Christian School

The Church & the Christian School:

A Guide for Leaders of Christian Day School Ministries and their Sponsoring Churches

Click here for more extensive chapter summaries.

To request your copy, contact Dr. Jay Hancock directly at hancjay@gmail.com.

TABLE OF CONTENTS

1. TROUBLE IN THE CHURCH-SCHOOL RELATIONSHIP

    • Struggles that churches and schools face
    • What experts are saying about these struggles and possible solutions

2. A THEOLOGY OF CHRISTIAN SCHOOL MINISTRY IN THE LOCAL CHURCH

    • The Biblical Definition of Ministry
    • The Biblical Definition of Education
    • The local church’s role in Christian school ministry
    • What the Bible teaches about the relationship between the church and the school

3. A HISTORY OF SOUTHERN BAPTIST CHRISTIAN SCHOOL EDUCATION

    • Historical overview of Christian school education from the early church to present
    • Statistics about the growth of Christian school education in America
    • History of Southern Baptist’s efforts toward Christian school education
    • Lessons from church history about the relationship between the church and the school

4. PROBLEMS FACED BY CHURCHES AND THEIR CHRISTIAN SCHOOL MINISTRIES

    • Common Issues that churches and school face: governance, space and finances
    • The varying purposes and competing philosophies of Christian school education
    • The debate between secular vs. Christian school education
    • Communication issues that churches and schools face

5. A MODEL FOR THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN A SOUTHERN BAPTIST CHURCH AND ITS CHRISTIAN SCHOOL MINISTRY

    • Arriving at a philosophy of Christian education
    • Implications of that philosophy of education for the church and school
    • Models for school governance
    • The roles of a school board or committee, the school administrator and the church’s pastor
    • Managing inevitable conflict through communication
    • Addressing financial issues such as annual budgeting, tuition, salaries and budget surpluses and deficits
    • Addressing space issues and related issues like calendar planning and room use policies

6. CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATIONS

    • Summary of the research and findings
    • How churches and their schools can build and maintain a healthy relationship
    • Identifying potential areas of conflict and making critical decisions in advance