COVENANT CHRISTIAN ACADEMY

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

January 14, 2008

LOCAL SCHOOL CHOSEN BY HAWAII EDUCATORS

Covenant Christian Academy Administrators Share Expertise in Kailua, Oahu

Harrisburg, Pa – After reviewing and visiting several classical Christian schools on the east coast, school administrators and board members from Hawaii’s Trinity Christian School on the island of Oahu selected Harrisburg’s Covenant Christian Academy (CCA) to guide them into their future. 

As a result, CCA’s Upper School Principal Robyn Burlew and former Headmaster Christopher Perrin made their first trip to Kailua, Hawaii last week.  They met with school administrators, board members and faculty at the Oahu school to begin implementing strategic changes and training staff.  It may be the first of several such visits.

Hawaii’s Trinity Christian School was established twenty-five years ago and has earned a reputation for providing an excellent Christian elementary education to the families of Oahu.  But two recent decisions brought these Hawaii educators to the east coast looking for help.  First, they decided to expand beyond the sixth grade and develop a high school.  Second, they made the commitment to transition their educational program to a classical approach, emphasizing the liberal arts and strong communication skills.

Harrisburg’s Covenant Christian Academy is one of Pennsylvania’s few classical Christian schools.  It began with grades K-5 in 1997 and developed its own high school program over the past ten years.  Its first senior class, with two National Merit Semi-Finalists, graduated in 2005.

“To build a high school and transition to the classical approach, we knew that we needed assistance,” said Hawaii school director Nancy Shaw.  “Our team visited several K-12 classical Christian schools on the east coast and all agreed that Covenant Christian Academy was the one we wanted to resemble.”

Hawaii’s Jason Wood, who will be charged with directing the new high school, added, “It was the combination of CCA’s strong emphasis on academics combined with the staff’s compassion for its students that attracted us.  Hawaii is a very relational and compassionate culture.  CCA is what we hope to become – a solid Christian school that prepares students for college and life in a loving atmosphere and culture.”

“We were quite surprised,” said CCA Upper School Principal Robyn Burlew.  “The school administrators from Hawaii visited CCA last year.  We are always happy to show people what is being accomplished here, but we didn’t expect anything further to develop from it.”

But something did develop.  After returning to Oahu, the Hawaiian school asked CCA to partner with them to develop what will become the first classical Christian school in the State of Hawaii.  It began last week with Burlew and Perrin visiting the Pacific island.

“Initially, we needed to meet with the faculty and staff of the school for training in classical methods,” said Burlew.  “Two days were devoted to presentations and break-out discussions; a third day was spent with administrators and the school board.  The immediate goals for the Hawaii school are to begin teaching classically and to have 7^th and 8^th grades in place for the start of the 2008-09 academic year.”

“There is an added element of excitement in helping to get the first classical Christian school established in the State of Hawaii,” said Burlew.  “While Hawaii presents some unique cultural elements that we don’t experience in Pennsylvania, we are able to work within their culture to help Trinity Christian School provide an excellent educational offering to the families of Oahu.”