Conway Christian School exists to partner with Christian families by offering a biblically-directed, college preparatory education focused on equipping students to serve and impact the world for Jesus Christ.
FAITH: We believe in God. We believe in the truth presented in the 66 books of the Holy Bible. We believe Jesus Christ died on the cross, was dead, then resurrected. We believe that all who believe in Him will not perish but have eternal life.
WISDOM: We believe wisdom is obtained by understanding God's word and through a personal relationship with Jesus Christ. We do not believe wisdom can be obtained through worldly knowledge, instead, it is an act of learning Godly wisdom and then implement that knowledge into our daily lives.
INTEGRITY: We believe that a person's character, honesty, morals, and manners still matter in today's world. We want to help raise up the next generation of men and women filled with integrity.
GROWTH: We believe growth should be a life-long journey of pursuing excellence. That growth should be represented in our person, in our relationships with others, and in our professions.
LOVE: We believe all students can thrive when they are loved. At Conway Christian, we want to show students love through encouragement, praise, accountability, and our graced-based discipline model.
CHRISTIAN COMMUNITY STATEMENT
Conway Christian School is a community of Christian believers whose purpose is to educate students in the biblical principles that the traditional Christian Church has been commissioned from Jesus Christ (Matt 28:18-20). A Christian believer is defined as an individual that has been convicted of their sin by the Holy Spirit, repented of their sin to God and put their faith in Jesus Christ as their personal Lord and Savior. CCS practices the fundamentals of the faith by following the sixty-six books of the Bible that the historical Christian Church has affirmed to be God's Holy Scripture. Our focus is to bring together the CCS community of Christian believers and diligently work in harmony consisting of the Board of Trustees, administration, faculty, staff and parents to "train up a child in the way he should go" (Proverbs 22:6), and "I have no greater joy than to hear my children walk in truth" (3 John 1:4).
The goal of campus life at Conway Christian is to live, work, serve, and worship together as an educational community centered on the Lord Jesus Christ. Our mission as an academic community is not merely the transmission of information it is “To partner with Christian families in a biblically-directed, college preparatory education focused on equipping students to serve and impact the world for Jesus Christ”. It is the development of the whole person who will build the church and benefit society “For Christ and His Kingdom.” Along with the privileges and blessings of home and school partnership the Conway Christian community takes these responsibilities seriously.
“All scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness.” - 2 Timothy 3:16
The biblical foundation of Christian community is expressed in Jesus’ two great commandments: “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind,” and “Love your neighbor as yourself” (Matthew 22: 37-40). Jesus himself perfectly demonstrated the pattern: love for God, acted out in love for others, in obedience to God’s word. Acknowledging our dependence on the power and grace of God, the representatives of Conway Christian which includes our board of trustees, employees, registered volunteers, as well as the participants which include all our students, parents of students, unregistered volunteers and invited guests humble covenant to live according to this ideal and also expressed in the following guidelines:
Required by the law: Conway Christian beliefs include all conduct required by the law of the land. All conduct prohibited by the law is outside the boundaries of Conway Christian beliefs. Examples of this category would be the illegal use of alcohol (specifically consumption by minors or situations where parents knowingly allow minors to drink in their presence), drugs or other substances.
Proscribed by the Bible: While certain conduct may or may not be declared by the state to be unlawful, the Conway Christian representative and the Conway Christian participant is to avoid conduct proscribed by the historical Christian Church as unbiblical. (Note: while some practices proscribed by the historical Christian Church may actually be protected by the law as individual rights under the law, that conduct might still violate the biblical command for conduct acceptable for a follower of Christ) A contemporaneous example is the declaration by the US Supreme court that homosexual marriage must be included in the definition of marriage that can be officially sanctioned by the state. Such declaration by the court does not change the historically Christian or Conway Christian view that the rite of marriage for Christians is between a man and woman.
Laws governing commerce ban discriminations on the basis of race, color, sex, nationality, age and disability generally apply to religious organizations, with the noteworthy exception that religious organizations like Conway Christian School and our community are allowed to make decisions on the basis of our religious beliefs. Conway Christian admits students of any race, color, national or ethnic origin to all the privileges and activities generally accorded to all students at the school.
