medicine. In 1987, he became the first surgeon to separate a pair of Siamese twins. Over the years, he has received 60 honorary doctorate degrees.

Chris Bunker

Dr. Benjamin Carson, director of the Division of Pediatric Neurosurgery at Johns Hopkins School of Medicine, speaks at Tuesday's forum at the Marriott Center.

Tuesday, he spoke at a Forum in the Marriott Center about his life and why he appreciates this nation.Carson recently wrote the book, “America The Beautiful: Rediscovering What Made This Nation Great,” which was released last month and is already on the New York Times Best Seller List.
Growing up, Carson said he always wanted to be a doctor. He aspired to obtain this title since to him, doctors sounded important.
Carson used Thomas Edison’s story of inventing the light bulb and the product 409 to illustrate how the best way to learn is to learn from mistakes and things that take work.
Carson’s said the nation needs to focus on giving compassion, while knowing how to be fair. He talked about the fairness of 10 percent tithes.

“When I think about fairness, I look to God,” Carson said. “We need to get rid of the tax loopholes and let’s just learn to be fair to people.”

Carson used the acronym “think big” to explain how to achieve our goals as a nation. He said the “t” stands for talent intellectually, “h” for honesty, “i” is for insight from others’ triumphs and trials, “n” for being nice to people, “k” for knowledge, “b” for books to obtain knowledge, “i” for in-depth learning, “g” for God, who is our creator.

During his speech, Carson challenged the audience raise their hands for a one-week pledge to be nice.

“Be nice to every single person you encounter for one week,” Carlson said. “That means no talking about people behind their back for one week.”

Carson expanded on the rules of the nice pledge, including men practicing chivalry for the week, saying hi to people you walk by and thinking about others before yourself.

He encouraged students to remember to not just walk away from the speech, but to think big.

“It’s okay to live by God and his principles of loving our fellow man, caring about your neighbor, of developing your God-given talents that let you become valuable to the people around you, of having values and principles that govern your life,” Carlson said. “And if we do that, not only will we remain a pinnacle nation, but we will have one nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all.”

Kelly Orgill

Kelly Orgill is a reporter for the Daily Universe who currently writes for the campus desk. She is from San Antonio and enjoys cooking, meeting new people and writing music.

Civility Project

This morning I listened to the impressive BYU Forum speech given by Mark DeMoss on January 24, 2012.  Struck by how civil Lanny Davis, one-time White House Counsel under Bill Clinton, was on television, DeMoss sent Davis a letter telling him how much he appreciated his tone. The two proposed three simple pledge points in the Civility Project: “One, I will be civil in my discourse and behavior; two, I will be respectful of others, whether or not I agree with them; and three, I will stand against incivility where and when I see it.”

I feel that what Davis and DeMoss proposed in their Civility Project would be something we want to teach our Esperanza educators, scholars, and families. 

Knowing History

I listened this morning to James McPherson from Princeton University as he gave a BYU Forum speech on November 29, 2011.  His speech was titled "Why the Civil War Still Matters Today."  It was an excellent speech that I would encourage all of our Esperanza people to read once it becomes available. 

The effects of the Civil War affected the Civil Rights Movement in the 60s and still affects the social issues in our day.  McPherson explained the difference between negative liberty and positive liberty and how important it is to move in the direction of positive liberty.

This speech by McPherson is a reminder of how important it is to teach history to our Esperanza scholars and especially how important it is to connect past history to currect events that affect the lives our scholars. 

Choosing Esperanza Leaders and Educators

This morning I listened to the BYU Forum Speech that Senator Joseph Lieberman gave on October 25, 2011.  I listened to him speak I was reminded how important it is for us to have Esperanza leaders and educators who are principled people—no matter what their religion.  In other words, we need to look at his/her personal qualities, leadership, experience, and qualifications. 

In 2000 Sen. Lieberman became the first Jewish American to become nominated for national office as the vice presidential running mate to Al Gore. “In that year I personally experienced the American people’s generosity of spirit, their fairness, and acceptance of religious diversity.”

 Sen. Lieberman recounted that on the day he was nominated, Reverend Jesse Jackson said, “In America, when a barrier is broken for one, the doors of opportunity open wider for every other American.”

This quote by Lieberman in his speech should be something else we want to remember as we teach our Esperanza scholars:  “Faith in God, love of country, sense of unity, confidence in the power of every individual—these are the things that are going to carry the American people through crises greater than the ones we face today, and will, I’m sure, propel us forward to a better place if only we will return to those values and recognize them as a source of national strength. And I hope in some sense, the presence of faith in the public square will let us do that. The greatest source of American strength and hope for the future is not in current devices and rigid politics of Washington, it is in the broadly shared faith and values of the American people,” he said.

Times Are Good

This morning I watched the BYU Forum speech that was delivered September 20, 2001 by Gregg Easterbrook, an economist who is both an author and journalist. The thoughts he shared were drawn primarily from two of the books he authored, Progress Paradox and Sonic Boom. 

He stated the fact that most of what is happening in the world has been positive for decades even though the nature of the media and others would want us to think otherwise by the emphasize on bad news.  In spite of the positive things many people are still suffering much anxiety and are experiencing less happiness than their parents and grandparents.  What psychologists have discovered is that the big red line between the group with a sense of well-being and those with a negative sense of well-being is whether they believe their lives have meaning. 

Easterbrook went onto share that because of the many positive things happening in the world such as more people having greater access to education there is an opportunity for more ideas to improve and change the world.  He encouraged his audience to contribute to the development of the world.

These thoughts should influence as we approach our Esperanza scholars.  Making service learning a part of our Esperanza program will help scholars see that they can influence the world with their ideas which in turn will help them see that their lives have meaning.

I'm anxious to read these two books mentioned as well as other books by this wise gentleman. 

Parenting Classes

This morning I listened to the BYU Forum speech given by Dr. Laura Padilla-Walker on July 26, 2011. The topic of her speech was positive parenting. The principles and concepts Dr. Walker shared from her research could also be applied to teaching. Either way she would be a tremendous resource for us to do some parenting classes.