Guiding with Grace

Carroll Smith was an elementary and middle school teacher in government schools in the USA in eastern North Carolina in the 1970s who later became a school leader.  While a school leader in Roanoke, VA in 1999 he earned his doctorate from Virginia Tech and did his dissertation on Charlotte Mason. In the late 70s Carroll Smith met Charlotte Mason through lectures at a L’Abri Conference given by Susan Schaeffer Macaulay. He was thrilled to hear of another way of educating children beyond behaviourism. That began a journey of exploration of not just understanding Mason but understanding children and their educational needs. In 2005 while an assistant professor of education at Gardner-Webb University, he and his wife, Andra began the Charlotte Mason conferences that have continued until today. Then in 2006, with a group of colleagues, he founded the Charlotte Mason Institute.

“All our happiness, whether in a bright day, or a true friend, or joyous work, must have its complementary expression –the ‘thank God’ ever burning as a duly trimmed lamp in our hearts.” ~ Charlotte Mason, Scale How Meditations, #21

Nancy is eternally grateful to God for bringing Charlotte Mason and her philosophy of education to her attention 30 years ago. She thrills to see others awaken to this way of living and learning where both teacher and taught can find delight and richness through high school and beyond. She has been married to Kent for 38 years and lives in a 3-story, sage-colored Victorian house where she raised six children who have all graduated with a full CM education. She enjoys rescuing and republishing books that are important to the CM community, writing on her website Sage Parnassus, consulting and mentoring, speaking and just generally encouraging others on this journey. You can also find her on IG and FB @nancy_kelly_sage_parnassus.

Kerri Forney, like many, was introduced to the life-giving principles of Charlotte Mason through reading For the Children’s Sake. She and her husband, Scott, live in Wake Forest, NC, and are continuing to grow in their ability to live out Mason's principles. She has graduated four children and the last is a senior in high school. Leader of a monthly CM study group in North Raleigh, Kerri enjoys rescuing used books, researching and writing about Charlotte Mason, and mentoring and growing with fellow educators. She holds a B. A. in Sociology and Bible from Wheaton College and has completed additional coursework in biblical counseling. Kerri has presented at numerous conferences, in the US and the UK, and has led workshops on topics such as teaching learning at the high school level, exams and assessment, parenting, teaching history, and narration. Kerri, an Alveary curriculum team member from its inception, has provided leadership as a CMI board director and as a Templeton grant recipient. She is passionate about Charlotte Mason's life-giving principles for education and gifted in the work of bringing them into the 21st century. Beginning in the fall of 2024, Kerri began serving the Charlotte Mason Institute as Executive Director.

Amber O’Neal Johnston is the author of A Place to Belong, a guide for families of all backgrounds to celebrate cultural heritage, diversity, and kinship while embracing inclusivity in the home and beyond. She is a regular contributor to the Charlotte Mason homeschooling community, a frequent podcast guest, and a coveted speaker at homeschooling, parenting, and education conferences. 

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Amber lives in Georgia nestled among pine trees, hammocks and ziplines with her husband Scott and their four children. Her happy place is the back porch on a rainy day, preferably with a giant mug of hot tea and a good book. And although she was raised in the air conditioning, somehow the woods is where she feels most at home these days. 

When they have the chance, her family enjoys extended worldschooling trips to immerse themselves in other cultures, so you can often find her researching their next home away from home. Amber enjoys sharing diverse literary mirrors and windows onHeritagemom.com and @heritagemomblog (IG).

‍Min Jung Hwang spends her days spreading a Charlotte Mason feast at home with her four creative children and, as a pastor’s wife, complementing her husband’s pastoral ministry at Pascack Bible Church in New Jersey. You may also find her painting, writing, leading a nonprofit ministry for mothers pursuing life-giving habits, podcasting at “Charlotte Mason For All” and “Charlotte Mason Volumes,” and bringing the feast to the children of her church as the Director of Children’s Ministry.

When her eldest was a toddler, Min “met” Miss Mason and immediately scoured online used bookstores for the unicorn “pinks,” which were the only hardcopies discoverable then. Subsequently, she was swept off her feet by this Gospel-centric educational philosophy and methods. With fire in bones, she immediately began working to bring Miss Mason’s principles to every opportunity she had over the years. This included her work overseas during her season in university administration and education, serving international students and faculty families from over 60 nations. Then, later, as the Founder and Executive Director of a nonprofit with a mission to rescue and empower pregnant women escaping forced abortion, sexual exploitation, and sex trafficking.

You will often find Min enjoy hosting book clubs, Charlotte Mason co-ops, and “mother nurture” workshops for fellow homeschool moms. Yet as an introvert, her favorite pastimes are dating her husband, Young (with Vancouver and NYC as their hometowns, they are foodies!), blissfully painting or reading away the day with a cup of tea, and exploring new terrain in God’s creation with her four adventurous children.

After earning her bachelor's and master's degrees in Chemistry, Danielle pursued academic and pharmaceutical research for a number of years. When she and her husband, Jay, began looking for an educational alternative for their children, she stumbled upon Home Education. Due to her spirituality and her own nurturing by many inspired science teachers, the text immediately resonated and it was a natural switch from research chemist to Charlotte Mason educator. She and Jay have established their school on a little homestead in North Carolina. Danielle is the co-founder of CMI’s Blue Orchard Bee initiative which works toward a relational education for neurodivergent students and educators, and she develops science curriculum as part of the Alveary team.

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