As a private educational institution, Conway Christian admits and retains students based on academic and behavioral performance of each student. As a religious organization Conway Christian will exercise its position as a religious organization in the admissions, enrollment or any other category of our Christian community relationship if we believe that doing so will cause confusion, conflict or potentially compromise the community’s mission to provide a historically Christian, Jesus Christ-focused education. Any decision not to partner based on our beliefs will be based on the historical doctrines of the Church of Jesus Christ, limited and set forth in the sixty-six books of the Bible, which we view to be the true word of God, and the only word of God, infallible in its truth and practice. All final decisions will be made by the Conway Christian President/CEO with review, if necessary, by the Board of Trustees. The policy will apply to all Conway Christian community affairs, including contracts, activities and/or events, facilities and publications.
Conway Christian representatives shall be expected to (1) model our Christian beliefs anywhere, anytime including non-school hours (2) conduct all of their duties as a service to God and, (3) participate in distinctly Christian activities.
Christian Beliefs: Each representative shall affirm agreement with the school’s Doctrinal Statement, Mission Statement, Philosophy of Education, Core Values, Educational Objectives and any other official policies and procedures as outlined and approved by the Board of Trustees. In addition, representatives shall not subscribe to or promote any religious beliefs inconsistent with these beliefs.
Christian Conduct: Representatives shall at all times (both inside and outside of school hours) strive to live in accordance with the Biblical standards.
Distinctly Christian Activities: Each representative shall be ready, willing and capable to lead or contribute to distinctly Christian ministry activities such as Bible studies, worship or prayer services.
Christian Beliefs: Conway Christian requires that at least one parent or legal guardian of each student be a devoted follower of Jesus Christ as evidenced by a faith walk, testimony and active participation in a local historical Christian church. They must also adhere to the school’s Doctrinal Statement. In furtherance of its mission, the school provides educational instruction, programs, facilities and other activities for students. Each community representative is required to abide by this Community Covenant and be fully supportive of the school’s mission.
Registered Volunteers: A volunteer serving in a Conway Christian ministry is not considered to be a “representative” of the school’s Christian community unless they are serving in leadership positions on the PTF and/or Booster Club. However, all volunteers registered or non-registered (i.e concession workers, homeroom moms) are required to acknowledge that they understand and agree to support our school mission, policies and values by action and in communication. The school reserves the right to give preference for such service to alumni and volunteers who share our Christian beliefs.
Standards for Community Activities and Facility Use: Conway Christian engages in activities and uses its facilities solely to exercise, express and further our Christian beliefs and mission. At times, pending President/CEO and/or Board of Trustee approval we may allow use of our facility by groups that are not directly associated with Conway Christian. We reserve the right to prohibit any activity or use of our facilities by another group or person if we determine any of the following:
The person or group undermines our ability to accomplish our Mission.
The person or group expresses a message contrary to our Christian beliefs.
The person or group displays values or conduct contrary to our Christian beliefs.
Decision Making Process Includes a Spiritual Element: The responsibility of ensuring that each proposed activity, which directly or indirectly affects the reputation of our school, and any potential usage of Conway Christian facilities complies with the standards set forth in this document rests with the President/CEO, the Chairman of the Board of Trustees, and the representatives they delegate for such decisions. These leaders are expected to consider each situation with reliance upon the guidance that God provides through His Word and His Spirit. School leadership may disallow any activity or facility usage on the grounds that the individual or group possess views and beliefs which are perceived to be contrary to those of Conway Christian.Noncompliance: The President/CEO and the Chairman of The Board of Trustees will be responsible for determining cases of noncompliance toward the beliefs and/or expression of school’s Christian standards. Noncompliance will be defined by anything or anyone that embraces beliefs contrary to those of Conway Christian and/or attempts to limit the expression of those Christian beliefs and standards.
Additional Authority: Based on the Christian beliefs and standards of Conway Christian, the President/CEO or Chairman of the Board of Trustees may establish additional standards for proposed activities and facility usage that will both guard and express the beliefs of the school.
