Who we are
Redeemer's Historical Highlights
The history of Redeemer Classical Christian School began in the spring of 1994. A member of Redeemer Presbyterian Church became acquainted with the classical model of education while attending a conference in Florida. She returned, excited about the possibility of Redeemer starting a classical school of its own. That September, three members of Redeemer visited a classical school in Delaware.
By the fall of 1994, a group of six members met weekly to pray and begin the organization process. The process continued throughout 1995. There was no money set aside, no paid personnel, and no school buildings or students, just a calling from the Lord and a vision of what could be. The church decided in January 1996 that the time was right, so with great prayer and faith the church began holding informational meetings for interested parents. Even though nothing resembling a school existed, parents caught the vision. The church gave $1,000 for the first curriculum and renovated a carriage house for classrooms and chapel. Enrollment grew, and by September 1996 the school opened with 39 students.
We have seen the Lord’s hand in every aspect of our growth. The Redeemer Classical Christian School experience is one of faith and answered prayer, demonstrating how God works through ordinary people to accomplish His extraordinary purpose.
Our Mission
Our purpose is to provide a challenging academic program based on the classical model of education, which fully integrates God's truth into a Biblical world and life view, partnering with parents to facilitate the development of each child's unique God-given potential. We summarize this mission in three short statements.
- Challenging the Mind
- Nurturing the Soul
- Engaging God's World
These three ideas help focus the life of our school. By God’s grace, Redeemer will continue to fulfill its mission as we seek to glorify God and serve our community by providing an excellent Classical, Christian education.
Our Philosophy
The following philosophies help to determine how Redeemer Classical Christian School's will fulfill its mission:
- We believe that the Bible clearly instructs parents, not the State, to bring children up in the discipline and instruction of the Lord (Ephes. 6:4). Our program is a cooperative program in which all parents/guardians are required to participate. We seek to teach and discipline in a manner consistent with the Bible and a Godly home environment.
- God's character is revealed not only in His Word, but also in every facet of His creation (Ps. 19:1-2). As we increase in knowledge of His works, we teach that all knowledge is interrelated, and can instruct us about God Himself (2 Corinthians 10:5).
- God wants us to love Him with our minds, as well as with our hearts, souls, and strength (Deut. 6:5; Matthew 22:37). Therefore, we seek to individually challenge children at all levels, and teach them how to be learners for life, rather than emphasizing limited perfunctory outcome-based performance.
- We want to help parents teach their children that all they do should be done heartily, as unto the Lord (Col.3:23). Therefore, we seek to encourage quality academic work and maintain high standards of conduct. This includes Biblical discipline principles.
- We believe that as long as a child is under the parents’ authority and is undergoing formal education, he or she should be trained Biblically (Deuteronomy 6:6, 7; Proverbs 22:6). Therefore, we have a full Pre-K through 12th grade program that teaches a student from a Biblical worldview.
- Every child reflects the image of God. Therefore, at RCCS, every student, at every stage of his or her development, will be loved with Christ’s love. To meet children at their developmental level of learning we employ the Classical model of education. It is a time-tested and proven method of instruction that has the potential for an exponential return of investment in that it teaches students to be life-long learners who are able to engage and impact their world. We believe this is their God-given destiny (Matt. 28:18-20).
Our Statement of Faith
- The Bible is the inspired and inerrant Word of God, the only infallible rule of faith and practice.
- There is one God, eternal and self-existing in three persons; Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, who are to be equally loved, honored, worshipped, and adored.
- All mankind participated in Adam’s fall from his original sinless state, and are thus lost in sin and totally helpless to choose anything good or to save themselves.
- The Sovereign God, for no other reason than His own unfathomable love and mercy, has chosen lost sinners from every nation to be redeemed by the quickening power of the Holy Spirit through the atoning death and resurrection of His Son Jesus Christ.
- Those sinners whom the Spirit quickens, come to believe in Christ by the Word of God, are born again, become children of God, and will persevere to the end.
- Justification by faith alone. Through it the undeserving sinner is clothed with the righteousness of Christ.
- The goal of God’s salvation in the life of the Christian is holy service for His glory.
- At death, a believer’s soul passes immediately into the presence of God, and the unbeliever’s soul is eternally separated unto condemnation.
- Baptism is a sign of God’s covenant and is properly administered to the children of believers in their infancy, as well as those who come as adults to trust in Christ.
- Jesus Christ will return to earth, visibly and bodily, at a time when not expected, to consummate history and the eternal plan of God.
- The gospel of God’s salvation in Jesus Christ must be proclaimed throughout the world before Jesus Christ returns.
- The faculty of Redeemer Classical Christian School is asked to assent to the above statement of faith as they teach at Redeemer. With the exception of infant baptism, these doctrines are integrated into the curriculum and highlighted in chapel.
Frequently Asked Questions
As a Classical School, we differ in our structure and curriculum – in both methods and content – as we seek to give children the tools for learning. As a Christian School, we teach all subjects from a Biblical perspective, integrating a Christian world and life view, rather than merely teaching Bible as a separate subject. For more information on what makes Classical Christian Education so special, please refer to the "What is Classical Christian Education" page. Or download the eBook.
The Bible is truth. Therefore, we teach everything as being derived from Scripture. As mentioned above, Bible is not taught as a separate subject; rather, we seek to enable children to look at the world through the eyes of God. Please refer to the "What is worldview?"tab under "About RCCS" on this website.
Absolutely not. While we are a Christian school and we do teach children from a strong Christian and bibilical perspective, we do not require the parents of our students to be Christians. We simply ask that they understand and support our curriculum and Statement of Faith.
