Ann Arbor Christian School - March 2003 Ann Arbor News Article - Serving families in Ann Arbor, Dexter, Brighton, Whitmore Lake, and surrounding communities.

The library books aren't on the shelves and the rubberized gym floor isn't installed, but the relocation from behind the Christian Reformed Church in Ann Arbor to 12.5 acres in Northfield Township is complete.

Now a school for students in kindergarten through sixth grade but projected to add seventh and eighth grades in 2004-05, the school seeks to integrate academic excellence with Christian living and faith. It's an agreeable mix for fifth-grade teacher Becky Jungkuntz.

"Working here is an opportunity to integrate teaching gifts with my faith," said Jungkuntz, 36, of Ann Arbor, an eight-year veteran of the school. "I'm Lutheran, and I had a Christian education. The rewards are seeing my students grow in character."

The lessons

Students are taught moral absolutes along with academics. Not all issues are black and white, but that, said principal Ann Deckert, is where discernment comes in.

"Among the tools we provide kids is taking a Biblical truth and learning how to apply it to daily living. Take 'love your neighbor as yourself.' When you do that, you grow in character and you bring honor to God."

Whether the day begins and ends with prayer is up to the teacher. But there's no question it plays a prominent role.

"It's essential to the lives of the kids," said Dave Musch of Pittsfield Township, one of the school's founding parents and a senior research scientist at the University of Michigan. "We also wanted kids to know God is in control and active in the world."

So, because Scripture says pray for your enemies, students at the school prayed for Osama bin Laden after the Sept. 11 attacks.

And the teachers?

"We want them to have Christian character, to be academically qualified and to show excellence in teaching," Deckert said.

Sue Postema Scheeres of Ann Arbor, the school's development director and parent of two of its students, said she is impressed by the teachers. She spoke of a lively discussion they encouraged about conflicts among religions, that had its genesis in a geography unit. "Or this past fall," she said, "the sixth grade did some information gathering and turned what they found into questions of what human suffering is."

The classrooms

The school's student-teacher ratio of 1-to-15 looks good to prospective parents.

The student body is a diverse mix of whites, Asians and African Americans, representing more than 25 churches, including evangelical Lutherans, Presbyterians and Baptists. Tuition is $2,820 a year for a child in kindergarten; $4,660 for those in grades 1-5; and $5,100 for a sixth-grader. With two students in grades 1-5, the tuition is discounted to $8,160. Teachers are non-union. Busing is provided for those who live in the Ann Arbor school district.

Deckert said accreditation is forthcoming, by Christian Schools International based in Grand Rapids. Curriculum at the school is developed by staff through a committee of parents and staff. The school is run by a board whose members serve three-year terms.

The history

The school dates to 1986, when a group of parents decided they wanted a Christian elementary school for their children. The doors opened in 1991. And what began with four children and a teacher in a modular has grown to 105 students and seven teachers, with music, art and a gym at the 5500 Whitmore Lake Road building.

A steady demand for Christian education in this area encouraged the school's supporters to build the new facility.

To pay for the $4 million building, a fund-raising campaign began in 2000. A bank loan accounted for a quarter of that cost; the other $3 million is coming from parents, supportive people and charitable foundations and individuals. Postema Scheeres said the unofficial end of the campaign is July 2004.

"We're about two-thirds of the way toward our goal," said parent Lorri Vander Roest of Ann Arbor, a pediatrician and another of the school's founding parents. One of her children has gone through already; two more will follow.

Vander Roest said Christian education is giving back to God ("It's his world," she said), and seeing the consistent application of strong Christian values at home, school and church.

Musch said it is about discipleship. "God creates all things. It's his world and we return to him," he said.

Musch sent his two oldest children through St. Paul's Lutheran School; one other youngster went through the Ann Arbor Christian School. "I remember standing in line at St. Paul's when it was first come, first served for non-Lutherans," he said.

On Feb. 8, the parents rented a couple of U-Haul trucks and moved the school - desks, chairs and bulletin boards - to the new location. The doors opened Feb. 12.

The outcome

Huron High School sophomore Anna Geldermans, 16, is an alumna of the school.

"Morals aren't forced on you, but we had Bible classes, discussions and chapel. It's different from Sunday school," she said. "AACS was a good experience for me in that it taught what it means to be a Christian. It helps me to stand up for what I believe."

So how do kids make the adjustment from a Christian elementary to a public school?

Vander Roest said it's a matter of setting guidelines and sticking to them.

"We can't isolate kids or shield from things that aren't so pleasant, but we can give them tools," she said.

Postema Scheeres said the school gives children a Christian perspective.

"Then when they go out into the world, they can make a difference with their God-given gifts and talents," she said. "They can transform the world with the tools they've been given."

Don Faber can be reached at dfaber@annarbornews.com or (734) 994-6858.