Meeting the needs of the community is one of North Idaho College President Nick Swayne’s main goals. 

So when he saw a growing trend toward classical education in the Inland Northwest with charter, private and homeschoolers pursuing the model, Swayne knew NIC should join the conversation. 

“We’re a community college so we needed to respond to the needs of the community,” Swayne said. 

The college plans to launch Cardinal Classical, a general education pathway, in the Fall of 2026. The pathway will encompass 13 courses or 36 credits and fulfill students’ gen-ed requirements. 

Students could then transfer to a four year institution for a degree program or finish out an associate degree at NIC. 

The demand

Ed Kaitz, headmaster at Kootenai Classical Academy, said he has seen a need for a classical focus in higher education for years. Kaitz worked at NIC for 15 years as a professor of philosophy and brought a classical approach to his courses. 

Before that he taught at the University of San Francisco in the classic program. He recalls students coming in with very little understanding of the classics. 

“Some students, to be honest, had never read a book before,” Kaitz said.  “There’s a heritage here that’s being lost.” 

Kootenai Classical, which opened in 2023, uses the Hillsdale curriculum.The Michigan-based, Christian liberal arts college provides choice K-12 schools with the curriculum and training to give students an “American classical education.”

The curriculum has a heavy focus on early United States history and the constitution building a “reverence” and “gratitude” for what makes the country special, Kaitz said.

He expects there will be 10 classical schools in Idaho by 2030. Adding classically focused courses at NIC is a “natural outgrowth of the demand,” Kaitz said. 

There is also a huge demand for classically educated people to teach in the growing network of Hillsdale Schools, which are charter or private, and therefore do not require a traditional teaching certification for employment.

“These colleges are figuring out that these classical schools need teachers,” Kaitz said. “Schools like NIC are responding to this demand.” 

Swayne estimates that 20% of North Idaho high schoolers are receiving a classical education either at home or from a private or charter school. 

Kootenai Classical has a waiting list of about 650 students, Kaitz said. The school is currently at capacity of 586 for grades K-10. The charter school will expand, adding one grade per year, to K-12 by the 2026-27 school year. 

Cardinal Classical

NIC’s program will focus on the eight pillars of classical education but without Latin instruction. The courses will focus on “the great works” and utilize the Socratic method. 

Swayne said the program removes the cost of moving out of state for a classical education for North Idaho families. 

“Staying close to home might also be part of the classical desire,” Swayne noted. 

Sherry Simkins, dean of instruction at NIC, said the courses are about getting back to the roots of higher education. 

The classes will be part of the typical general education requirements but designated as having a classical focus. So a student might take college algebra or communication 101 but their course section is designated as classical. 

This model also allows students to take one or two classically focused classes along with more traditional college courses. 

“We’re hoping to make it intuitive,” Simkins said of how the pathway will flow for students.

Simkins said they are close to finalizing a course list for next fall but are still playing with sequencing and finishing text selections.

The courses will be taught by professors who volunteered to take on the new pedagogy, Swayne said. NIC is exploring professional development and training opportunities for instructors taking on the courses. 

NIC hopes to see about 100 students enrolled in the pathway next fall. Updates on the program can be found at www.nic.edu/classical.