Letter From the President

Dear Stakeholders,

As the 2024/2025 school year gets underway, the Algoma Christian School Board would like to take a moment to share an update about our current expansion project.

Expanding has long been a part of the continuous school improvement plan by the School Board and Administration at ACS. Our history is one of incremental growth - starting with separate campuses for elementary and high school students, followed by the construction of a building that encompassed all students under one roof. As the number of students grew over the years, so did our building - an addition here, some extra classrooms there, a gym, a locker room, and a fine arts wing. God’s blessing and provision have been a part of the ACS experience since its inception. 

Today, we find ourselves in the middle of a 4-Phase plan of expansion. What started as an exciting idea scribbled on a whiteboard has become a new parking lot, drain field, driveway, 11,500 square foot childhood development facility, and recently excavated ground waiting for the next phase to begin! The progress we’ve made so far is largely in part to one anonymous donor who gifted nearly $600,000 to this project! That investment has been built upon by other donors and the annual proceeds of our Project Luke 9 fundraiser. We are also applying for grants to help offset the cost because 100% of the funding for the expansion project is sourced through donations. Absolutely no tuition money is being spent on this endeavor. The School Board and Administration, in conjunction with the Finance Committee, work tirelessly to keep tuition rates affordable. Our Development Team collaborates on fundraising efforts for the tuition assistance program, general fund needs, and capital projects. Our Finance Committee is devoted to investing and stewarding our resources carefully and intentionally. Together, we are committed to taking each step forward, debt free.

What was once an exciting opportunity has become an urgent necessity. More and more families are coming to value the beacon of truth and hope that is available through a Christian education. Consequently, every desk that is filled becomes a classroom stretched a little closer to capacity. Every grade level that expands beyond its allotted size limits becomes two grade levels in two classrooms with two teachers. The transfer of the Wee Knights facility from our elementary wing to its own building has made our recent growth possible, but once again our facility is nearing capacity. Many rooms now serve multiple functions. In fact, most of our secondary teachers aren’t even able to use their classrooms during their prep hour because another teacher is using it for another class! Our kitchen hasn’t been updated in almost twenty years, and was not meant to serve a student body of this size. Our middle school band classes sit shoulder to shoulder in a music room that doesn’t accommodate large class sizes. Without the completion of this project, future enrollment will demand waiting lists for certain grade levels! 

The addition of our Auxiliary Gym/Cafetorium will relieve the constraints that have been tightening every year as enrollment continues to break records, but it will take a team of Knights to make this financial commitment a possibility. 

We, as a School Board, are calling upon every parent, grandparent, staff member, donor, and stakeholder to partner with us in raising $200,000 by December 31, 2024. Putting forward this financial investment to construct the shell of the building along with the essential mezzanine before the roof is placed will save us $70,000-$75,000 in the long run. No gift is too small. Every donation (from $5 to $500,000) brings ACS one step closer to that goal!
Please be in prayer about how you can be meaningfully involved in making this necessity a reality. 

Do you know someone who is passionate about Christian education and would like the opportunity to come alongside us in creating a space that fosters Christ-centered learning? Are you part of a business that sponsors fundraising efforts? Do you know of an excellent Christian foundation that specializes in helping small schools like ACS? 

We are willing and ready to reach out to anyone that is interested in partnering with us as we seek to share the love of Jesus and the truth of his Word to students and families in our community. Please contact a member of the School Board, Administration, or Development Team with any leads we should pursue, and stay tuned for more ways to be involved in the coming months. 

Praise the Lord for the growth and His continued protection!

In Him,
Scott Anderson 
ACS School Board President

ACS Board Members
Brent Parker - Vice President
Roxanne Anderson -Treasurer
Jason Doncis -Secretary
Chris Kooienga - Trustee
Scott Toth - Trustee
Danielle Mysliwiec - Trustee