Nashville Christian School

Nashville Christian School (or simply Nashville Christian) is a private Christian school located outside of Bellevue, in Nashville, Tennessee. The school was founded in 1971 as white families sought to avoid having their children bussed across the city with black children during the court ordered desegregation of Nashville public schools.[1]

Nashville Christian School
Address
7555 Sawyer Brown Road

Nashville
,
Tennessee

United States of America
Coordinates36.1068°N 86.9318°W / 36.1068; -86.9318
Information
Typeco-ed, private, Early Education through 12th
Motto"And Jesus increased in wisdom, and in stature, and in favor with God and man." Luke 2:52
Religious affiliation(s)Church of Christ
Established1971
PresidentConnie Jo Shelton
Faculty73 (as of 2008)
Enrollment650 (as of 2007)
Student to teacher ratio15:1
Campussuburban
Color(s)               Navy Blue, Orange and White
MascotEagle
Websitehttp://nashvillechristian.org

History

Nashville Christian School opened on September 20, 1971 in the West Nashville Heights Church of Christ building. The school was founded as a segregation academy by white parents seeking to avoid sending their children to racially integrated public schools.[1] In 1976, headmaster Daryl Demonbreun recalled that the school was not "only formed to avoid integration" but that "bussing was only the straw that broke the camel's back."[2]

Initially, 266 students, ranging from first to seventh, attended the school, supported by 19 faculty members. Nashville Christian added higher grades successively in the first five years, and after the school moved to its current location on Sawyer Brown Road in Nashville, Tennessee outside of Bellevue in September 1976, twenty-two students became the first graduates in June 1977. Kindergarten classes were also added in 1981.[3]

In the 1970s, the school was reported to have a reputation for its fans shouting racial epithets at black athletes who play for visiting teams.[1]

Nashville Christian became accredited with the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools in 1986. The same year, the school added the Gibson Center, a fieldhouse with a gymnasium, locker rooms, and classrooms. Financial problems in 1991 caused the school to be temporarily closed, but the school quickly rebounded after. The campus continued to expand in 2004, as a new elementary and middle school building opened, allowing Nashville Christian to expand its enrollment and school-related programs.[3]

Academics

Nashville Christian serves as a college preparatory school to its high school students. The curriculum features twenty-seven college credits in English, math, history, and speech. Honors, dual enrollment, and Advanced Placement classes are also offered.

Extracurricular activities

Athletics

Nashville Christian's athletic teams, which were added within two years of its establishment, originally bore the nickname "Pioneers", until the student body voted to change the nickname to the "Eagles" in 1972. Today Nashville Christian fields athletic teams at both the middle school and high school levels. They include:[4]

  • Varsity Baseball
  • Varsity Basketball
  • Varsity Football
  • Varsity Softball
  • Golf
  • Track
  • Wrestling
  • Cross Country
  • Soccer

References
  1. Ivey, Sandra; Crowe, Adell (August 6, 1980). "Private Schools nearly white". The Tennessean. p. 15.
  2. York, Max (October 10, 1976). "Parents keep school on the move". The Nashville Tennessean. p. 3F – via Newspapers.com.
  3. NCS Mission, Vision, and History
  4. Nashville Christian School Extracurricular Schedules

Official website

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