Hello TCA Community,
What a humbling honor to write to the Lionheart community! My name is Andrea Hogue. I am a board member for Tulsa Classical Academy and as was announced in the Board Report earlier this week, I was recently voted in as the President-elect for the board of directors.
I want to begin by acknowledging our fearless founding President of the Tulsa Classical Academy board, Nathan Phelps. He is a man with vision, drive, and work ethic that is hard to keep up with! We would not all be here as a community without his pioneering spirit and his commitment to the vision for Classical Education to be available as a public option in Oklahoma. However, his work is not complete, and his vision for schools like ours to be offered in additional locations throughout the state has not yet been fulfilled. He will remain engaged on the Classically Formed Board of Directors and the Foundation Board to continue that work but with a shifted focus towards that end.
Nathan and I have know each other for several years now through our daughters who happen to both be named Noelle. When I heard about his efforts to start a Classical Charter School in Tulsa, I, like many of you, had a hundred questions so I picked up the phone and called him. My primary concern was that the mission of a classical education could not be successful in the public sphere without compromise. In educating my two oldest children, I had converted to be a classical educator. I knew the academic standards, the rigor, the virtues, and the absolute truth it required. I also knew how unique it was and that truly nothing compares. We had stepped away from the classical model when our youngest became school age. Our family had entered a very different season of life and my thought was simply, “in the end, all roads lead to college, I guess it doesn’t really matter.” By the time I picked up the phone to call Nathan, I had changed my thought on that and deeply wanted my son to have the same classical education my girls had been privileged to have. At the time, our life stage did not allow for home education nor were we able to afford private options. TCA was a perfect provision at a perfect time. Nathan patiently answered my questions and convinced me it was possible. I jumped in with both feet and started to run the race alongside Nathan and the other founding board members. We didn’t know then what a road of learning, challenges, and personal growth would be ahead of us. Every step, every challenge, every hour and dollar spent has been worth it.
I felt this fully on the last day of school this past month. As I drove through the pick up line to pick up my son, I experienced several emotions. First, I laughed at things that represented the unpredictable like the desert wasteland of our grass (that will be fixed this summer). Next, I marveled at how far we had come and the people who committed their year to execute that beautiful vision of which my own son had benefited from this year under the leadership of an excellent classical teacher. Lastly, I was deeply grateful and all I wanted to do was yell “THANK YOU” out the car window to all the teachers and administrators standing under the covered walkway and to all those still inside. What a glorious moment of accomplishment by a team of many, many people. Students had received a tuition-free classical education for an entire year. Not only that, but the majority of those students will be returning for year two for a continuation down the road of learning.
Like many of you, I am just a mom who wants good, true, and beautiful things for my children. We have two daughters, 23 and 19. My oldest just finished her first year of medical school and my youngest just completed her Freshman year at John Brown University as a classical pianist focused on Music Education. Our son is 11 and just completed 5th grade at TCA. My husband, Chris, and I have been married for over 25 years and we like to say that our family is our magnum opus… but we hope to be writing it the rest of our lives and we pray good fruit comes from lives well lived for generations to come.
As we step together as a community into a new season of leadership at the school and on the board, my hope is that we can continue down the path with a spirit of unified purpose and passion. Transition brings with it an opportunity for growth. In the role as President-Elect of the Tulsa Classical Academy board of directors, I am committed to lead with humility, kindness, and honesty. It will be no small task and I take it on with both soberness and joy.
Enjoy your summer and we can’t wait for the start of our next school year!!!
Grace & Peace,
Andrea Hogue
