Trinity Christian School

: "This article is about the school in Fairfax, Virginia. For other uses please see Trinity Christian School (disambiguation)"Infobox HighSchool


name = Trinity Christian School
motto = "Pursuing Excellence for the Mind & Heart"
established = 1987
type = Private
headmaster = Dr. David Vanderpoel
city = Fairfax
state = Virginia
country = USA
students = About 550 students(1st through 12th)
faculty = 73 (Specialists and Teachers)
free_label =
free =
campus = Braddock Road Campus
mascot = Guardian [A Knight in Armor]
colors = Blue, Black, Silver, and White
homepage = http://www.tcsfairfax.org/

Trinity Christian School was founded in 1987 as a non-denominational Christian school. It is located in Fairfax, Virginia on Braddock Road and provides quality Christian education from grades 1 through 12. Trinity has a current enrollment of over 550 students and is building an additional facility, set to be finished in the spring of 2009, that will raise enrollment by 200.

= Brief History =

Since its founding in 1987, Trinity Christian School of Fairfax has served as an intentionally distinctive school for families in Northern Virginia who seek a Christian education for their children. As an independent Christian school, Trinity has remained steadfast in its commitment to the pursuit of excellence for mind and heart. Faith and learning are integrated throughout all aspects of the academic and co-curricular program in order to facilitate the development of knowledge, character, and service in the lives of our students.

Nearly twenty years ago, a group of concerned parents saw a need for a Christian school in Northern Virginia that was committed to academic excellence and spiritual vitality. These forward thinking men and women, together with the leadership of Truro Episcopal Church in Fairfax, began praying fervently for the Lord’s wisdom and provision in founding just such a school. The hard work of exploring what it would take to launch such an endeavor was carried out joyfully by those who sought to serve the Lord by putting together a school designed to provide a Christian education for children of Christian families.

After much prayer and discussion, the vision shared by these Christian families became clearer when, in 1987, the vestry of Truro voted to found an independent Christian school that would bear the name Trinity Christian School. J.C. Lasmanis, was named as the first headmaster and Trinity Christian School began a journey marked by God’s blessing and gracious provision.

In 1990, Jim Beavers took over the reins as headmaster and led the school through significant growth and expansion for ten years. During those years both a middle and upper school were added, the faculty grew, enrollment increased, God provided additional campus facilities and knit together a school community with a common vision for quality Christian education.

From its modest beginnings with forty-one students in first through third grades, three full-time faculty members, and a director with a budget of $150,000, Trinity has grown to an enrollment of over 500 students in grades one through twelve and an annual operating budget of four million dollars. Since its inception, the school has experienced steady growth as grades have been added.

By 1997 the student body had grown from 41 students on a single campus at Truro to 300 students in grades 1-10 on four separate campuses. 1997 was also the year that God provided, through the generous giving of faithful individuals, the 26 acre site on which the Trinity campus now resides.

In 2001, Trinity graduated its first class and named a new headmaster, Dr. Todd Williams. That fall, 50 faculty and staff served 400 students on the school’s four campuses in and around Fairfax. In 2002, after significant funds were raised and the school became the first of its kind in the region to receive approval for tax-exempt bond financing, construction of the new facilities began. In September 2003, Trinity opened the doors to its new 26 acre campus facility on Braddock Road with 450 students and over 50 faculty and staff members. When Dr. Williams returned to Philadelphia Biblical University as Provost in the summer of 2005, the board of trustees appointed Dr. David Vanderpoel as Trinity’s fourth headmaster.

Trinity Christian School is continually growing in community and fellowship. Trinity is now in Phase II of its building project, which by spring of 2009 should yeild another facility that will increase enrollment by about 200. The senior class has grown from three in 2001, to twenty-eight in 2006, to fifty in 2008. The faculty, along with the student body, has also increased in size- from three full time staff members in 1987 to seventy-three full and part-time staff members in 2008, with approximately one-third holding advanced degrees.

= School Profile =

Alumni

Since it's first graduating class of three in 2001, Trinity claims alumni from such schools as The Massachusetts Institute of Technology, The University of Chicago, The United States Military Academy at West Point, The University of Virginia, The College of William and Mary, Baylor University, The University of Pittsburgh, Virginia Tech, and Wheaton College (Illinois).

- 172 alumni since 2001

- 96% of them are college-bound

TCS National Merit Scholars

- 18 Commended
- 10 Finalists

Academics

Trinity offers a rigorous academic program that includes detailed courses on the Biblical Scriptures (Old Testament and New Testament), Church History, and Christian Apologetics.

Faculty

73 Faculty & Staff- 60 women, 13 men
- 50 full time
- 23 part time

Advanced Degrees

- 20 Master's degrees
- 1 PhD
- 4 Master's degree candidates
- 1 PhD candidate

Facilities

26 acres; 45,000 sq/ft building
Computer Research Lab
3 Science Labs
2 Art Rooms
LS/MS Library
Band Room
Chorus Room
25 Classrooms
Practice Gym
Soccer & Lacrosse Fields
LS Playground

Enrollment

550 students

6% increase over 2006-07
92% returning; 8% new
55% girls, 45% boys
Lower School (1-5)Middle School (6-8)Upper School (9-12)

363 families

61 new families
over 90 churches represented
52 different zip codes

Tuition/Financial

Kindergarten $6,800
Lower School (LS) $7,650
Middle School (MS) $8,050
Upper School (US) $9,050
Student Activity Fee $500

Over $400,000 in financial aid

Athletic Teams

Boys:

MS/US Basketball
MS/US Soccer
US Lacrosse
US Baseball

Girls:

MS/US Volleyball
MS/US Basketball
MS/US Soccer
MS/US Cheerleading

Athletic Honors

Trinity competes in the Northern Virginia Independent Athletic Conference (NVIAC) and has won numerous honors, including:
*varsity boys basketball: placed second in 2007 and third in 2008.
*varsity boys soccer: placed second in 2005 and 2008.
*varsity girls volleyball: placed first in 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, and 2008.
*varsity girls basketball: placed second in 2007.
*varsity girls soccer: placed third in 2008.

Traditions

Traditions include an annual homecoming dance, an upper school coffeehouse, a middle school talent show, an upperschool dodgeball tournament,a spring art show, and a junior skit satirizing the newly graduated seniors.

Clubs and Groups

MS and US Student Government
US Debate Club
US Math Club
Yearbook
US Softball Club (Girls)
MS/US Tennis Club
MS/US Cross Country Club (Boys and Girls)
MS Lacrosse (Boys)
Ms Girls Track

Performing Arts

LS/MS/US Chorus
MS/US Band
MS/US Drama
LS/MS/US Strings

TCS Memberships

ACSI - Association of Christian Schools International

ECFA - Evangelical Council for Financial Accountability

NVIAC - Northern Virginia Independent Athletic Conference

VCPE - Virginia Council for Private Education

FCCC - Fairfax County Chamber of Commerce