The end of the semester is right around the corner! Every student is bound to go through a number of interesting thoughts after finishing up their final assignments prior to the Christmas break. Staff is eager to get the holiday season ramped up, and parents are planning their precious time they will be afforded with the impending break. However, before we can all relax and relish in the time we will receive with friends and family, I want to take the time to share with you a priority and goal that our staff has committed to at the beginning of the school year.
As a staff at Bethany Lutheran, we realized that some of our current curricula were disjointed, our rigor in the classroom was below expectations, and our students could handle being challenged a bit more. Therefore, as a staff, we recommitted ourselves to providing the best Christian academic experience as we possibly could. We believe that in order to best prepare our students for the future, we needed to refocus our attention on content, as well as approach.
Please bear with me as I explain what all of this means: Education in America has a rich history dating back to the 1600s – but most primary, middle, and high school, as well as some colleges and universities, no longer see their priorities as helping students find the meaning of life, building a life of strong character, learning to serve others or preparing for civic Christian responsibility.
Now, most schools are about pre-professional vocational training and ethical and moral experimentation for the students and this shift away from the true foundational aim of education has been a disaster.
All too often this has led to our nation’s students being “academically adrift” – ill-prepared for adulthood and productive, meaningful careers, and distracted or injured by unhealthy school and life alternatives, political correctness and a lack of religious freedom at school.
At Bethany Lutheran, we are modeling the renewal of Christian education – combined with the study of liberal arts and sciences. Because of our commitment to general revelation, we believe we can study the finest books, art, and culture and learn much about God’s world. We believe all truth is God’s truth. We have recommitted ourselves to a broad liberal arts education where our students take classes focused and centered on Gods’ words and mandates.
A Christian education is designed to be broad and deep. Broad by encompassing a general core curriculum focused on Core Knowledge and deep by studying a lifelong concentration with rigor. Our learning is comprehensive, interdisciplinary and connected. We are deeply committed to teaching our students to ask the big questions, think profoundly and critically and communicate well.
Studying Core Knowledge principles and Christian ideologies teaches: Learning is for its own sake and not just for a diploma – we are learning to slow down, think deeply, be curious, to realize that knowledge brings great joy, and that wonder and curiosity are more important than IQ, a point made by a recent study in the Harvard Business Review.
Core Knowledge is about developing abilities – Study after study shows that high school teachers complain about the kind of graduate’s middle schools are pumping out – graduates who can’t write well, think critically, problem solve or work well in diverse groups. This is exactly what the Core Knowledge does best. It is what Bethany Lutheran does best.
Developing high moral character, habits of the heart and a strong sense of purpose and vocational call – BLS strives to cultivate students who work hard, enjoy life, and have a strong sense of purpose – a life of “faithful presence.” We want our students to see these years as a time to ask the big and hard questions about all aspects of Christian life – to develop a meaningful philosophy of Christian life. We desire for them a Christian life of character, high moral integrity and a vision for their future.
In short, BLS attempts to provide students with quality academic years of transformative experiences that change them forever and set them on a trajectory of faithfulness to God, a rich and abundant life and a life that launches them into adulthood – one that contributes to our nation and world by productive work, building strong family and being a good neighbor. As we work even harder to ensure our students’ success we continue to ask for your wonderful prayers and support. There is much work yet to be done but with God, all things are possible!
Dr. Chris E. Smith
Principal
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