Dear President Trump,

I am writing this as I ride through the night on a train from the Poland-Ukraine border to Kyiv, Ukraine. I should be thinking about the Ukraine war, but I am thinking about you and why the aftermath of the awful murder of Charlie Kirk may be the most important turning point in your presidency — depending on how you turn.

Let me put this bluntly: You are not going to win the Nobel Peace Prize, which you so covet, by mediating between Ukrainians and Vladimir Putin or in the Gaza Strip between Israelis and Palestinians. Neither of these conflicts is ripe for a solution right now. But you have a chance to win something much more significant and historic:

The American peace prize.

Make peace at home. Make peace among Americans. That is the peace prize that you don’t have to wait for anyone to confer on you. It is there for your making and the taking. This American peace prize will not be awarded by Scandinavians. It will be awarded by history. It will say that when Americans came closer to civil war than perhaps any other time since the Civil War, President Donald Trump surprised everyone on the upside: He called Barack and Michelle Obama, Bill and Hillary Clinton, George and Laura Bush, the Democratic and Republican leaders of the Senate and House and all nine Supreme Court justices and said, “Come to the White House, and let the country see us standing together against political violence and vowing that we will model civil discourse and disagreement — in our speeches and online — and we will call out the opposite when we see it among our supporters as well our rivals.”

Getting through the next week is important, Mr. President. The challenge is starting today to try to make peace and then to keep going.

Even on this train to Kyiv, I can hear the voices in America saying, “Donald Trump will never, ever do that. It is not in his character. He has never surprised us on the upside.”

“Just the opposite. On Wednesday, he said that he plans to unleash the full weight of his administration against those who contributed to an environment of ‘radical left political violence.’ On Friday, he said more of the same.”

Mr. President, if you treat the cancer of political extremism eating away at the soul of our country as coming only from the far left and not also the far right, you will destroy your legacy, and you will destroy the country.

After the signing of the Abraham Accords, you called me and told me that I surprised you — that you thought The New York Times would never let me write such a supportive column for your Middle East peace breakthrough. Well, I am begging you now, Mr. President: Surprise me. Surprise all of us and make peace in America. Nothing, absolutely nothing, would isolate the extremes on the left and the right more than if you did that. And nothing would be better for the country than to attempt to calm and unify people.

As unrealistic as it may sound, I refuse to foreclose the possibility that you will elevate the country, not just divide it even more — because the stakes are so high.

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Do not kid yourself: If you go after only the far-left voices, you will be ignoring what I consider to be Abraham Lincoln’s best piece of advice to all of his successors, delivered in his address before the Young Men’s Lyceum of Springfield, Illinois:

“At what point shall we expect the approach of danger? … I answer, if it ever reach us, it must spring up amongst us. It cannot come from abroad. If destruction be our lot, we must ourselves be its author and finisher. As a nation of freemen, we must live through all time or die by suicide.”

Thomas Friedman writes a column for the New York Times.

A former office building now houses a first-of-its-kind school for Dakota County students.

Great Oaks Academy, located at 3560 Blue Cross Road, is the first charter school in Eagan, said Jill Hutmacher, director of community development for the city.

A public charter, Great Oaks “is a classical education school whose mission is to cultivate the minds and hearts of our students through a classical, liberal arts education with instruction that is rigorous, literature-rich, wondrous and virtuous in a disciplined and engaging environment,” said Great Oaks Director Paul McGlynn in an email.

The second location for the charter, which launched in Farmington in 2020, the Eagan school welcomed its first class of students on Sept. 2, McGlynn said.

The Farmington campus, located at 115 Elm St., includes grades K-5 while the Eagan location, situated on a 16-acre lot, is for middle and high school students.

Charter curriculum

Charter schools are independent public schools of choice that do not charge tuition, as described by the Minnesota Department of Education. Launched and operated by parents, teachers and community members, charter schools are funded by tax dollars and subject to regulation by the Department of Education.

As a public charter, Great Oaks Academy is funded by state and federal money, McGlynn said.

