Formula 4:09

Christian schools have always played an important role in our community.  The problem is, it is not always obvious or agreed upon what that role is. Historically, the Christian school has been viewed as one of the three legs of a stool, along with the church and the home.  The analogy is fairly accurate, but falls short in one important area.  While the three legs of a stool are equally important and exactly alike, church, home, and school, though equally important, are most definitely not exactly alike.  What is the role of the school then?  I have argued in the past that because we are a Christian school we must place even more importance on developing Christian character than academics (which is saying a lot, since we place a tremendous amount of importance on academics!).  We are responsible to our students, our parents, our staff, our community, and above all, our God, to do all we can to produce academically strong students who have been challenged to demonstrate, grow in, and share their faith.  Sometimes this means that we will need to discipline our kids when it is apparent that the choices they have made are not only wrong but also detrimental to themselves and those around them.  While clearly the home and the church take the lead in this area, the school has a tremendous responsibility to all of its students to respond in a way that is best for the entire student body and for the school in general. Clearly everyone will not agree on what is best, or even what is good.  But here is something we can agree on: it takes the church, the home, and the school working together to give kids the best chance to grow spiritually and academically.  Ecclesiastes 4:09 says Two are better than one, because they have a good return for their labor.  In this case, three is also better than one.  I call it my Formula 4:09. May it remind us to work together to make Providence Christian High School all God wants it to be.