Changing the world one student at a time

since 1979

WHO WE ARE, WHERE WE’RE GOING


Elsie Wright, Head of School

Dean Carley, ChAIR, BCA BOARD OF TRUSTEES

BETH ZINS, Admissions Coordinator and Principal, Lower School, Grades K-5

TODD STELTZ, Principal and Spanish Teacher, Middle and High School, Grades 6-10

A History of Excellence

How We Began

                Barrington Christian Academy was founded in 1979 and began in the basement of the Barrington Baptist Church with fifty students in grades 1-8.  Today, in 2007, our enrollment is 180 students in grades K-10.  We are now a non-denominational K-10 regional day school governed by an independent school board of ten members representing several area churches.  Our student body comes from over 20 communities in Rhode Island and nearby Massachusetts and represents over 40 churches.  We are one of only two Christian Schools in Rhode Island to receive dual accreditation from the Association of Christian Schools International (ACSI) and the New England Association of Schools and Colleges (NEASC) and the only Christian High School to hold NEASC accreditation.  In 1999 we doubled the size of our facilities by adding a new wing onto our building, allowing us to significantly improve our educational facilities and expand our enrollment. We currently have 34 faculty and staff members, 46% of whom have earned advanced degrees.  We are presently adding another addition to our facilities that will provide additional classroom space for our high school classes, as well as a beautiful new library and a spacious music room.


Why Do We Exist?

                Barrington Christian Academy, an accredited, non-denominational, K-10regional Christian day school nurtures students in a loving and caring environment committed to high standards. We encourage students in the development of their God-given gifts and abilities—spiritually, academically, socially, and physically. We prepare students to successfully pursue challenging higher education programs and equip them to live fulfilling lives of service to God and their neighbor. We support parents in their God-given responsibility to educate their children.

 

How Are We Fulfilling Our Mission?

                Barrington Christian Academy promotes academic excellence through a rigorous program taught by teachers who create an environment for learning that encourages each student to achieve. We blend traditional forms of learning with new and creative ways of helping students to discover the world around them. We offer programs that strengthen and encourage students to realize their potential in mind, body and spirit.  We help students understand and defend a Biblical worldview by integrating God’s word into all areas of study. We realize that one of the most needed skills of tomorrow’s society will be the ability to discern truth; therefore we strive to equip all of our students with the biblical knowledge and tools and necessary to discover what is good and true in all situations.  If the next generation of followers of Christ is to be effective, they will need to be articulate, strong leaders, yet be able to exhibit patience and understanding while listening to others. Our students are developing global awareness and are actively building their knowledge as they serve in both their local communities and eventually the world community as well.


 

Completing the Mission

Creating Excellence in a K-8 Regional Day School

            There is nothing more exciting and fulfilling than to talk with prospective parents as they visit and discover Barrington Christian Academy. In our most recent Open House, our halls and classrooms were filled with current and new families all who share the common goal of providing a unique opportunity for their children to learn in an environment where academic excellence is fostered and God is discovered in all areas of life.

            Barrington Christian Academy has been providing this community of learning for 28 years and is stronger than ever.  In their pursuit of excellence, our gifted and experienced lower school faculty under the direction of Mrs. Beth Zins, has been engaged in researching best practices and updating the lower school curriculum in mathematics, spelling, writing and in the addition of a new Spanish program.   This team is actively engaged in professional reading, attending and leading professional development workshops, collegially dialoging and sharing information, participating in data based lesson planning, and implementing best teaching practices in their classrooms.  We have already seen a higher level of excellence reached by students in the areas of math and writing, two areas of recent focus by the team.  We are also blessed with a vibrant, creative parent volunteer group, which has partnered with faculty in planning such fun and exciting family school events as Family Math Night and Reading Week Celebrations.  An expanding extracurricular program is addressing the interests and abilities of our students in all areas of development, most notably the arts and athletics.

