Re: “Valor Christian isn’t the only Colorado high school lost to ‘gladiator culture’<\/a>,” May 15 editorial<\/p>\n I do not follow high school athletics, but I did teach adolescents, so I read the editorial about school sports with interest.<\/p>\n If we want to understand the toxic nature of competition in our schools, we only need to look in the mirror. Holding fame and fortune as the primary focus for student effort has always been present, but it has gotten out of hand. The bell curve reminds us that only a small percentage of our students will achieve measurable fame and fortune, but the majority of them should be able to achieve, with the support of parents, teachers and the community, a level of personal satisfaction and empowerment.<\/p>\n I personally witnessed the crippling effect on students who were otherwise \u201cpretty darn good\u201d when the adults around them implied that being the best was the only acceptable outcome. Success is not going to college or making over $200k a year. Happiness is not having more money and power than your neighbors. It is not the job of schools or colleges to provide a culling vehicle for professional sports or any competitive business environment.<\/p>\n As adults, our job is to help children find and improve their strengths and learn from their mistakes. They will encounter plenty of toxicity without us adding to it. We are reading about the increased number of young people who are mentally \u201cdropping out.\u201d We have made it clear to them that they will never be \u201cthe best.\u201d They are the collateral damage of our gladiator culture.<\/p>\n A. Lynn Buschhoff, Denver<\/em><\/p>\n Re: “Naval Academy removes nearly 400 books from library,” April 3 news story<\/p>\n Recent actions by the U.S. Naval Academy \u2013 my alma mater \u2013 and the service academies at West Point and Colorado Springs have serious ramifications for the education, training, and commissioning of junior officers. Books removed from library shelves<\/a>, classes censored or dropped, speakers disinvited, all to comply with both the letter and spirit of executive orders issued by a protofascist \u2013 these have all the hallmarks of cowardice in the face of creeping authoritarianism.<\/p>\n While the military leadership at the academies may be in a tough position \u2013 balancing their oaths to the Constitution with their commitment to provide well-rounded, educated, and principled graduates to American forces at home and abroad \u2013 there is a reason the superintendents of these schools tend to be in their final tour of duty. They should be able to speak their minds, stand their ground, and take stands against illiteracy and bigotry.<\/p>\n For more than 10 years I served as a \u201cBlue and Gold Officer\u201d for the Naval Academy. In that capacity, I\u2019ve spoken with hundreds of Colorado high schoolers from the Western Slope to Yuma, interviewed dozens of interested applicants, and recommended the top academic, athletic, and patriotic young men and women to the Admissions Board in Annapolis, Md. As of this year, I\u2019ve resigned from that position and cannot in good conscience tell a Colorado student that they should pursue a spot at any of the academies, not until the leadership there explains their actions, inactions, and silence.<\/p>\n Travis Klempan, Morrison<\/em><\/p>\nCan no longer recommend Naval Academy path<\/h4>\n