Charter schools can opt for a curriculum that differs from nearby public schools. For example, Great Oaks has chosen a classical, liberal arts approach that implements phonics, proven math instruction, works of literature and global history, McGlynn said.

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“It develops moral character in students with an ability to critically think about the world around them and offers them lifelong learning skills,” he said.

“We prioritize Great Books from the Western Tradition rooted in ancient Greek and Roman culture, and primary texts instead of textbooks,” according to the charter. “We teach Latin and grammar, and believe character is as important as intellect.”

Charter schools employ licensed teachers, offer programming for students who require special-education services and administer state assessments.

There are approximately 170 charter schools in Minnesota serving roughly 70,000 students, according to MDE.

Similar to private and parochial schools, the new charter school represents competition for Independent School District 191, which includes Burnsville, Eagan and Savage.

As a “PreK-12 Pathways District,” ISD 191 removes barriers and ensures equitable access for all students, centers students as decision makers in their learning journeys and promotes a future-focused mindset, said Aaron Tinklenberg, communications director for the district, in an email.

“District 191’s Pathways model provides all students with age-appropriate experiences through which they explore possibilities, develop the skills and attributes they’ll need to succeed, find their passions and prepare for their futures,” he said.

Parent’s perspective

Karrie Krear said her son was in first grade when he started feeling bored at school.

Parent Karrie Krear at the newly-opened Great Oaks Academy in Eagan on Thursday, Sept. 11, 2025. (John Autey / Pioneer Press)

A student at Farmington Elementary at the time, her son was moving quickly through the curriculum, she said.

Krear met with school officials, hoping to find a solution, but, “at the end, they said there was nothing they could do,” she said.

Then Great Oaks began advertising in the community around the same time.

“We were looking for a different and better education,” said Krear, whose son joined Great Oaks Farmington in 2020 and is now a seventh-grader at the Eagan location.

“It’s much more rigorous than public school,” said Krear, who now serves as the Great Oaks Academy Parents Association’s chair.

Students at Great Oaks are taught cursive and begin learning Latin in first grade, Krear said, adding that the students do not heavily rely on technology like iPads or computers in the classroom.

“My son needed extra challenges and Great Oaks has met that,” she said. “They meet the student where they’re at.”

Eagan location

Formerly Delta Dental, the nearly 65,000-square-foot Eagan building was sold to an affiliate of the school, SYH Great Oaks Academy LLC, for $5.66 million earlier this year, according to documents filed with the Minnesota Department of Revenue.

In December, the Eagan City Council approved up to $18 million in private activity bonds to finance the building acquisition and its renovation, according to city council documents.

Council member Mike Supina cast the sole opposing vote against the bond package.

“As impressed as I am with the school, I haven’t seen yet the argument that says, ‘This is why it benefits your city,’” Supina said at the council’s Dec. 3 meeting.

The remodel of the former office building included the construction of about 30 traditional classrooms, art rooms with kilns, science labs, a band room, gymnasium and cafeteria, McGlynn said.

Dakota County was chosen due to the fewer number of charter schools in the area, McGlynn said. Other charters in the county include Academic Arts High School in West St. Paul, Seven Hills Preparatory Academy in Burnsville, FIT Academy in Apple Valley and Discovery Charter and STEAM Academy in Inver Grove Heights.

At the Farmington school, there are roughly 450 K-5 students this year. The Eagan school currently serves 216 students from fifth to ninth grade.

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“The Farmington site provides us with a centrally located area that is accessible to many communities,” McGlynn said. “The Eagan site provides our families with a beautiful campus of 16 acres and a wonderful building that fits our capacity for upcoming growth.”

Great Oaks Academy tour

What: Grand opening celebration

Where: Great Oaks Academy’s Eagan campus at 3560 Blue Cross Road

When: Tuesday, Oct. 14; business leaders invited 2-4 p.m.; family and community invited 4-7 p.m.

Details: http://pipr.es/Euc4ZOT

Today is Saturday, Sept. 13, the 256th day of 2025. There are 109 days left in the year.

