Lessons of Classical Education – The Case of Slovakia and the US

Samuel Trizuljak, MCC Visiting Fellow, Lecturer at Anton Neuwirth CollegeRichard Fodor, MCC Learning Institute, Head of Research What can Central Europe learn from Slovakia’s growing classical education movement—and from the institutional vitality of contemporary American Catholicism?In this podcast episode of MCC Learning Institute, Dr. Richárd Fodor speaks with Slovak scholar and MCC Visiting Fellow Dr. Samuel Trizuljak about his intellectual journey and the distinctive educational communities developed by Anton Neuwirth College and the Ladislav Hanus Institute. Their conversation explores how classical education can unite demanding academic study with mentoring, community life, character formation, and public engagement.The second part of the discussion turns to Samuel’s ongoing research on contemporary American Catholicism. Drawing on interviews with the leaders of influential educational, religious, and civil-society organizations—including a recent conversation in Rome with Fr. Robert Sirico, founder of the Acton Institute—Samuel considers what European institutions might learn from American traditions of entrepreneurship, philanthropy, mentoring, and institution-building.Which elements of the American model can be transferred to Central Europe? Could Slovakia offer its own distinctive example of classical and Christian education? As a starting point for listeners interested in the intellectual foundations of these questions, Samuel recommends John Henry Newman’s The Idea of a University, particularly its reflections on the formative power of intellectual community.Az MCC Podcast adásaiban érdekes emberekkel izgalmas témákról beszélgetünk. Feldolgozzuk a közélet, a gazdaság, a társadalom fontosabb aktuális történéseit, de olyan kérdéseket is napirendre veszünk, mint például a művészet, a család vagy a vallás. Vendégeink között oktatóink, kutatóink, vendégelőadóink kapnak helyet. Mindenkinek kellemes időtöltést és szellemi feltöltődést kívánunk.