 

            Our middle school faculty is strong and becoming increasingly seasoned in their work as curriculum developers.   Our efforts to build upon the strength of our science, mathematics and language arts programs are evidenced in our students’ enthusiasm and their achievements. Our faculty members are integrating technology, music, the arts and drama in innovative ways with new levels of participation across all grade levels. We have made a strategic effort to increase our ethnic and socioeconomic diversity and continue to make great strides in this area. Our sports programs continue to grow with new levels of involvement. We encourage all students to participate and find ways to provide opportunities for each interested student to participate in athletic programs. Each student builds his/her skills, learns valuable lessons in teamwork, and grows to enjoy participation in sports.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Building a Unique Christian High School

                Over the last few years, the Board and the Administration of BCA has experienced a deep and growing desire to complete our mission of becoming a full K-12 Christian School. Strong support from parents and students strengthened our resolve. While our students have been graduating from school at 8th grade strong in all areas, we felt a growing sense that our work was not complete. We see unlimited opportunity to continue the good work that has been started and to prepare our young people for college and life in general. In September of 2006, we opened Barrington Christian High School starting with Grade 9. Our first class began with 11 students, and God has blessed BCA with an incredibly strong high school faculty and program. We now have nineteen students in Grades 9 and 10.  We believe that we have set in place a strong foundation for the work ahead. With small class sizes, individual attention and an intentional effort to mentor each young adult, our students continue to grow and learn. We have been able to initiate a number of unique opportunities such as notebook computers for each student for their use during school and at home, off site retreats and learning experiences, integrated curriculum and an innovative hands on Active Physics program.

 

 

 

Looking to the Future

                As we look to the future of Barrington Christian Academy, we are excited about what the Lord is building. We humbly acknowledge the provision of excellent faculty and staff as well as generous resources that the Lord has brought together to form a solid foundation for growth and effectiveness. As we begin to plan and prepare for our third year of the high school and continued growth throughout our school, we are excited to be developing facilities that will serve the entire school community well. 

We will continue our efforts to attract and retain the highest quality Christian educators and make BCA a place where the best of the best want to teach and lead.  Our commitment to a blend of innovative and traditional methods of teaching and learning will continue as we open increasingly strong lines of communication with parents and the outside community. We are excited to be part of this wonderful mission and will diligently work to ensure its continued effectiveness as an educational institution.

 

 

 

The Future of Barrington Christian Academy

What Are We Called to Create?

                At Barrington Christian Academy we believe that we are called to create a top quality Christian K-12 regional school. This needs to encompass strategic initiatives in all aspects of the school.  The Board of Trustees has identified six areas of strength that form the foundation for success. Our Strategic Plan includes new goals within each of these areas. Over the last 28 years, Barrington Christian Academy has built a solid foundation that has resulted in the excellence seen at our school each day. We believe that as we move into the future, we will need to build upon these strengths and support them in new and bold ways. We will continue our work of educating generations of young people who courageously know, love and serve their God, who understand their call to Christian leadership, and who are confident in their ability to discern and communicate the truth of God’s word.

A Strong Board of Trustees 

While BCA has long had a strong board of trustees, we are in the process of strengthening the board in numbers while also emphasizing the board’s ability to do strategic planning and becoming more knowledgeable financial stewards of the resources God has entrusted to us.  Board participation in training opportunities will be included in this process.

Strong Faculty and Program

                Barrington Christian Academy currently has one of the strongest faculties in our history. We recognize that to fulfill our mission we must be uniquely attractive to the highest quality Christian educators. We must create an environment and a salary/benefit package that will attract, develop and retain the best of best. We also understand and hold in highest regard the sense of mission that each of our faculty feels as they strive to teach our children. We will work to encourage and celebrate this gift.

            At Barrington Christian Academy we have worked hard to create a program in which children are encouraged to discover and learn in ways that they will see the hand of the Lord in all things. The environment produced by small classes and individual attention encourages students to achieve academic excellence through both traditional and innovative methods. This blend must be encouraged and fostered as we move forward and will be driven by a high degree of communication between our talented faculty, administration, outside resources and parents. In all of our teaching, the development of a biblical worldview is paramount.

            We believe that the success of our mission also rests on our ability to cultivate high quality Christian educators. Barrington Christian Academy has a wonderful testimony of employing several faculty members who have graduated from BCA, gone on to achieve degrees in education and then returned to teach at BCA. We also have had great success fostering young graduates just starting their work in education. This has been accomplished by the opportunities created for mentoring and guidance as well as the strength of our administrative leadership and structure.

Strong Administration and Staff       
                Our administration and faculty at Barrington Christian Academy are veterans of teaching and educational leading, and they have brought BCA through two full accreditation visits, a capital campaign for school expansion, and the addition of a high school. Elsie Wright, our head of school, has provided significant leadership in the Association of Christian Schools International, and is now serving as co-chair of the regional accreditation commission.   Mrs. Wright has been leading BCA for 19 years, and is now working toward a doctoral degree in educational leadership.  With the administrative support of two division principals, Todd Steltz in the middle and high schools, and Beth Zins, serving as both lower school principal and admissions coordinator, the school has been able to develop increasingly strong academic programs and instructional teams.  As we grow, we need to be able to continue to attract, develop and retain leaders who will be integral to the future success of BCA and who will continue to develop the strongest and most innovative educational community possible. Our need for additional administrative support services, including business management and development and marketing, is most necessary to help free our educational leaders to bring our school to the next level.  

