Great Hearts conceives of its mission as one of radical service to others, to the community, to the American republic. Like Socrates, we view our mission as a kind of piety or obedience—he famously explained in his trial that he sought the truth and engaged others in conversation because he believed that’s what the god of the Delphic oracle had ordered him to do. And, like Socrates, our love of excellence and relentless pursuit of truth seems destined to look like arrogance to others not similarly inclined. We must, therefore, actively cultivate humility, self-deprecation, self-giving in our work and in our way of communicating with others about what we do and what we love—above all, our schools must cultivate the practice of humility and service in our students.
We must continually emphasize that Great Hearts pursues excellence not because we think we are or ought to be better than everyone else, but rather because we think that there are things, thoughts, thinkers, and examples that are much better than ourselves.
Adapted from “Great Hearts: The Six Loves” by Andrew Ellison, former Executive Director of San Antonio Academies for Great Hearts Texas.
Humility is also one of the Core Virtues that feature as an integral part of our Lower School curriculum and instruction. For more, see Core Virtues: Humility.