New Covenant Christian School
Encyclopedia
New Covenant Christian School (NCCS) is a classical Christian school
in Maryland
. It is composed of the Grammar School (K-6) and the Upper School (grades 7-12).
. (This is also the address of New Covenant Presbyterian Church, although the school has its own wing of the building.) NCCS is a ministry of New Covenant Presbyterian Church. The Upper School is located approximately five minutes from the Grammar School at 1515 Emmorton Road, Bel Air, Maryland. (This is also the address of Lutheran Church of the Good Shepherd (LCGS). LCGS’s only affiliation with NCCS is as host.)
of the school is the New Covenant Knight. The school colors are maroon and navy blue. A motto among the teachers and staff is “Sharpening minds, shepherding hearts, shaping lives.” The mission statement
of New Covenant Christian School is this: "We exist to glorify God by assisting parents in training their children to be Biblically-minded servant-leaders through a Reformed, Christ-centered, classical education."
Student Body
There are 111 students in the Grammar School and 80 in the Upper School. The class sizes are regulated, so they will reach no more than 18 students in kindergarten
through third grades, 20 in fourth through sixth grades, and no more than 22 students in upper school classes.
Although the school is a ministry of New Covenant Presbyterian Church, there are students from 47 different churches.
Uniforms
All students at NCCS are required to wear daily school uniform
s. Once a week though, on chapel days, students wear more formal uniforms.
Grammar School Boys wear white or maroon school polos, and navy pants or shorts for their daily uniforms. On chapel days they wear button-down, white shirts, navy pants and school ties.
Grammar School Girls wear white or maroon school polos, and navy skirts, skorts, or jumpers for their daily uniforms. On chapel days, they wear plaid jumpers and white blouses.
Upper School Boys wear maroon school polos and khaki pants or shorts for their daily uniforms. On chapel days, they wear button-down white shirts with school plaid ties and khaki pants.
Upper School Girls wear maroon school polos and khaki skirts for their daily uniforms. On chapel days, they wear white blouses and plaid skirts.
House System
A House System
has been recently instated in the Upper School (as of September, 2011). The house system is modeled after one of older European schools. The Upper School is broken into four houses, all named after influential historical figures: Athanasius House, Augustine House, Calvin House, and Luther House. Each house is led by an 11th or 12th grade student who serves as the House Captain. It is the Captain’s job to manage house operations along with the House Delegate, who is elected by the members of the house. The Captains and Delegates make up the Student Leadership Council (SLC), which works with faculty and administration to plan, organize, and manage many Upper School activities, such as social events, service projects, and competition
s.
Classical Education: The school follows the Classical Model of Education which is based on the structures of ancient and medieval education systems. Under the classical model students progress through the trivium: grammar, logic, and rhetoric stages.
In kindergarten through second grade at New Covenant, teachers focus primarily on phonic/scholastic, introduction to mathematics
, and proper behavior lessons.
By third grade and through sixth, the students progress through the grammar
phase. This phase of the trivium is built around the fact that in these years, children’s brains are developing in such a way that they are able to easily memorize information. So, in the third through sixth grades at NCCS, lessons include subjects such as multiplication
, land formations, countries and capitals, names and dates of important people and events in History, and English and Latin vocabulary.
Grades seven through nine make up the logic phase (or dialectic
phase). This phase is built around the fact that in these years, children naturally begin to question the world around them. The lessons in the logic years focus on reasoning skills: identifying relationships between facts and ideas, discerning fact from fallacy
, etc. Essentially, the learning of facts continues from the grammar years and analytical skills are added to those facts.
The rhetoric
phase is completed in grades ten through twelve. This phase is all about application. Students make practical use of the knowledge and skills they acquired in the grammar and logic phases. They are taught to creatively, eloquently, and effectively express themselves in writing and speech. There is also significant focus given to debate
in the rhetoric phase.
In the second half of the 2010 school year, Mark Cox joined NCCS as the Headmaster. He took over for Jason Van Bemmel who was the Headmaster for nearly eight years but left to pastor a PCA church in Cheraw, South Carolina
.
Mr. Cox has headmaster experience in three other Christian and classical schools. He has a Bachelor of Arts in Humanities and Biblical Studies from Atlanta Christian College
, a Master of Arts in Theological Studies from Reformed Theological Seminary
, and is currently a Doctoral candidate, finishing his dissertation to complete his Ph.D in Theology from the University of Glasgow
in Scotland
.
Grammar School
Jean Armstrong, who was the principal when the doors opened in 1999 is still the principal of the Grammar School. She spent several years teaching fourth and fifth grade at NCCS but eventually returned to the primary position of principal. Mrs. Armstrong graduated from UMBC with a Bachelor’s Degree in Elementary Education and Psychology. She also has a Master's Equivalency with a background in Applied Behavioral Science and Administration and Supervision. Mrs. Armstrong went on to spend 11 years teaching in Baltimore City Schools. During her time teaching in the city she earned her Advanced Professional Certificate from the Maryland State Department of Education.
The school's sports teams incldue:
The NCCS sports teams also include students of New Covenant Christian Academy, the home school organization affiliated with New Covenant Presbyterian Church.
Christian school
A Christian school is a school run on Christian principles or by a Christian organization.The nature of Christian schools varies enormously from country to country, according to the religious, educational, and political cultures...
in Maryland
Maryland
Maryland is a U.S. state located in the Mid Atlantic region of the United States, bordering Virginia, West Virginia, and the District of Columbia to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; and Delaware to its east...
. It is composed of the Grammar School (K-6) and the Upper School (grades 7-12).
