New Christian Academy opening in Lakeside Park
BY JASON FELDMANN | JFELDMAN@COMMUNITYPRESS.COM

LAKESIDE PARK - As a former educator, Le Hahn is dedicated to giving her children the best education possible in order to prepare them for successful lives.

She believes she's found the answer in Cornerstone Classical Christian Academy, a new school opening later this month in Lakeside Park with a Christ-centered curriculum.

"The main thing that we like about the school is obviously their commitment to teach the word of God and to teach morals. But we were also very attracted to the curriculum," said Hahn, of Florence, who was among a dozen prospective parents who attended an Open House for the school last week.

She and her husband, Bob, have enrolled their five-year-old son, Walton, into the school's Kindergarten program for the upcoming year. Younger siblings Neva, 3, and Graham, 1, will attend when they become older.

"We hope that our children's children can go here," said Le, inside a classroom located in the basement of Lakeside Christian Church. (The church is not affiliated with the school.)

Board president Jon Davis said the school will start off with a relatively small enrollment this fall -- perhaps 10 to 12 students -- and add more students in the coming years.

"We will be small. The purpose is to have classes no larger than 16 students," he said.

While the school will operate on a traditional Monday-Friday schedule, with classes from 8 a.m. to 2:30 p.m., it will be different from public schools.

Besides the core subject areas, the school will also emphasize Bible reading, study and application. Also, Latin will be a principle subject studied by grammar students (Kindergarten through fourth grade).

"Children are sponges, and we want to give them a lot of knowledge, facts and rules," said Davis.

The academy will operate the first year as a K-2 one room schoolhouse, but Davis plans to add other grades "as the need demands and resources allow."

In classical education, middle school years focus on logic, critical thinking, questioning and comprehension. High school years focus on rhetoric, including the development of communication and expression.

"We're teaching them how to learn and how to think," said Davis.

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