How You Can Know What “the Truth” Really Is, an interview with Dr. Shanon Brooks, part 1

On April 24, 2010 from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m., The Fourth Annual Thomas Jefferson Education Forum will take place at The Goldy S. Lewis Center in Rancho Cucamonga, CA.  You can register by downloading a form here on Tommymom.com, or you can go to www.fatjef.com.

Descriptions of breakouts are available there, and will also be available by the end of this week, here at Tommymom.com.  Don’t hesitate to register, and also remember that there is a concurrent youth conference.  The cost of a ticket includes lunch!

This is a great opportunity to hear Dr. Shanon Brooks, a pioneer in the Thomas Jefferson Leadership Education field.

We are privileged to begin a two part interview with him today, that will conclude on Friday.

No…I didn’t forget to announce the winners of the Valentine “Feel the Love” giveaway!  Read to the bottom to find out who the lucky recipients are!  And THANK YOU to each of you that took the time to leave comments…

Each and every one is read and appreciated.

Hey, Dr. Brooks!…Thanks so much for joining us here today.  It is always a privilege.  I promise…no alien shots.

Good!  I hope that photo is gone forever.

Let’s not get carried away, okay?  I don’t want to make promises that can’t be kept.

Great.

Seriously…( am I ever 100% serious with YOU, Dr. Brooks?!)  I want to know what brought YOU to Leadership Education?

Man, Teri, that’s actually a great question.  One that I’m not sure many people could answer.

It was an evolving process, actually.  In the late 1980′s, I was a college student in Phoenix, Arizona.  I had recently gotten out of the military and decided to go to school.  I was 28 at the time.  I was attending paralegal school and working for a law firm.  It was a fairly new job.

I was actually the “juice boy.”  I kept the refrigerator stocked, sharpened pencils, and was occasionally the receptionist.

In a pinch one day, they sent me downtown to the law library, loved what I brought back in the way of research, and this instantly became my new job!  It was great…

I got paid $10.00 an hour and they billed it out at $200.00 an hour!

During this time, I had a chance meeting with destiny.  I went to a meeting with Cleon Skousen.  It was amazing.

He was doing multiple meetings in Phoenix; I heard him that one night, and called in sick for the rest of the week so that I could follow him around!

This is where I got exposed to “The Making of America” and “The 5,000 Year Leap”

I became a volunteer for him. The position was actually called a shire.  I would go into homes, do adult education and cottage meetings on The 5,000 Year Leap.  Then I attended a 7 day seminar on “The Majesty of God’s Law”, which is now out of print.

One thing led to another, and around 1989, Youth for America was underway and Oliver DeMille was the director.  The next year, I became the director and Oliver became one of the top speakers.

It was at this time that I relocated and went to work for Cleon Skousen.  I actually worked for Bill Doughty and Cleon was in charge.  There was some great mentoring going on and I was very privileged at that time.  Cleon, Bill, Glen Kimber and the Reverend Don Sills all became my mentors.  We were working under Meadeau View Institute and the Center for Constitutional Studies. (ICE)

During this time, I was teaching like crazy and on the road all of the time.  I’m getting intense training, going to SUU full time, holding down a full time job, and working up at the conference center.

Bill offered to take me on the road, so I was going to school full time and on the road 15 days a month.

Oliver and I continued to do YFA together, and in 1992 made the decision to start a university. The semester we started, I was teaching at George Wythe and in my senior year at SUU!

This was 20 years ago.

Can you tell me what your favorite aspect of Leadership Education is?

That’s easy.  The Four Phases.  Any mentor equipped with the Four Phases, that knows them backwards and forwards, has permission to spend their time being inspired themselves.  In turn, this inspires the student, which allows you to then practice what Leadership Education is all about.

The Four Phases help you to know where a person is, and you can go from there.

If you don’t know the Phases and The Seven Keys, you don’t know what to do.

It is manipulative arts vs. cooperative arts as discussed by Mortimer Adler.

Will you give us an example?

Sure.

The manipulative arts are like a cobbler.  You need materials.  You take a hide, you cut it, you sew it, polish it…

you took natural resources and created a product that is a shoe.

The problem occurs when we take the manipulative arts and try to use them on people, when the purpose of education is for a person to reach their full potential.

The cooperative arts (those are The Seven Keys); can be likened to a farmer or a midwife.

They don’t mess with the nature of what is going on.

They spend all of their time fully understanding the nature and then they cooperate with it.

When kernels of corn are thrown into a hostile environment, some will die, some will be stomped into less than optimum soil, etc.

However, give those same kernels warmth, optimum light and water, a possible greenhouse, and nuture of a natural process…

The corn plant will naturally reach its full potential.

Our job is to understand the Phases and the Keys so well, that we can take whatever gets thrown at us and turn it into lemonade.

We are here to encourage and inspire, not to meddle and fix.

You need to know the phases and keys, so that you can know what the truth really is.

Wow.  You always have such a knack for bringing Leadership Education down to what really matters in a very organic, focused way.   This, in turn, leaves so much room for inspiration and epiphanies. Thanks.

On Friday, we’re going to hear more from Dr. Brooks about his keynote address for the FATJEF, “Teens: Leaders of the New World”, his classes tailored for busy, sometimes overwhelmed people, why the Great Books are…well, “Great” and why community is so vitally important.

I hope you’ll join us.  ~You’ll be glad you did!

The WINNERS of the Valentine’s “Feel The Love” contest are (drum roll, please…) Amy Maus and Tammie Blackmore!  (profuse applause!)

Amy is receiving a copy of TJEd for Teens, autographed by Dr. Brooks,( a noteworthy prize for any fortunate winner), and Tammie is receiving a  three flower design couture headband, created by Lisa of Modbaby.  This great contributor will be spotlighted next month in yet another giveaway, so stay tuned!   Keep those comments comin’!