Join us in a conversation with attorney, author, and educator Dr. Michael Farris, Chancellor Emeritus of Patrick Henry College and Chairman and General Counsel of the Home School Legal Defense Association.
Tuesday, October 10, 2023, at 12 PM (ET)
Dial 667-776-9181 (no code needed)
When we talk about issues in American education in 2023, it truly boggles the mind the differences from just a few years ago.
It was not very long ago that talking about being transgender on any level of education would have been unthinkable. Now we encourage our five- and six-year-olds to examine whether they may have been “misgendered” at birth. A law in Florida that banned teaching sexually explicit curricula in kindergarten to third grade was ridiculed as the “Don’t Say Gay” bill.
Since the March on Washington and the “I Have a Dream” speech, it was unthinkable to divide students based on “the color of their skin.” Yet, today with Critical Race Theory being thrust into our educational system, separating white students from minority students based on oppressor/oppressed classes seems to be the norm.
School libraries are becoming battlegrounds for parents attempting to have sexually explicit and pornographic materials removed. They are called “book banners” and are accused of being radical extremists who don’t believe in the First Amendment.
American history has been rewritten. Instead of the US being born as a nation on July 4, 1776, we are told that America’s birth was actually in 1619 when the first African slaves arrived in the Jamestown colony. Our beloved Constitution is labelled racist and pro-slavery, and the entire system of government which enabled generations of Americans to live in freedom and prosperity is called “white supremacist” and “systemically racist.”
Meanwhile, violence in the schools has skyrocketed and, in many cities, it is hard to find teachers because of the fear of assault or worse. Schools have become targets of gun violence because they are declared to be “gun-free zones.”
What do we do about all these issues? How should patriotic Americans respond? What courses of action are at our disposal?
Dr. Michael P. Farris is Chancellor Emeritus of Patrick Henry College and Chairman and General Counsel of the Home School Legal Defense Association.
Since founding HSLDA in 1983, Dr. Farris has used his extensive experience in both politics and appellate litigation to defend parental rights and help grow the organization to over 80,000 member families with a staff of sixty. As a constitutional attorney, Dr. Farris has argued before the United States Supreme Court, seven U.S. Circuit Courts of Appeal, and ten state supreme courts.
In 2000, Dr. Farris became the founding president of another unique educational venture: Patrick Henry College. PHC is a four-year Christian college with the mission of training students through a classical liberal arts curriculum and apprenticeship methodology to impact the world “for Christ and for Liberty.” PHC provides academically excellent, baccalaureate-level higher education from a biblical worldview. After serving as president of PHC for six academic years, Dr. Farris transitioned into the role of Chancellor. He continues to teach Constitutional Law and coach the PHC Moot Court team. His teams won the national ACMA championships in 2005, 2006, 2009, and 2010 and defeated Oxford University before two of the highest judges in Britain and in a repeat match before the Supreme Court of Virginia.
Michael Farris is the former President & CEO of Alliance Defending Freedom. He served in this capacity from 2017 until 2022.
Dr. Farris is an honors graduate of Gonzaga University School of Law (Juris Doctor, 1976), where he was the Articles Editor of the law review and the winner of the Linden Cup Moot Court competition. In 2012, he earned an LL.M. in Public International Law from the University of London.
In recognition of his work in home education, Education Week has named Dr. Farris one of the “Top 100 Faces in Education of the 20th Century.” Heritage Foundation awarded him its Salvatori Award for American Citizenship in 2002.
Dr. Farris has written over a dozen books, including three novels, a constitutional law textbook, and works on marriage, parenting, homeschooling, political advocacy, and religious liberty. His daily radio program, Home School Heartbeat, airs on several hundred stations nationwide. Dr. Farris was ordained in 1983 and was the founding pastor for Blue Ridge Bible Church.
Mike and Vickie Farris have homeschooled their family since 1982 and have ten children and eighteen grandchildren. They live in Purcellville, Virginia.
Please join us for this stimulating, informative conversation.
