Jill Simonian: West Point changed its mission, not its motto

SUMMARY

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West Point removed the words “Duty, Honor, Country” from its mission statement in 2024, but Jill Simonian says they remain the academy’s motto and are still visible on campus. The PragerU Kids host argues that schools should give more attention to veterans, service and sacrifice; she says some schools she knows promoted World Kindness Week without mentioning Veterans Day. She urges parents to ask schools about their priorities and use the motto to discuss responsibility, honesty and country at home.

1Simonian says some schools she knows promoted kindness but overlooked Veterans DayShe says those schools organized World Kindness Week activities without mentioning military service. She asks parents to check what their own schools do.
2She asks parents to raise service and gratitude with school administratorsSimonian argues that teaching the golden rule and honoring sacrifice belong in moral education, and suggests using parent-teacher meetings to raise the subject.
3West Point revised its mission statement while retaining its mottoSimonian contrasts the 2024 wording about Army values with the earlier mission statement’s explicit reference to “Duty, Honor, Country.” She says the motto remains visible on campus.
4A campus visit gave Simonian a way to discuss values at homeAfter seeing the motto at West Point, she says she asked her daughters about duties, honesty, country and defending freedoms.
5Simonian criticizes how some schools use the language of belongingShe argues that some curricula use words such as inclusion to divide students into identity groups, and calls for more emphasis on service and sacrifice.

Takeaways

Simonian distinguishes West Point’s revised mission statement from its continuing “Duty, Honor, Country” motto.
She encourages parents to ask schools how they recognize Veterans Day and to thank those that do.
Simonian uses duty, honor and country to discuss family responsibilities, honesty and national service with her children.
She argues that kindness education should also include gratitude, respect and sacrifice.

TopicsEducation History Political Philosophy

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A veteran’s warning and a question for schools

Simonian opens with a veteran’s concern about future generations. She says some schools she knows emphasized World Kindness Week without mentioning Veterans Day.

On Veterans Day, I want to talk about service, sacrifice and how parents can teach children to value them. I open with a 2022 interview in which a World War II Marine veteran, worries that later generations will not have the opportunities he had and laments changes in the country.

I ask how many young people know veterans who served in America's wars. I think students should meet and listen to people like him at school assemblies throughout the year, not only on Veterans Day. Their experiences can help children understand what others sacrificed for freedoms Americans enjoy.

I would rather see schools bring in veterans than spend class time on diversity training or mental-health wellness sessions. I also value treating people with kindness and respect. My concern is about what I see being emphasized and what gets left out.

As a mother, I know schools that have sent families messages and organized activities for World Kindness Week without mentioning Veterans Day or military service, in my experience. That makes me sad. I ask parents to look at what their own children's schools are doing this week.

How parents can ask schools to honor service

Simonian argues that gratitude and sacrifice should be part of children’s moral education. She encourages parents to thank schools that recognize veterans or speak up when they do not.

I describe World Kindness Week's history as I found it: a 1997 gathering of humanitarian groups, followed by the launch of World Kindness Day in 1998 and a broader week of activities in schools and communities. Its stated mission was to connect nations and inspire a kinder world.

I do not object to kindness, but I question whether a special initiative is needed to teach it. The golden rule—treating others as you want to be treated—should, in my view, already be an everyday expectation at school. Educators often describe such programs as educating the whole child.

I would ask administrators to include gratitude, sacrifice and service to others and to the country in that moral education. In my view, teaching gratitude and service cultivates kindness. Parents can raise these questions in public forums and parent-teacher meetings.

If your child's school has honored military service through an assembly, a message to families or another activity, I encourage you to thank the school. I hope that positive feedback will encourage it to do so again. If the school has not, I suggest families and children take the initiative themselves.

I show part of a PragerU Kids military-appreciation program for preschoolers. I believe songs can teach young children a shared sense of American identity and history. I worry that, without passing that knowledge on, future generations will lose a sense of what binds them together.

I also describe children's books and read-along material about Veterans Day, the armed forces and Arlington National Cemetery. These are resources our organization offers to families who want to introduce young children to military service and sacrifice.

What changed in West Point’s mission statement

Simonian compares the 2024 mission statement with its predecessor and distinguishes the revision from the academy’s motto. She recounts how a visit inspired conversations with her daughters.

I turn to West Point and its mission statement because I think words shape how children understand history and values. In 2024, headlines said the US Military Academy had changed its motto away from 'Duty, Honor, Country.' I want to distinguish the wording of the mission statement from the academy's motto.

I read the newer mission statement, which describes building, educating, training and inspiring cadets to become leaders of character committed to Army values and a lifetime of service. I say there is nothing inherently wrong with that mission statement, although I did not know the exact Army values without looking them up.

I list the seven Army values: loyalty, duty, respect, selfless service, honor, integrity and personal courage. I describe them as a strong list and say children and adults should know them. My question is whether people outside the military recognize the meaning of the phrase 'Army values' as readily as the older wording.

The earlier mission statement explicitly referred to the values of 'Duty, Honor, Country.' I say those words appeared in the mission statement from 1998 until the 2024 revision, while the academy's motto dates to 1898. The change I am discussing is to the mission statement; I also say the motto's words remain visible across the academy.

When I visited West Point in 2022 for work, I was impressed by its history, discipline and cadets. I remember seeing 'Duty, Honor, Country' on buildings and statues. The three words made an impression on me, and I brought them home to talk about with my daughters.

At home I asked my daughters what their duties were to our family and community, what it means to be honorable and honest, and how they felt about their country. I told them that loving America can coexist with recognizing its imperfections, and talked about defending freedom and equality.

I think repeated words give children anchors that influence how they see themselves and what they can contribute. The West Point motto prompted me to ask what might happen if schools displayed 'Duty, Honor, Country' and encouraged students to think about those values every day.

Bringing the motto into family and school life

Simonian advocates teaching duty, honor and country alongside kindness. She concludes that parents can discuss these values at home and raise them with schools.

I contrast messages that encourage gratitude and courage with messages I believe can leave students feeling fragile or like victims. I ask where schools will be in 20 years if service, sacrifice, courage, respect and discipline give way to an emphasis on kindness, inclusion, mental health, wellness and belonging.

I repeat that I do want children to be kind. My view is that teaching respect and the golden rule supports kindness. The question for me is whether schools also make room for the duties and sacrifices that I believe should be part of children's moral education.

A PragerU children's segment presents West Point as a place above the Hudson River and uses a paper Army hat to introduce the words in the motto. It explains duty as responsibility, honor as good character and country as the United States.

After the clip, I correct something I said earlier: West Point is on the Hudson, not the Delaware River. I return to the lesson I want parents to draw: replacing old words with newer ones does not necessarily represent progress, and the terms used in education matter.

I describe kindness, inclusion and belonging as good words, but argue that they have been repurposed in some school curricula to divide students into identity groups. I believe children should also learn courage, sacrifice, service and equality, which I associate with what veterans have defended.

I see it as a parental responsibility to raise children who understand duty, honor and country and show gratitude throughout the year. That can be reflected, in my view, in how they treat others, study, express themselves and defend freedoms, including when peers pressure them to think differently.

If a school does not teach these values or recognize military service, I believe families should take up the work at home and use their role as taxpayers to speak with schools. I end by arguing that raising children who know and love their country is part of America's defense.