We will absolutely be accepting the NC Opportunity Scholarship! Blue Ridge Classical Academy has completed the application process to be a North Carolina Direct Payment School. Until we are listed on the state’s website, you can select “Unknown” for your school. Families can change their school choice until August 1st. Please visit https://k12.ncseaa.edu/opportunity-scholarship/ to apply. The scholarship application deadline is March 6, 2025.

The application fee is refundable for families who complete the application process but are not accepted for enrollment. For families who are accepted and enroll their child, the application fee will be applied toward the first year of tuition.

We will be able to accommodate children with some exceptional needs to the extent that our resources allow. The Head of School will consult with your family to decide on the best placement for your child.

The Hillsdale College K-12 curriculum is not a Christian curriculum, but the values taught align with Christian teachings. The Bible will be taught as its own subject and will be integrated into other subjects and the life of the school. Teachers will integrate a biblical worldview in the classroom while teaching the classical curriculum.

The faculty, staff, and administration demonstrate their respect for, and value of the children entrusted to them by referring to them as “scholars.” Also, students are often regarded as passive receivers of information whereas scholars are deeply engaged in the learning process.

When our school is added to the Metro School Uniforms site in March, parents will be able to view all uniform options for boys and girls. An item is marked “optional” when there is no requirement that parents purchase that item. An example is the knit shorts girls can wear under the plaid jumper. Because the shorts are not a visible part of the uniform, parents can opt to purchase them through our uniform company or purchase similar shorts elsewhere. The boys’ dress shirt and plaid tie are optional because parents may elect not to purchase dress wear for their child. The girls’ plaid hair accessories are optional because parents may elect to forgo hair accessories or use the non-uniform hair accessories of their choice.

One benefit of uniforms is that they allow scholars’ behavior, work ethic, and character to be the focus of individual expression rather than appearance. Our scholars will have wide latitude in choosing shoes, backpacks, and water bottles to express their individual style.

Our classrooms will be teacher-focused rather than technology-focused. Students will not be permitted to use cell phones during the school day. Teachers will use computers for record-keeping and will project still images of texts and other information onto the classroom screen. Students will be exposed to technology, typing skills, and the design thinking process when developmentally appropriate, but technology will not be a primary instructional tool.

When we first open in the fall of 2025, we will not be offering after school care. Scholars will have the option to stay after school for ‘club’ activities 1-2 days per week. In our future, after-school care may be an option. This will be a fluid decision based on need and budget as the years go on.

Young children have a remarkable capacity to memorize text and retain it for many years. Texts that scholars memorize in earlier grades will be revisited when they are older. Early memorization supports later analysis and understanding of complex texts.

Primary classrooms will share a teacher assistant. Teacher assistants for upper elementary will be determined based on enrollment.

We plan to open with one classroom per grade level in the fall of 2025. Future growth will determine whether we shift to two classrooms per grade level.

BRCA places high value on parents’ role in educating and supporting the academic development of their children; for that reason, we will be very transparent about what scholars are being taught in the classroom. However, we understand that parents may not have sufficient background or training to assist with every subject/topic (e.g. phonics). We will do our best to support parent understanding of unfamiliar content, but requests for at-home support for those subjects/topics will be limited.

We plan to cap the class size at around 20. The classical education model has proven to be successful with larger class sizes than with a more modern curriculum.

We will not offer bus transportation for the first year but will consider adding it as the school grows. Until bus transportation is available, we will provide support to families who want to connect with other families for carpooling.

First, we will be hiring a full-time Student Resource Officer (SRO) through the county who will be on campus from morning drop-off through afternoon pick-up. We will conduct background checks for all faculty, staff and classroom volunteers; all visitors will be screened. We will be renovating the building with safety features in mind and will continuously monitor our practices to maintain a safe environment. Our scholars will not use campus spaces at the same time as the college students who attend Fruitland Baptist Bible College.

We are mindful of the importance of family time each evening and will strive to respect that time in our decisions about homework. Homework will be assigned, but it will be a developmentally appropriate length and focused on meaningful learning. Kindergarten homework will be a 20-minute parent read-aloud each evening. For first grade, the 20-minute parent read-aloud will continue, and a small amount of written work will be added. The goal for first grade is to keep written homework to approximately 10 minutes. The amount of homework will increase gradually as your child progresses through grade levels.

No. Students will remain in their everyday uniform for PE in elementary school. Girl uniform options include a scooter with built-in knit shorts, slacks, or a jumper with shorts worn underneath, so maintaining modesty in PE should not be an issue. As we add grade levels over the years, we will revisit this topic.

Students must be 5 years old on or before August 31 to start kindergarten. Kindergarten testing will be limited to a parent assessment questionnaire that is part of the application process. All students will begin at the grade level appropriate for their age. Except in very rare cases, students are best served in classrooms with their same-age peers. The Hillsdale curriculum is rigorous and can be used to challenge students who are academically gifted.

The enrollment paperwork will include questions about your child’s health conditions including allergies and food restrictions. Food allergy information will be shared with all faculty and staff who supervise your child and will be considered when planning for special snacks and treats.

School-wide chapel will be held once per week during full academic weeks.

We believe that a nationally normed achievement test is helpful for tracking our scholar’s academic progress. However, our curriculum will not focus on “teaching to the test” and we will not promote a high-pressure, high-stakes testing environment in the classroom. We believe that by teaching the Hillsdale curriculum content well on a daily basis, our scholars will be prepared to demonstrate their learning on an achievement test. Test preparation will be limited to familiarizing our scholars with test format and the testing processes.

We do not yet have specific details as to what will be offered in the first year. However, we can commit to providing each scholar with the opportunity to participate in an after-school extracurricular activity at least one day per week. If sufficient parents volunteer to supplement the extracurricular activities led by our faculty and staff, we will expand to allowing our scholars to participate two days per week. We also hope to offer competitive sports as our school grows.