MAD – Make a Difference

Our mission at Eastern Christian begins with engaging the mind and nurturing the spirit of each student. As we pursue that mission, our prayer is that our students learn the habits of excellence at each stage of their development. If they learn the habits of excellence at Eastern Christian, having it modeled by staff and having opportunities to practice it and strive for it, we believe they will be a force for transformation locally and globally. Anything less is not worth the investment of resources and extraordinary sacrifice by parents, supporters and staff who make up the learning community of Eastern Christian School.

We hope to engage students’ minds daily by our practice of focusing on essential questions and the big ideas inherent in all of learning. Because we have confidence in our faith perspective of foundational and biblical Truth, we believe that inquiry learning leads to discovery of transformational meaning and purpose.

One effort to strive for authentic and relevant transformational learning has produced an expectation for a culminating project each year. Our Make A Difference project this year seeks to empower our students to take the initiative for their learning by inquiring about the world around them. Students have formed groups to research problems such as poverty, homelessness, and learning disabilities among young children. The students have helped groups such as Habitat for Humanity, St. Jude’s, New Hope Ministries, and Childrens Therapy Center. Every Thursday during the last period of the day, teachers assume roles as coaches and guides who come alongside to advise these groups. Each student group is in the process of discovery about these problems and planning how they can address the problem through a service project. As they work together, they will be encountering opportunities to practice their biblical, mathematical, scientific, research and communication skills. At the end of May our students will celebrate their learning as they report to their peers, teachers and parents.

Excellence is not perfection! In fact, we learn more about excellence and our reliance on God through trial and error and through striving and failing. Excellence is perseverance because transforming faith trusts in the hope we have in our Redeemer. “Let us hold unswervingly to the hope we profess, for He who promised is faithful. And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds.” (Hebrews 10: 23, 24)