“Are you excited to be principal at ACS next year?” I was asked this question a lot over the summer. I always answered that question without hesitation. YES! Some of you might be wondering, how can he say that? Doesn’t he know what he’s getting himself into? As a recovering math teacher, allow me to run some numbers:

2009-2016—My years as a classroom teacher

  • 196 students
  • 392 parents
  • 588 total

2016-2019—My years as a vice-principal and classroom teacher

  • 112 students
  • 224 parents
  • 40 staff
  • 376 total

2019-2020 —This year as principal

  • 340 students
  • 680 parents
  • 47 staff
  • 1060 total

Okay so now you’re wondering if he was any good as a math teacher because his annual “total” just went up 282% from last year and he’s still excited to be principal!?

The reason I’m excited…

Our community, plain and simple. This year marks my 11th year at ACS and our community has become a big part of my life. As our numbers grow each year, I’m excited to welcome the following people to our ACS community:

  • 5 new staff members to our campus
  • 47 new students (14% of our student population)
  • 4 alumni (so far…it’s only the first few weeks)

We engage minds, nurture hearts, and shape God’s world within the context of this community. We celebrate together, we mourn together, we support each other, and we hold each other accountable. We’ve had several new staff members join us over the past few years and one of them described ACS this way, “At my last school, it was a place where students just went to school. Here it feels like it is the students’ school.” That summarizes nicely how I view ACS. I often tell people we educate through relationship. It’s the relationships between staff, students, and parents that make this a place I’m excited to serve as principal. It’s our community that alumni still feel connected to and want to come back and give to the community that gave so much to them.

So back to the numbers…

In the end, the only number that matters to us here at ACS is ONE. As a community, we want our students to learn about our ONE triune God through all their classes (engage minds). We want our students to grow in their relationship with their ONE Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ (nurture hearts). We have been given ONE world and give our students authentic ways to make an impact for His glory (shaping God’s world).

As I look ahead to this school year, I know that this community is one of our greatest strengths. But it isn’t always easy. There will be challenges and struggles along the way. But there will also be times of great joy. Let’s lean into those connections that make this a year where we, as a community, educate through relationship. Let’s be a place where we aren’t just numbers, but people who work together for God’s glory!