Welcome to Stories
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Around 500 Christian educators gathered in Harare, Zimbabwe for the annual ACSI Zimbabwe Conference from September 3-5. Hosted at Gateway Primary School since 2009, and under ACSI Zimbabwe’s leadership since 2018, the conference has become a significant recurrent gathering for encouragement, training, impartation and unity for educators across the region. Conference from September 3-5.
Expanding the reach of Christian education into a community requires vision, but that’s not all it requires. Expansion also requires resources… resources to develop and grow that vision into a reality. The leaders at ACSI-accredited Stillwater Christian School in Kalispell, Montana, are taking steps to bring their vision to life with the support of recent grants totaling millions of dollars. Early in 2025, the school received a $1 million grant from the Gianforte Family Foundation. This gift follows a $5 million donation from local businessman, Paul Wachholz, which was announced in September 2024.
The ACSI 2025 National Convention of Christian Educators, “Ven & Ve,” was nothing short of remarkable. This gathering in the Dominican Republic not only met but far surpassed its attendance goal, with 972 participants coming together from across the country. coming together from diverse regions across the country.
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The Association of Christian Schools International (ACSI) continues to advance Vision 2030, a strategic plan designed to strengthen and expand Christ-centered education around the world. We recently asked Jerry Nelson, ACSI’s Chief Ministry Officer, to share some of the most exciting updates related to the Ministry Team’s initiatives.
Our ACSI Africa team recently experienced a powerful reminder of why they do the important work that they do. They attended a local church service together with ACSI Senior Director of School Improvement Dr. Debbie MacCullough, and near the close of worship, the congregation sang the hymn “Fight the Good Fight.” On the way back from church, they reflected on how this beautifully captures the heart of Christian schooling. The mission is not only to educate but to continually point students to Christ—Who is both the way and the ultimate goal.
Featured Event
Public Policy and Advocacy Summit 2025
September 15–17, 2025 | Washington D.C.
Join us in Washington, D.C.! Our annual Public Policy and Advocacy Summit will be held in Washington, D.C., September 15-17. This year's special professional development summit will include panel discussions on important legislative issues, special guest speakers, and so much more.
Blog
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Michael Reeves quips in his book “Delighting in the Trinity” that Christians have reduced the doctrine of the Trinity to shamrocks, apples, and eggs. No wonder, he bemoans, that understanding the Trinity often seems irrelevant. Yet, the triune God is the most relevant reality there is. For us Christ-centered educators, however, it can be a struggle to understand or explain the Trinity.
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When the Lord said to Joshua, “Go up and attack Ai” (Joshua 8:1), I’m pretty sure he wasn’t talking about ChatGPT. Yet sometimes, it seems like that’s how we treat Scripture—searching for a proof-text answer to contemporary issues. Is the Bible telling us that we should take up arms against algorithms? Smash the supercomputers? Obliterate the large language models? Clearly not. (Though I’ll admit the mental picture here was too good to resist!)
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Artificial intelligence has entered our classrooms and staff meetings, sometimes in big ways, sometimes in subtle ones. It’s changing how we write, research, grade, plan, and even how we imagine what teaching could look like in the future. For Christian educators, this new reality brings both opportunity and challenge. The question isn’t whether AI will be part of education—it already is. The deeper question is, how will we, as Christian teachers and school leaders, engage it faithfully?
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Artificial intelligence is not just arriving at our schools’ doorsteps; it’s already in the classroom, the teacher’s lounge, and the administrative office. For educators, this moment can feel equal parts thrilling and unsettling. Is AI the solution to our most pressing educational challenges? Or will it erode the very human connections at the heart of teaching? The truth is that AI is neither a magic wand nor the end of education. Like any powerful tool, AI’s impact depends on the imagination, wisdom, and discernment with which we use it.
Podcast
Rachael Jones, Assistant Director of Professional Development sits down with Dr. Edward Bunn, Director of Professional Development, to discuss Leadership Development and the newly redesigned Leadership University.
Hear about the 2025 Public Policy & Advocacy Summit that just wrapped up in D.C., get to know ACSI's new Board Chair, Elisa Carlson, and enjoy a spotlight on an ACSI school seeing a revival in its student body.
Billy Sparacio brings nearly 30 years of experience in high school athletics, and he uses sports as a platform to mold young men and women for life beyond the game.
Jerry Nelson led this devotional at The King's Academy (FL), an ACSI Exemplary Accredited School, on August 7, 2025. He challenged TKA's faculty to be more like Jesus the teacher, speaking from John 20.
Stay Informed on ACSI's Events and Resources
President's Office
“I can think of no greater cause than to partner with you to advance Christ-centered education.” Dr. Larry Taylor, ACSI President & CEO
Dr. Taylor has been serving in education for over 30 years. He is passionate about training up this generation of disciples for Jesus Christ through Christian education.
Prior to accepting the President position at ACSI, Dr. Larry Taylor served twenty years as the Head of School at Prestonwood Christian Academy (PCA) in Plano, Texas. Prestonwood Christian Academy serves more than 1,600 students enrolled at four campuses as part of its school system.