Unique and Flexible Facilities

Barrington Christian Academy is blessed to have excellent facilities where our children and faculty can learn and prosper. In addition to our own classroom building, which includes attractive classrooms, a renovated library and computer lab, music and art rooms, and a multipurpose room.  We share BBC’s very versatile Cedar Hall, used daily for physical education and after-school sports, as well as the church sanctuary, where we hold chapel.  In 1999 we completed a 1.1 million dollar campaign that enabled us to double the size of our building and add important educational and administrative areas.  As we grow, our vision is to provide optimal facilities that are specific to the needs of each division of BCA. These facilities will continue to be in separate wings, but shared so as to encourage our older students to mentor our younger students and sustain opportunities to model best practices being used by our most experienced faculty.

Strong Base of Ongoing Financial Support 

While Barrington Christian Academy is committed to creating the highest quality Christian school possible, we also believe that we need to work hard to ensure that this high quality education is affordable for all people who desire to have their children educated at a Christian school, regardless of their socioeconomic situation.  We are committed to keeping a BCA education within the reach of as many as possible by providing an increasing amount of financial aid and special scholarships. We cannot achieve this important mission without the help of our very generous community of supporters!

            A foundation grant has enabled us to increase financial aid by $108,000 over three years.  An additional grant from the Blount Seafood Corporation, in conjunction with RI’s tax credit bill, is adding further financial aid assistance to both BCA and West Bay Christian Academy, members of the RI Christian School Scholarship Alliance.  It is our hope that support for that scholarship program will grow in years to come.

Impact Upon the Community

As we develop our high school, a focus on missions and bringing light to the world is intentionally integrated.  Our freshmen participate in local mission projects, and our sophomores are planning a week-long trip to serve in a mission in Mississippi.  In addition, our elementary students continue to be involved in a mentor program, serving at nursing homes, and raising money for various mission projects.  We want to involve our students as citizens of our community to help them experience the call to be salt and light.

Strategic Plan for Growth for BCA 2007 to 2010

                 As we look to the future, the BCA Board of Trustees has proposed a plan for expansion that will integrate strategic resources for the high school, grades 9 through 12, with unique opportunities for both the middle and lower schools. This plan recognizes the need for facilities and program growth to accommodate the demands of enrollment increase and continued improvement. It also identifies unique and innovative ways to improve faculty benefits and provide an expanded infrastructure for increased potential to “grow” our school. The Board of Trustees has identified six key areas of concentration that if accomplished, will position Barrington Christian Academy to be highly competitive and well-positioned to achieve its 21st century educational goals. They are as follows:

1. Board Development

Continuing to seek trustees who are committed to the mission of Christian education, who possess skills and talents that will serve our school well, and who will become involved in regular board development opportunities will enable our board to fulfill its call to trusteeship of our growing school.

2. Financial Stability

          We have aggressive goals to fulfill if we are to become financially able to sustain the growth and improvement we have envisioned for the coming years.  Already we have raised over one million dollars in the last year to help us achieve our goals.  We have another one million dollars to raise to help us fulfill our commitments to raising faculty salaries, developing an outstanding high school program, and increasing our visibility in the community.  Our efforts in these areas will result in increased enrollment, which will eventually allow us to fund our increased budget through tuition revenue.   Our financial needs include not only building improvements, but also staff benefits student financial aid.

Faculty/Staff Benefits

            Healthcare Benefits Expansion                                                                 

            Increased Professional Development Funding                                                  

            Retirement Fund Increases                                                                                                

Scholarship

                Expanded Scholarship Programs

            Increased Financial Aid supported by a new Scholarship Endowment

Development of the potential support to be provided through the Rhode Island Scholarship Alliance opportunity         

3.  Program Goals

            Continued emphasis on hands-on science programs                                                   

            Implementation of foreign language program in lower school                      

            Professional development in the area of student writing

Successful implementation of current best practices in teaching writing, spelling and mathematics, with authentic assessment in all areas of academics

Increased opportunities in the arts—including drama, music and fine arts.

