ST. LOUIS (KMOX) - A new Protestant high school is opening up where there isn't one: in the city of St. Louis.
Tower Grove Christian Academy been around since 1978, and it is rebranding as City Christian Academy.
City Christian Academy is bringing back a high school inside the vast footprint of buildings attached to Tower Grove Baptist Church that are hemmed next to Missouri Botanical Gardens and Tower Grove Park.
An Evangelical/Protestant high school was operated and managed by Tower Grove Baptist Church but quit before the pandemic hit.
St. Louis Metro, a Baptist association of 90+ churches, voted to put forth $2 million to get City Christian Academy up and running.
"About seven years ago, the pastor of the church and the head of the school came and talked to us about what would it look it if this school evolved into a school that was led by a family of churches instead of one church," said Daren Casper, Executive Director of St. Louis Metro to KMOX News. "And that's really where the idea of City Christian Academy began."
The current K-8 grades are accredited by Cognia, like many public schools, and through Association of Christian Schools International (ACSI). They're due to be reaccredited by ACSI next year, in line with adding the first freshman class.
Stuart McMillian
City Christian Academy says the goal is to have 15 kids in the ninth grade for next year.
"What we know in St. Louis City is that there are lots of great options to send their students to school," said Kale Uzzle, head of the school. "If we are going to offer something new, it has to be valuable from the perspective of being a Christian school, but also just has to be a great school."
"I live in this neighborhood, I got three girls who are growing up in this neighborhood. I value Christian education, but I want it to be a quality academic education as well. It has to be both. We can't choose one lane."
Mike Gregory, who is the former head of school and pastor's the Tower Grove Baptist, says diversity of kids K-8 has shifted.
"When I arrived back in 2007, we probably were about 70% White and about 25% African American," said Gregory. "Now our school is probably about 40-45% refugee families."
"Now, we didn't change it ourselves. Someone one day asked me 'How did you come up with this strategy?'" We didn't. It was God's plan."
St. Louis Metro has been fundraising to give scholarships to refugee children so they can attend City Christian Academy.
Every year they will add a grade starting with 9th grade in 2025. 15 kids to start. One has already signed up.
City Christian Academy says they plan to have high school sports, beginning with basketball, volleyball, and cross country at first. The mascot is for City Christian Academy will continue to be the Tigers.
Tuition will be $9,800 a year.
