Planned Kittanning private Christian school holds kickoff meeting
KITTANNING — Dozens of families in Armstrong County got a first look at Providence Classical Academy, a proposed private Christian K-6 school which plans to open its doors in the fall of 2027.
The school hosted its “vision night” at Harvest Church in Kittanning on Thursday night, Oct. 15. The event offered an open house where planners presented their vision for what it called a “classical education” for children.
“Classical education is both a philosophy of education that focuses on the liberal arts, but it’s also the way the class is structured,” Elizabeth Harvey, the head of school, said. “It is focusing on the grammar, the logic and the rhetoric, and the study of words to help kids know and understand information and then to express themselves with wisdom and eloquence.”
The school will set up shop in the children’s wing of Harvest Church for its first year.
While Harvest did play a role in the founding of the school — and Harvest Church executive pastor William Land led the presentation at vision night — Land said the academy is a separate body from the church and the church is merely trying to provide the school with a foundation and a temporary place to stay.
“I stand before you as a representative of both institutions, but Harvest’s intention is not to oversee the school,” Land said. “Harvest’s participation thus far in this school has primarily been oversight of its foundational documents and its doctrinal statements. The goal of Harvest Church is to build the school on an immovable rock that it cannot drift from.”
Unlike typical schools, Providence Classical Academy will not rely on a traditional grade structure. Instead, the school will use what it calls a mastery placement model, in which students are placed according to their skill level in specific subjects.
“Cohorts allow for us to actually talk about what matters, not just getting through material and ready to move on to the next grade, but instead actually mastering the material,” Heather Lloyd, a consultant from Concordis Education Partners, said.
Providence’s schedule would have children taking core classes in math, language arts, humanities, science and art Monday through Thursday, while Friday would be set aside for an optional enrichment day.
“That would be an opportunity for kids to go deeper into their learning,” Harvey said. “There would be an opportunity for some additional reading, as well as an opportunity for some additional help with things that they might be struggling with.”
Children at Providence Classical will also be required to wear uniforms.
As a private school, Providence Classical Academy will be funded by a combination of tuition fees and outside fundraising. For the first year, tuition will be set at $8,500 per year for the four-day schedule, and an additional $1,500 to access the Friday enrichment day.
However, the school also plans to implement a $1,000-off legacy discount for the first 20 families who enroll at the school.
According to Harvey, interested families must go through an interview before their children can be considered for participation at the school.
“There's an inquiry that you can do online,” Harvey said. “You're invited for an interview and then there's an enrollment process that is finished up through an application.”
According to Land, the school does not intend to stay at the church building for very long and is hoping to raise enough funds to find a space of its own.
“Our goal is to get out of this building in a very short period of time,” Land said.