4. Facilities Growth and Improvement Goals

            High School building expansion

            New Library/Research Center                                                     

            New Faculty/Staff Resource Center                                                        

            Technology Resources for Instructional Integration                                         

            Playground Renovation

            Fire Code Upgrades

            Discovery Program Expansion for Students with Special Needs

            More space for the arts program   

5. Infrastructure

          A growing school has many administrative needs.  We are particularly aware of our need for additional staffing in the admissions and development offices, as well as in the business office.  We are prioritizing the needs for our administrative leadership team in order to support the full strategic plan and reach our goals for growth in enrollment and stability in finances.    

 6. Community Impact

          As we continue to grow our school, we will see more and more opportunities to share our gifts with the community and thereby bring the love of God and the light of Christ to our world.  Whether singing in nursing homes, participating in missions work in Providence or Mississippi, sharing our academic talent with other schools in the community, hosting the ACSI regional Math Olympics, we do all for the glory of God and want His name to be lifted up.

 

 

 

 

 

High school students are meeting on the campus of Zion Bible College this fall while our building expansion is being completed.

 

 

Financing the Future

A History of Generosity and the Fulfillment of our Mission

                Throughout the history of Barrington Christian Academy, we have been encouraged and inspired by the generosity and support given to our school family.  Our focus remains to make sure that every child is able to experience the highest quality Christian Education possible and to be prepared to engage and articulate a Christ centered world view within their families, their community and the world. As we look to the future, we deeply understand and appreciate that to complete this mission we need the continued generosity of our parents, friends, alumni and the business community.

The Annual Giving Fund: Sustaining the Mission

                Barrington Christian Academy has been able to meet the challenges of balancing our budget because of the generous yearly support we receive from our parents, friends, alumni and the business community.  For the next three years, the Annual Giving Fund will be folded into the integrated Capital Campaign. 

 

Financing the Future: Capital Campaign 2007

The Capital Campaign, with its aggressive $2 million dollar goal, will help us balance our annual budget while building a new facility and establishing a strong base for the future.

                On August 30, 2006, we opened our doors to the high school class of 2010. By doing so we took the first steps toward the future of Barrington Christian Academy’s high school. We have been blessed to watch our students and faculty thrive and develop as the year has progressed, and we in the fall of 2007 we added ten new freshmen.  These students have committed themselves to helping us build the high school of BCA, and they are doing a great job of pioneering these efforts. 

The generosity and shared vision of our supporters is vital to our ability to fulfill the work of creating a quality Christian high school.  To offer a top quality program costs far more than we can charge in tuition from the number of students enrolled.  We need those who believe in the vision to share their resources with us at this key moment in our history.

 

Preserving Assets: Scholarships and Endowment

                The world is full of need. Though overwhelming sometimes, when you see even one young life changed by opportunity, you begin to understand why it is truly possible to “change the world, one child at a time”. Over the last three years, we have been blessed to be able to increase our ability to offer more opportunities for scholarships to BCA than ever before. A generous grant and some individual benefactors have allowed us to increase our socioeconomic and ethnic diversity and ultimately to change lives.

            The new Rhode Island legislation that allows corporations to get tax credit for donations to scholarship granting organizations is also providing more scholarship opportunities.  Our head of school serves on the board of the Rhode Island Scholarship Alliance and has been active in getting this program into place.

All of our students benefit from our commitment to increasing diversity. We believe that our efforts to grow an endowment for financial aid are critical to the future of Barrington Christian Academy. If you share our vision of creating a quality Christian education accessible to as many as possible regardless of their race, color, ethnic origin or ability to pay, join with us in growing our endowment and open the doors of opportunity for all of God’s children.

In addition to finding C-Corporations that will make contributions to our SGO, the Rhode Island Christian School Scholarship Alliance, we have a goal of establishing a two million dollar endowment fund that would provide the financial aid we need for generations to come.

Celebrating What God Has in Store for the Future

As we look to the future of BCA, we are celebrating what God has done, what He is doing, and what He will do in the future.  We are confident that He has a plan of us, “plans to prosper us and not to harm us, plans to give us hope and a future” (Jeremiah 29:11).  We are taking each step of this journey with a desire to remain fully submitted to His plans.

 

For Sponsorship Opportunities, click here!

Please join us on Friday, October 26, 2007 at 6:30 P.M. at the Federal Reserve Restaurant in Providence for a celebration as well as a time to present the financial needs of the plan that is unfolding before us.  If you are interesting in sponsoring this event to allow us to offer attendance to our guests at no charge to them, please see the following pages that describe levels of sponsorship.  Thank you!

 

 

Thank you for being a partner with Barrington Christian Academy in helping change the world, one student at a time.