In my Zoom orientation session with parents before school started, I reminded you that we do not want this year to be consumed by COVID, face masks, and quarantines. We certainly need to navigate the pandemic with diligence and wisdom, but we do not want to lose sight of the great task of educating our children in the Lord. This process of teaching and learning under the Lordship of Christ, of nurturing a love for truth, goodness, and beauty, and preparing hearts and minds for eternity must be our focus. Our children grow up fast and will be out of our nests before we know it (Says the dad whose daughter is speaking to a missions organization about spending next summer in Africa!). The days we have are precious. Let us make them count for Christ. I am reminded of the phrase I hear from Ligonier Ministries, “Right Now Counts Forever.” Let us look beyond the present challenges and make this school year count forever.
 
As we venture into 2020-21 with a desire to make these days count for eternity it will be helpful to remind ourselves of the essentials of our mission. Veritas is accredited by the Association of Classical Christian Schools (ACCS). On the ACCS website there is a new and excellent overview of the essentials of classical Christian education You will find a well-organized and clearly presented summary of the basics of what we strive to do at Veritas. They start with an excellent definition of what it’s all about.
 
Classical Christian education is an educational category which establishes a biblical worldview (called Paideia) by incorporating ancient methods of student development. It includes the cultivation of the 7 Christian Virtues, training student reasoning through the Trivium (Grammar, Logic, and Rhetoric), and interacting with the historical Great Books.
 
These pages also provide great discussions about purposes, Christ-centered learning, methods, content, curriculum, and other areas. The more all of us (administration, staff, teachers, and parents) understand and embrace this vision for educating our children, the better able we are to fully implement it. I encourage you to visit the ACCS website and read these definitions and discussions. It will be well worth your time.