Click the link below to read more.
ACSI's Mission
ACSI exists to strengthen Christian schools and equip Christian educators worldwide as they prepare students academically and inspire them to become devoted followers of Jesus Christ.
ACSI's Foundational 3 Pillars
Advancing
Leading Christ-centered education toward excellence and flourishing
We want all schools to aspire to, achieve, and remain committed to a biblically-based philosophy of education, standards that are measurable, and flourishing-related criteria. ACSI strives to lead, support, and serve Christian schools, and educators, by placing them on a path of growth and flourishing using the research-based Flourishing Schools Initiative. This model should link leadership and faculty professional development accreditation, and every culture-driving component of a school. A common philosophy, and a flourishing-based metric, would unify our efforts of advancing Christian schools and educators.
Access
Making Christ-centered education available and obtainable
ACSI is committed to making Kingdom education available to as many children and families as desire it, believing that such an education offers students an opportunity to grow in a loving relationship with their Creator, come to know His saving work through Jesus, and flourish in His Ephesians 2:10 calling for their lives. This commitment requires removing barriers to access for those who traditionally have not benefited from Christian school, as well as seeking out new ways to create access points to Kingdom education and the ability to thrive and be successful in that education—for all those who desire it.
Advocacy
Promoting and protecting Christ-centered education for today and tomorrow
As the largest evangelical Christian school association in the world, ACSI is by default viewed as the spokesperson for Christian schooling in the public square. In order to discharge this responsibility with excellence and seasoned speech (Colossians 4:6), and to equip our member schools to do the same, ACSI must invest in developing public-facing resources and forming strategic relationships with those working in the area of advocacy for Christian Education and for religious liberty.
Stay Connected to ACSI
The ACSI Community online forum exists to provide connection, collaboration, and networking with Christ-centered education advocates, educators, and influencers in a protected online environment.
ACSI Community offers Christian educators opportunities to Connect, Collaborate, Compel, Captivate, and Comprehend. Join thousands of like-minded education professionals around to globe to grow in knowledge, sharpen skills, and deepen your faith, in a safe, authentic virtual environment.
ACSI provide helpful tools for you to find the next position God has for you through a resume review search and career planning portal. You can also discover ACSI positions.
Thinking about serving internationally? PFO2Go will provide the confidence to enter a new culture in which to both work and live outside the United States.
ACSI Partners with Ron Blue Institute to Offer Students a Biblical Financial Literacy Course
Colorado Springs, CO – The Association of Christian Schools International (ACSI) is thrilled to announce its partnership with Ron Blue Institute. The Institute, which delivers biblically based financial wisdom through thought leadership and content for various channels, has created a unique biblical financial literacy course for students.
Through this partnership, both organizations hope to equip the next generation with a God-honoring understanding of how to steward finances well.
ACSI President & CEO Dr. Larry Taylor believes this partnership and course offering will be pertinent and useful for schools in training young Christians to understand their relationship with God and with stewarding resources.
“As a father and former head of school, I have had first-hand experience in witnessing the difference that a biblically sound understanding of finances makes in a student’s life,” he said. “This is a key area to help train our students in. Through this course, we hope to bolster a Christ-like approach to finances so that the next generation can go into the world and live differently, shining a light for Christ.”
Through this partnership, Ron Blue Institute and ACSI aim to address a gap in financial education within Christian schools.
Vice President of Educational Programs at Ron Blue Institute, Dr. Phil Gelatt, further explained the Institute’s approach to financial literacy.
“Rather than a prescriptive, step-by-step approach that sees finances as a transaction, we think the Bible has much to say about money, wealth, and possessions (over 2,300 verses), providing transcendent principles that can guide our hearts to greater love for God and for others,” Gelatt shared. “Jesus recognized the challenge when He said we can't serve God and money (Luke 16:13), reinforcing the idea that money really is a heart issue.”
According to Gelatt, research conducted by the Institute has revealed that many Christian schools either neglect financial literacy altogether or adopt a purely practical, hands-on approach. This partnership seeks to bridge that gap by embedding a biblical worldview into financial education, transforming how students think about and manage money in alignment with God's Word.
Gelatt shared his passion for equipping students.
“In the ever-changing world we live in, financial literacy practices are constantly changing,” he said. “Students today need to have a biblical foundation of what God has to say about money, a thorough knowledge of the principles that guide our financial decision making, and then be aware of what current practices with money are. Schools that teach from this perspective and teachers that provide living examples of this kind of life will have a lasting impact on their students for God's Kingdom.”
This partnership between ACSI and Ron Blue Institute marks a significant step forward in the mission to cultivate financially literate students who are equipped to make wise, God-honoring decisions in every aspect of their lives.
To learn more about the course, visit the website.
Strategic Partners
ACSI proudly presents the Strategic Partnership Program, which includes companies, organizations, and ministries who have been carefully chosen to benefit you—our member schools—and to assist you in accomplishing your life-changing mission.