Redeemer Classical Christian School is registered with the State as a church-exempt school. We are members of the Association of Classical Christian Schools and the Association of Christian Schools International. We are accredited by the Middle States Association of Colleges and Schools.
It is important not to confuse acceleration with excellence. Pushing children to levels of academic achievement which are developmentally inappropriate can have deleterious effects. Excellence is defined as developmentally appropriate education which challenges students at their level and which results in a delight in learning, a sense of confidence, and an awareness of truth from God’s perspective. By virtue of its definition, the schools which follow the classical model are more academically arduous than other schools, although the methods used facilitate learning in a way that makes it seem less difficult, and children typically tend to excel academically.
There is much in the news about the Common Core Standards. Redeemer Classical Christian School is registered with the state of Maryland as a church-exempt school and therefore, we are not required to comply with Common Core. As an independent school, we are exempt from the mandates of our local or federal government. In an effort to protect the privacy and rights of our students and families and to maintain the freedom to set our curriculum standards, we do not accept any state or federal funding. We are under the authority of our Board of Directors and ultimately the Lord Jesus Christ. However, our academics far surpass current state requirements for graduation. Our curriculum is rigorous, yet developmentally appropriate, based on the time-tested, proven classical model of education.
For more information on how a Classical Christian education compares to the Common Core standards, please visit our post Redeemer Classical Christian School vs. Common Core comparison.
Our uniform policy serves several purposes. It develops a sense of community among the student body and enables children to focus more on studies, not judge people by external means, and is more economical. Studies have shown that parents spend less money, and children do better academically, when a uniform policy is adopted.
The teaching of Latin is integral to classical education. Here are several reasons: It is estimated that between 60% and 75% of the English language is derived from Latin roots. Learning Latin helps in vocabulary building and the decoding, understanding, and formulation of words. Hence, students who have had Latin do better in English. The analysis and mastery of a second language greatly refines an understanding of grammar and syntax, which carries over into English. Mastery of Latin enhances one's ability to learn the Romance languages, including Spanish, French, Italian, Romanian, and Portuguese. It is also helpful in learning other inflected languages such as Greek, Russian, and German.
Our primary qualifications for teachers include a love for God, a gift for teaching children, and a passion for their subject areas. All of our full-time teachers have Bachelor’s Degrees, with many of our teaching staff possessing Master’s degrees.
The school is a non-denominational school and holds to the general confessional standards of the Presbyterian Church in America (See “Statement of Faith”). We do not teach any specific doctrines other than these. Because our families come from a variety of denominational perspectives and our founding documents state that we assist parents in the education of their children, we direct them to their parents and their pastor on matters regarding secular doctrines.
The Board and Administration recognize the importance of rounding out a student’s academic program with sports, the arts, and social activities. The school is a member of the Maryland Independent Athletic Conference (MIAC), enabling us to participate in interscholastic sports for boys’ and girls’ soccer, basketball, cross country, and girls’ volleyball. Two choirs meet weekly, for grades 4-6 and grades 7 and above. We also have a student run yearbook, opportunities to participate in school drama productions, and a Student Government Association.
Our discipline policy is based on the philosophy that God has given parents the responsibility for raising and educating their children. In light of this, we put a high priority on communicating concerns to parents, and working together with them to address concerns. An incentive chart is used with younger children, and a demerit/detention system with our older students to help them develop in the area of responsibility. The focus of the discipline policy is to maintain an orderly, respectful atmosphere that facilitates learning. We encourage a relationship between teachers and students based on grace and mutual respect.
Our PreK 3 & 4 programs meet 8:30-11:30 a.m. on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays. An Extended Day option, which includes lunchtime, quiet/nap time, supervised play time and enrichment activities in music, science and art are available from 11:30 a.m.- 3:05 p.m. and is billed separately. Our Kindergarten class meets from 8:30 to 11:30 a.m. An Extended Day option is available from 11:30 a.m. - 3:05 p.m. and is billed separately. Our Extended Day program includes lunchtime, quiet/nap time, enrichment activities: music, science, art and supervised play time. Our normal school day for all other grades (1st-12th) meets from 8:30 a.m. to 3:05 p.m. Students may be dropped off between 8:10 and 8:30 a.m. Before Care is available from 7:15 to 8:10 a.m. and After Care is available from 3:05 to 5:45 p.m.; both are billed separately at a reasonable rate. For any student remaining on campus after 3:05 p.m., we offer a supervised After Care option through 5:45 p.m. All unsupervised students through the 8th grade, remaining on campus after 3:05 p.m., are required to be enrolled in the After Care program.
The school’s classical standards are in line with the Association of Classical and Christian School’s standards for full membership. Currently, we are a member of the Association of Classical and Christian Schools. We hold accreditation with the Middle States Association of Colleges and Schools.
Since the school is incorporated separately from the church, the school has a 501(c)(3) status exemption with the Internal Revenue Service.
Taking into consideration our philosophy that parents are responsible before God for the upbringing of their children, RCCS is a parent supported school. Each family is required to serve 9 hours each quarter to support the teachers and the school’s programs. We seek to utilize the individual gifts and talents that families have to offer. RCCS also has a Parent Teacher Fellowship committee that serves the school community. There is also parent representation on the School Board.
RCCS is supported solely by donations and tuition. There are several ways contributions may be given which include: trusts, gifts, annuities, endowments, bequests, tithes, scholarship and general donations. All gifts to RCCS are tax deductible.