Word Of Life Christian Academy

Our youngest son just graduated from high school and is now a freshman at Virginia Tech. He attended Word of Life Christian Academy from kindergarten through the eighth grade. He got an excellent academic foundation while attending Word of Life and was way ahead of the curve when he had to transition to a public school for high school. It was really exciting this summer when he got to see two of his friends, who also attended Word of Life from kindergarten through the eighth grade, and found out that one was going to attend James Madison University, and the other had been accepted to HARVARD and received a full scholarship!!! His best friend from Word of Life got accepted by University of Virginia, Virginia Tech, JMU, and William and Mary and he was a little disappointed his best friend decided to go to William and Mary instead of VT:-). If you're looking for a great education in a Christian environment, Word of Life is an excellent choice.

LOVE, LOVE, LOVE, Word of Life Christian Academy!!! So thankful to God for loving, dedicated teachers that feel called by God to love and educate our children.

Our kids have attended WOLCA for over a decade. We are so extremely grateful to God for our fantastic teachers that demonstrate their love and sacrifice every day, bringing out the very best in our kids. We also appreciate the great daily worship and small class sizes.

However, sadly we have found the top leadership of the school and church to be very poor. It has been heartbreaking to see it. We are not even sure who is responsible for oversight and leadership! From our experience the school families have never been introduced or told who is on the current school board (if there is one?). I think of how Jesus made himself available and transparent and shared his intentions with his disciples. Not here.

We felt a lack of support from the church. It is sad since at one time the church established the school and must have felt that it was important. The school is said to be a ministry of the church. We are not sure what this means. The care and nurturing and positive attention are missing. The Administrator does not seem quite up to the task and seems to struggle in many areas, making the situation worse.

Frankly safety has been a big concern. We have seen any number of individuals floating around the building, external door locks not functioning correctly, and vehicles for field trips not kept clean or in good working order. One morning, at the time students arrive for the day, we even had to cross the lobby with bug spray on the floor, holding our noses the best we could! Sadly we felt that legitimate concerns went unanswered, even about critical things such as safety.

The school has very little parent fellowship. It is such a lost opportunity since fellowship is so important and beneficial in the Christian community. For some reason the leadership seems to discourage it.

Perhaps at the root of these and many other issues, we did not feel that the church or school top leadership really value the students, faculty and staff, and parents. The deaf ear to concerns, poor communications, lack of responsiveness, and insensitivity to those in need seem to all testify to this fact. I believe when Jesus said that he came to serve and not be served, this would go for our top leaders in the House of God. The church and school at Word of Life seems to take a different view of things.

Unfortunately until the school and church are granted new leaders that are dedicated to caring about people and serving with excellence, I am not sure what to anticipate.

The school is not the same. It has lost its identity as a Christian school and very poor Christian leadership.

EXCELLENT education! A setting of small class sizes maximizes learning and teacher-student interaction. These are teachers you want your child to look up to as role models! The academics are now very strong under the new leadership since they did a curriculum review with national experts. Parents like the Latin and strong Art program that is integrated with history and other subjects. Kids love learning through the Association of Christian Schools International hands-on science program. EVERY morning they start their day with an AWESOME time of worship music LED BY THE STUDENTS THEMSELVES to get the right focus. There are lots of Christian schools, but not any of them can match the depth of what is imparted into the children spiritually and academically at Word of Life.

There is no place in the world like Word of Life Christian Academy. God's presence is there is an amazing way. EXCELLENT new leadership and a strengthened instructional program combined with an AUTHENTIC Christian environment maximizes the learning experience. Their partnership with the University of Richmond provides computer and technology skills that will equip students for their calling into the future. Latin has been integrated which is not only found to increase SAT scores and reading comprehension (since it's English word origins), but it's a fantastic base for learning other languages later. Saxon Math develops critical thinking and Shurley English teaches them to WRITE! The teachers are not only CALLED into teaching, but all elementary through 8th grade teachers now have a Masters level or college level Degree in Education. Hands-on science has been strengthened. They provide after school Odyssey of the Mind, a geography club, and we're looking forward to the Little Ambassadors basketball and soccer clinics after Christmas. The best part is that they start each and every day with an exceptional morning worship which helps the students and staff focus and ask God's guidance for the day.

The new Principal is a highly qualified Godly woman who has now established a strong educational program as a result of a curriculum review involving numerous national educators. She has utilized national Christian educational experts to establish a stellar curriculum. The curriculum is aligned to national standards and best instructional practices. For Word of Life teachers, it's much more than a job. The teachers really care about the students. They are very accessible for working with parents and students.

NOW IS A FANTASTIC TIME TO ENROLL YOUR CHILD AT WORD OF LIFE!

They have rebuilt with an awesome curriculum and small class sizes, but most of all a focus and priority on what matters most: imparting God's truth, which is found in all of the subject areas, into the lives of the students with excellence.

If you are looking for a safe, loving environment for your child to receive an excellent education Word of Life is the place for you! As a Word of Life parent of three I have seen my two oldest children graduate from Word of Life and then go on to the college of their choice. My youngest child who had been at Word of Life since kindergarten took the TJ entrance test last year. He actually made the semi-final round which is not easy to do. Sadly Word of Life only goes through eighth grade this year so we had to look for another option. Word of Life is a small Christian school that offers a wonderful opportunity to parents who believe in private education and want to protect their children from all the world has to offer in the public school arena.

bad new leadership empowers teachers who are not gifted, and are not highly qualified in their calling of teaching. you better run as fast as you can. Very bad leadership and teachers.

Run run run