Limits: Conway Christian may change this document at any time. This document does not guarantee employment for anyone, and it does not affect the nature of the school-employee relationship which is solely at-will.
The doctrinal beliefs of the Conway Christian community are the same as those of the historical Christian church identified in the sixty-six books of the Bible. The new age faith systems identifying themselves as Christian, such as the Jesus Christ Church of Latter Day Saints (Mormons) and the Jehovah’s Witness are considered by Conway Christian School to be outside our circle of belief and not embraced by the historical Christian church.
It’s the belief of Conway Christian that admission of a student of a parent who believes in such a faith tradition outside the scope of the historical Christian church would create confusion in the classroom, would be counterproductive to our community, as well as to the applying family and potentially prevent us from fulfilling our mission. Therefore, admission will be denied when Conway Christian determines that the faith doctrine of an applicant does not align with the doctrine and mission of the Conway Christian community.
We profoundly believe that God created each human to pursue intimacy first with Him, and that He then calls some to pursue marriage others to a life of singleness. We also believe God created people in His image and chose to give humans a partner to reproduce and inhabit the earth. Thus God created Adam and Eve, as referred to in the Holy Bible. By creating two distinct genders, male and female, and that the intended biological gender is determined at the time of birth God then created a divine institution of marriage a covenant relationship between one man and one woman. He calls for all husbands and all wives to sexual fidelity within the covenant. We believe sexual relations outside of marriage, regardless of sexual orientation, are inconsistent with God’s truth and certainly undermine the way God created us and called us to live.
Our position regarding sexuality and marriage applies in all policies in Conway Christian community. Any events involving members of the community or event held in a Conway Christian facility pertaining to marriage (weddings, ceremonies, receptions, and/or anniversaries) shall involve only marriage consistent with our historical Christian beliefs regarding marriage. We require all community representatives and participants to live in accordance with our community beliefs regarding human sexuality and marriage.
CCS believes God creates people in His image as two distinct genders, male and female, and that the intended gender of an individual is determined by such individual’s biological sex at birth. Since the word of God, in the Holy Bible, describes humans as distinctly created to be man and woman, CCS will treat all students accordingly. Students born as male will be classified as boys, and students born female will be classified as girls. Furthermore:
1. Students will be required to use bathrooms aligned to the student’s biological sex at birth;
2. Students will be addressed by pronouns aligned to the student’s biological sex at birth;
3. When traveling on overnight trips, students will share accommodations with students of the same biological sex at birth;
4. Students will be required to participate in athletics that align with the student’s biological sex at birth; and
5. School dress code policies for male and female students will be enforced according to the student’s biological sex at birth.
In conclusion, any stance that does not align with the policy above regarding sexual identification and orientation is considered to be in direct opposition of CCS’s definition of partnership between the home and school.
Politics and Public Communication
In many situations advocacy for certain political positions may be construed by others in our community and outside our community to be at odds with our religious beliefs or those in our community. For this reason, Conway Christian does not offer nor do we acknowledge or allow community members, non-community members, to publicly advocate for such political positions while on campus, at school events or activities. An elected official shall be allowed to speak to a group of Conway Christian students while on campus for educational purposes but shall adhere to our rules for not advocating his or her political position(s). Conway Christian community representatives are not allowed to assume roles as advocates or spokespersons for civil rights groups related to same-sex marriage or the rights for sexual orientation contrary to our community beliefs. In any and all public forums, including social media and/or the internet we expect and require community representatives to uphold our Conway Christian community beliefs and not to challenge or undermine any stated belief. If a representative makes a choice to express his or her position, which does not conflict with our stated beliefs, we expect them to do so in a manner of respect and love while making sure they are not expressing the view of Conway Christian and our religious organization.
Specifically, we aim to create individuals who become life-long learners with a growth mindset. We believe students can reach their full potential by having the habitual desire to gain the wisdom that comes from God’s truth along with the knowledge of the world in which he created. To accomplish this we strive to balance proven educational methods with research-driven new best practices within our educational system. Our desire is to develop a student who can engage today’s multi-faceted culture successfully and positively impact those around them.