1. Support and reinforce Christian parents in fulfilling God's command to educate their children. Because of Christ's love and word, parents, children, and teachers can share in a fellowship that is eternal (Eph. 6:4; Deut. 6:6-9).
2. Assist the local church in its teaching (discipleship) responsibilities to the Body of Christ (Eph. 4:11-16).
3. Meet or exceed minimum local, state, and federal requirements in accordance with God's Word ( Rom. 13:1-7).

We believe a Christ-centered education includes, at a minimum:

1. The concept that all truth is revealed in the person of Jesus Christ as taught in the Bible and as revealed in nature (Col. 1:15-23; John 14:6).
2. The concept that we promote an understanding of God and His creation from the perspective of developing a personal relationship with Him (Micah 6:8).
3. The concept that virtue (moral excellence) has a divine priority over the acquisition of knowledge (II Pet. 1:5).
4. The rejection of any view that requires a denial of Biblical truth as it might appear to conflict with scientific theories of discoveries. Children need to be taught scientific creationism and to be exposed to the false teaching of humanism and evolutionary theory.

To meet the goals of this philosophy, we have adopted the following criteria:

1. Our staff and faculty must be committed to holy living, continuous preparation, having a servant's heart and attitude, and personal professionalism.
2. The curriculum and the teaching should reflect the Bible as foundational in every subject area. Noah Webster stated, “An education without the Bible is useless.”
3. The school exists to assist parents in their God-given responsibilities of educating their children, not to assume that responsibility. It is imperative that the parents and children be supportive of this philosophy as practiced in the day-to-day operation of the school. This belief is set forth in our Family School Covenant.
4. A Christ-centered education should provide achievable, consistent and clearly recognizable objectives that provide a challenging educational opportunity.
5. The Christ-centered education should reflect the Christian ethic in every area of student, staff, and faculty activities (Col. 3:17, 23).
6. All educational components should aid in achieving expected student outcomes addressing four areas: Academic/Thinking, World view, Spiritual Formation and Skill Development.

The following guidelines for curriculum have been established:

1. The programs of instruction will be sequential and systematic.
2. The programs of instruction should teach students the processes of inquiry, discovery, and conceptualization which can be used in all areas of life.
3. Each student should experience success and progress in understanding all subjects to the fullest extent possible.
4. All teachers are responsible for developing skills and concepts as they become necessary within the context of each subject area. Fairfield Christian Academy provides the teaching staff with a series of continuing education seminars to sharpen their skills.
5. Each child is created in the image of God with an individual learning style, so that different approaches and materials are used to help each child reach their full potential in the classroom.
6. Cooperation in having three-way communication among the student, parent, and teacher is essential. This is a holy covenant of prayer, love, and support.

The contents of the curriculum should be both responsible to the needs of society to include the skills and concepts that students need as a foundation for their future and present a Biblical worldview.

FCA's stance on Common Core

DOCTRINAL POSITION

God is blessing this ministry because we place Jesus Christ as the focal point of everything we do. The positions expressed in this handbook are intended to reflect that statement of faith. We will teach without compromising on the central message of the Word of God, and we will stand solidly behind the Statement of Faith that appears in this handbook. Even though we have many denominations represented in our student body, we have experienced great unity at Fairfield Christian Academy . We recognize that those of us who belong to the body of believers have some differences related to our particular denominations. When these particular issues are raised in our school, we refer students to their parents and their home churches for guidance and for answers.

ACADEMIC AFFILIATION & RECOGNITION

Fairfield Christian Academy has a Charter from the State of Ohio Department of Education. All grades K-12 meet or exceed the standards set by the State. Although the school is hosted by and is a ministry of Fairfield Christian Church, it is an interdenominational body with a student body representing over 100 churches in Fairfield County and surrounding areas. The school also holds membership in the Association of Christian Schools International (ACSI).

