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Thursday, September 11th - 2025 - A Note For Our Readers

Today, on the anniversary of 9/11, we’re reminded of how fragile life can be and how deeply events can shake us. Yesterday’s tragic assassination of a well-known influencer Charlie Kirk while speaking on stage only adds to the weight of this moment. It is a sobering reminder of how divided our world feels.

This is not a political message. At Acton Academy, we believe the most important work we do each day is practicing the art of building a little civil society in our studios. Through daily Socratic discussions, young people learn to take strong opinions, but held loosely. They practice listening and disagreeing with respect. Most importantly, they learn to speak up, to use their voices, and to find common ground in the promises they make to one another.

That’s why, today, it doesn’t feel right to simply share a list of events and happenings around Fort Lauderdale. There is a bigger conversation at stake, one that asks each of us what it means to live together with both freedom and responsibility.

And yet, I hold hope.

Hope because every day I see young people growing up in an anxious, complicated world and still choosing to build themselves for something better. Hope because I watch them commit, sometimes imperfectly, but sincerely... to holding themselves and one another accountable to the promises of their little civil society.

If they can do it, maybe we all can.

With love and respect.

~ Tobin Slaven and the Family Friendly Fort Lauderdale/Acton Academy Fort Lauderdale Team