Today in history:

On Sept. 13, 1993, at the White House, Israeli Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin and PLO chairman Yasser Arafat shook hands after signing an accord granting limited Palestinian autonomy.

Also on this date:

In 1788, the Congress of the Confederation authorized the first national election and declared New York City the temporary national capital.

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In 1948, Republican Margaret Chase Smith of Maine was elected to the U.S. Senate; she became the first woman to serve in both houses of Congress.

In 1971, a four-day inmate rebellion at the Attica Correctional Facility in western New York ended as police and guards stormed the prison; the ordeal and final assault claimed the lives of 32 inmates and 11 hostages.

In 1997, a funeral was held in Kolkata, India, for Nobel peace laureate Mother Teresa.

In 2008, crews rescued people from their homes in an all-out search for thousands of Texans who had stayed behind overnight to face Hurricane Ike.

In 2010, Rafael Nadal beat Novak Djokovic to win his first U.S. Open title and complete a career Grand Slam.

In 2021, school resumed for New York City public school students in the nation’s largest experiment of in-person learning during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Today’s Birthdays:

Actor Barbara Bain is 94.
Nobel Peace Prize laureate Óscar Arias is 85.
Rock singer David Clayton-Thomas (Blood, Sweat & Tears) is 84.
Actor Jacqueline Bisset is 81.
Singer Peter Cetera is 81.
Actor Jean Smart is 74.
Record producer Don Was is 73.
Chef Alain Ducasse is 69.
Rock singer-musician Dave Mustaine (Megadeth) is 64.
Olympic gold medal sprinter Michael Johnson is 58.
Filmmaker Tyler Perry is 56.
Fashion designer Stella McCartney is 54.
Former tennis player Goran Ivanisevic (ee-van-EE’-seh-vihch) is 54.
Country musician Joe Don Rooney (Rascal Flatts) is 50.
Singer-songwriter Fiona Apple is 48.
Actor Ben Savage is 45.
Soccer player Thomas Müller is 36.
Rock singer Niall Horan (One Direction) is 32.
Actor Lili Reinhart (TV: “Riverdale”) is 29.

One out away from winning for just the third time in 11 games, the Twins watched another late lead slip away on Friday. The Twins, however, didn’t fold.

After Cole Sands gave up a 6-4 lead in the Diamondbacks’ four-run ninth inning, Minnesota rallied from an 8-6 deficit to beat the Diamondbacks, 9-8, in front of 18,177 at Target Field.

Kody Clemens’ hit his third home run of the night to start the ninth and make it 8-7, and the Twins loaded the bases with no outs against right-hander Jake Woodford. Jhonny Pereda singled, Woodford hit Byron Buxton and Austin Martin drew a walk to load the bases.

Left-hander Andrew Saalfrank came in to face lefty Trevor Larnach but walked him on five pitches, and Luke Keaschall followed with a sacrifice fly that scored Buxton with the winning run.

Making his second start since returning from a shoulder injury that cost him three months, Pablo Lopez gutted out five innings, allowing only two unearned runs on four hits and three walks, and Kody Clemens was 4 for 4 with three home runs and five RBIs for the Twins.

It was Clemens’ first career multihomer game, and he became the 11th Twins player to hit three home runs in a game.

Minnesota led 6-2 after six innings, but as has been the case so many times since the team traded away three of its best relievers at the deadline, the bullpen couldn’t make it stick.

Kody Funderburk and Travis Adams each pitched scoreless innings, but Michael Tonkin started the seventh and allowed a two-run home run to leadoff hitter Geraldo Perdomo before recording an out, and Sands ran into big trouble in the ninth.

Lopez wasn’t at his best but powered through five innings while the Twins’ lineup got comfortable against Diamondbacks right-hander Brandon Pfaadt, who allowed five earned runs on nine hits, including Clemens’ first two home runs.

Clemens’ double in the sixth off left-hander Kyle Backhus that scored Brooks Lee from first base to give the Twins a 6-2 lead.

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