The Academics at Quest
Completed Courses:
Cornerstone: Humans in Nature- Jim Cohn
Striving to new heights
- Wow, what an intro to Quest! This course was a great mix of book learning, discussions, and outdoor exercises. Cornerstone encouraged everyone to work together as a team from the beginning and quickly turned a group of strangers into good, close friends; all within a couple of days. It also forced me in particular to begin challenging my morals, and consider what really is right and wrong. With the diverse background of my classmates and the knowledge of our tutor, we were able to explore how humans and nature react with each other, discuss what nature really is, and consider what our current society is doing to nature. The course was a great intro to writing at Quest as well. A thoroughly enjoyable course overall.
Wisdome to match Brian's... almost
Classical Rhetoric- Brian Burge-Hendrix
- How to make your friends rich and send your enemies into exile. That was our theme. Through study of great Rhetoricians from the past, mostly of Greek and Roman times, our class studied the powers of good rhetorical skills. This class was just right in work load with three graded essays and two graded oral presentations. I greatly enjoyed the readings as they not only showed rhetorical skills, but were about interesting topics such as Seneca’s On the Shortness of Life and Cicero’s On Friendship. I definitely learned a lot about writing style, and I believe I greatly improved in my writing abilities. A good course, with very important components that will help me for the rest of my time here at Quest.
Spherical Trigonometry- Glen Van Brummelen
Inside Spherical Trig
- A great class! I felt very engaged and interested the entire time and though it consumed my thoughts awake and sleeping, it provided me with something very interesting to study. I would highly recommend the course to anyone looking for a mathematical challenge that forces you to question everything. Though not very applicable to todays society, Spherical Trigonometry allows you to look at the past and explore how mathematical proofs and formulas were developed throughout history. I would also highly recommend Glen as a tutor. He engaged the class everyday, provided us with many interesting historical tidbits, and helped us to explore a different way of thinking. A mental challenge yet a rewarding one.
Democracy and Justice- Eric Gorham
What is true Democracy? Do we really live in a democratic society? What is Justice? These were just a few Questions that our class explored with Eric. This class is well like at Quest and I was no different in my appreciation for it. Up until taking the course I honestly thought that I hated politics and never wanted to have anything to do with the political system. What Eric’s course made me realize is that, whether we like it or not, politics are a part of our everyday lives and its far better to have some understanding of that system than to be oblivious to its existence. The material we covered in class, the books we read, and the projects we worked on helped m gain a better understanding of not just governments, but also of myself. A well taught, interesting and engaging course and well worth the time!