CORE VALUES

According to the Bible, parents are responsible for the training of their children (Deut. 6:1-7; Prov. 22:6; Eph. 6:1-4). The Fairfield Christian Academy partners with Christian parents in providing an excellent education consistent with Biblical truth. Harmony between home and school provides the best environment for Godly training to take place. We seek to nurture development of the following essential character traits in the lives of our students:

INTEGRITY: Maintaining a lifestyle that is above reproach.
A Christian should be honest, moral, and trustworthy in all dealings (Titus 1:8; Job 27:5; Prov. 11:3, 20:11 ; 1 Kings 9:4; Ps. 15).

RESPECT: An attitude that highly esteems those in properly placed authority.
Parents, teachers, employers, governmental authority, and church leaders have been placed in our lives by God. God gave us a Biblical command to honor them for our own good (Rom. 13:1-7; Heb. 13:7; 1 Peter 2:13-21; 1 Thes. 5:12-13).

OBEDIENCE: The outworking of the attitude of respect.
We are to obey God and all those He has placed over us in our lives. When we obey, we show our love and respect for God and the authorities He has ordained. Our lives then will be long and fruitful as He has promised (John 14:21 ; Eph. 6:1-4; Rom. 13:1-7; Prov. 6:23 ).

SELF-DISCIPLINE: The ability to control one's thoughts and actions.
The goal is to have a life under control—self-disciplined by the Spirit of God (Gal. 5:22 -26; Job 5:17 ; Prov. 16:32 , 25:28; 1 Tim. 4:7,8).

GODLY LIVING: A lifestyle that exhibits the fruit of the Spirit and flees from the acts of our sinful nature.
Our standards are found in God's Word, and our desire must be one with God and His holiness (Gal. 5:16-26; 2 Tim. 2:22; 1 Peter 1:13-16, 2:9-10; 1 Cor. 6:12-20; Prov. 23:29-35; Phil. 4:8; Rom. 8:6-8).

WISDOM: Understanding what is true from God's perspective, and doing what is right.
Wisdom comes from God and our respect for Him. It is developed in our lives by our proper response to correction. If we do not respond to correction with a teachable spirit, the Bible calls us fools and unable to attain wisdom (Prov. 1:7, 20-33; Prov. 2:1-22; Prov. 4:7).

RESPONSIBILITY: Being dependable and accountable in all relationships and tasks.
We are accountable to each other to love, encourage, confront, comfort, and forgive. Furthermore, initiative, intellectual integrity, and excellence should be the marks of all tasks we attempt (1 Cor. 13; Matt. 18:15-17; Gal. 6:1-5; Eph. 5:29-32; Eccl. 9:10).

THANKFULNESS: Developing an attitude of gratefulness.
We are to be thankful for everything God brings into our lives. Knowing that God's dealings in our lives are intended for our “good” will help create an attitude of gratefulness for the things others do for us (Phil. 4:6, 7; 1 Thes. 5:18 ; Col. 2:7; Eph. 5:20).

SERVICE: A spirit of humility in focusing on the needs of others.
Christ is our example in living a life that is not self-centered but rather seeking ways to serve not rule (Eph. 5:21; Phil. 2:3-11; James 4:6,10).

ETERNAL VALUES: A focus that is upward.
The key is to live each day with the realization that only what is done for eternity counts (James 4:14 ; Matt. 6:33; Matt. 6:19-21).

NON-DISCRIMINATORY POLICY

The Fairfield Christian Academy School Board located at 1965 North Columbus Street in Lancaster, Ohio, adopted the following racial non-discriminatory policy:

“Fairfield Christian Academy admits students of any race, color, or ethnic origin to all the rights, privileges, programs, and activities. In addition, the school will not discriminate on the basis of race, color, or ethnic origin in the administration of its educational programs and athletic/extracurricular activities. In addition, the school is not intended to be an alternative to court or administrative agency ordered, or public school district initiated, desegregation. Fairfield Christian Academy will not discriminate on the basis of race, color or ethnic origin in the hiring of its certified or non-certified personnel.”