Reason Is the Only Authority in the Room
A guest post by Allison Quatrini, associate professor of political science at Eckerd College, who spent a week observing the 2026 Great Connections Seminar. “What is the only authority in the room?” There was a pause that felt almost too long, until I remembered that silence was desirable and even necessary in a seminar such […]
The Skill No Algorithm Can Copy: What Israel Kirzner Knew About Entrepreneurial Alertness
What makes an entrepreneur? Ask most people and you’ll hear about capital, connections, or a high tolerance for risk. Ask the economist Israel Kirzner and you’ll get a very different answer: alertness. Kirzner, who taught at New York University for decades and studied under Ludwig von Mises, spent his career answering a question that mainstream […]
The Most Valuable Business Skill Isn’t Taught in Business School. It’s Taught by Socrates.
How does one man run five companies at once, in industries as different as rockets, cars, and social media? Venture capitalist Marc Andreessen recently answered that question on Chris Williamson’s Modern Wisdom podcast, describing how Elon Musk actually operates. The method is startlingly simple. Every week, Musk shows up at each of his companies, identifies […]
New Video Series: Life is not a Machine or a Ghost by Marsha Familaro Enright
We are pleased to share a three-part video series based on Reliance College founder Marsha Familaro Enright’s paper Life is not a Machine or a Ghost: The Naturalistic Origin of Life’s Organization and Goal-Directedness, Consciousness, Free Will, and Meaning, published in the Journal of Ayn Rand Studies in July 2023. In this series, Enright presents […]
What We Saw at the First AI Proof U™ Intensive
Earlier this month, Reliance College hosted the first in-person intensive of AI Proof U™ in Chicago. The experience offered a clear view into what this program is designed to do and why it matters at this particular moment. Over several days, participants engaged in sustained discussion, careful reading, and collaborative exercises that are increasingly rare […]
AI, Critical Thinking, and Socratic Practice in Higher Education
AI is spreading across academia, and as studies warn of its harm to critical thinking, Reliance College’s Socratic Practice offers a way to restore it.
What Vision Do Young People Need?
Originally published on October 21, 2022 in The American Thinker. Before the devastating psychological effects of the COVID lockdowns, the U.S. faced a frightening rise in drug addiction, with youth suicide becoming the second-leading cause of death among people aged 15–20 in the U.S., and suicide in children quadrupling from 2007 to 2020. What’s behind this alarming trend? Let’s […]
Montessori, Liberty, & Late Bloomers
MONTESSORI AND LIBERTY What’s the best way to teach and learn the ideas, values, and virtues needed in a free society? Is it enough to lecture and write about them? Those have been the favored methods used by free society advocates for decades. But actions speak louder than words – there is strong evidence that […]
Do Top Colleges Matter for Lifetime Success?
Thousands scramble to get into the Ivy League, Stanford, University of Chicago, and every other school considered elite. Is that the best strategy for picking a college? In “The Right Way to Choose A College, “ Stanford researcher Denise Pope discusses the overwhelming evidence that student engagement is fundamental to college—and life—success. “Engagement” is the […]
Scandals and Blueprints
A NEW SCANDAL – OR NOT? Isn’t the admissions scandal just a new variation on a long time practice of the universities? Wealthy, legacy children have gained entrance to the Ivy Leagues and other top schools since the 19th century, despite lack of qualifications. The difference here: the wealthy families in this current scandal don’t […]