Location
The Grammar School is located at 128 Saint Mary’s Church Road in Abingdon, MarylandAbingdon, Maryland
Abingdon is an unincorporated community in Harford County, Maryland, United States. It lies 25 miles northeast of Baltimore, near the Bush River.- History :Abingdon was named after Abingdon, England....
. (This is also the address of New Covenant Presbyterian Church, although the school has its own wing of the building.) NCCS is a ministry of New Covenant Presbyterian Church. The Upper School is located approximately five minutes from the Grammar School at 1515 Emmorton Road, Bel Air, Maryland. (This is also the address of Lutheran Church of the Good Shepherd (LCGS). LCGS’s only affiliation with NCCS is as host.)
School Identity
The mascotMascot
The term mascot – defined as a term for any person, animal, or object thought to bring luck – colloquially includes anything used to represent a group with a common public identity, such as a school, professional sports team, society, military unit, or brand name...
of the school is the New Covenant Knight. The school colors are maroon and navy blue. A motto among the teachers and staff is “Sharpening minds, shepherding hearts, shaping lives.” The mission statement
Mission statement
A mission statement is a statement of the purpose of a company or organization. The mission statement should guide the actions of the organization, spell out its overall goal, provide a path, and guide decision-making...
of New Covenant Christian School is this: "We exist to glorify God by assisting parents in training their children to be Biblically-minded servant-leaders through a Reformed, Christ-centered, classical education."
Student Body
There are 111 students in the Grammar School and 80 in the Upper School. The class sizes are regulated, so they will reach no more than 18 students in kindergarten
Kindergarten
A kindergarten is a preschool educational institution for children. The term was created by Friedrich Fröbel for the play and activity institute that he created in 1837 in Bad Blankenburg as a social experience for children for their transition from home to school...
through third grades, 20 in fourth through sixth grades, and no more than 22 students in upper school classes.
Although the school is a ministry of New Covenant Presbyterian Church, there are students from 47 different churches.
Uniforms
All students at NCCS are required to wear daily school uniform
School uniform
A school uniform is an outfit—a set of standardized clothes—worn primarily for an educational institution. They are common in primary and secondary schools in various countries . When used, they form the basis of a school's dress code.Traditionally school uniforms have been largely subdued and...
s. Once a week though, on chapel days, students wear more formal uniforms.
Grammar School Boys wear white or maroon school polos, and navy pants or shorts for their daily uniforms. On chapel days they wear button-down, white shirts, navy pants and school ties.
Grammar School Girls wear white or maroon school polos, and navy skirts, skorts, or jumpers for their daily uniforms. On chapel days, they wear plaid jumpers and white blouses.
Upper School Boys wear maroon school polos and khaki pants or shorts for their daily uniforms. On chapel days, they wear button-down white shirts with school plaid ties and khaki pants.
Upper School Girls wear maroon school polos and khaki skirts for their daily uniforms. On chapel days, they wear white blouses and plaid skirts.
House System
A House System
House system
The house system is a traditional feature of British schools, and schools in the Commonwealth. Historically, it was associated with established public schools, where a 'house' refers to a boarding house or dormitory of a boarding school...
has been recently instated in the Upper School (as of September, 2011). The house system is modeled after one of older European schools. The Upper School is broken into four houses, all named after influential historical figures: Athanasius House, Augustine House, Calvin House, and Luther House. Each house is led by an 11th or 12th grade student who serves as the House Captain. It is the Captain’s job to manage house operations along with the House Delegate, who is elected by the members of the house. The Captains and Delegates make up the Student Leadership Council (SLC), which works with faculty and administration to plan, organize, and manage many Upper School activities, such as social events, service projects, and competition
Competition
Competition is a contest between individuals, groups, animals, etc. for territory, a niche, or a location of resources. It arises whenever two and only two strive for a goal which cannot be shared. Competition occurs naturally between living organisms which co-exist in the same environment. For...
s.
History
The school was founded in 1999. At the start, only kindergarten and first grade were offered. Each year since then, NCCS has added one grade level. The school celebrated its first graduating class last year, 2010.Classical Education: The school follows the Classical Model of Education which is based on the structures of ancient and medieval education systems. Under the classical model students progress through the trivium: grammar, logic, and rhetoric stages.
In kindergarten through second grade at New Covenant, teachers focus primarily on phonic/scholastic, introduction to mathematics
Mathematics
Mathematics is the study of quantity, space, structure, and change. Mathematicians seek out patterns and formulate new conjectures. Mathematicians resolve the truth or falsity of conjectures by mathematical proofs, which are arguments sufficient to convince other mathematicians of their validity...
, and proper behavior lessons.
By third grade and through sixth, the students progress through the grammar
Grammar
In linguistics, grammar is the set of structural rules that govern the composition of clauses, phrases, and words in any given natural language. The term refers also to the study of such rules, and this field includes morphology, syntax, and phonology, often complemented by phonetics, semantics,...
phase. This phase of the trivium is built around the fact that in these years, children’s brains are developing in such a way that they are able to easily memorize information. So, in the third through sixth grades at NCCS, lessons include subjects such as multiplication
Multiplication
Multiplication is the mathematical operation of scaling one number by another. It is one of the four basic operations in elementary arithmetic ....
, land formations, countries and capitals, names and dates of important people and events in History, and English and Latin vocabulary.
Grades seven through nine make up the logic phase (or dialectic
Dialectic
Dialectic is a method of argument for resolving disagreement that has been central to Indic and European philosophy since antiquity. The word dialectic originated in Ancient Greece, and was made popular by Plato in the Socratic dialogues...
phase). This phase is built around the fact that in these years, children naturally begin to question the world around them. The lessons in the logic years focus on reasoning skills: identifying relationships between facts and ideas, discerning fact from fallacy
Fallacy
In logic and rhetoric, a fallacy is usually an incorrect argumentation in reasoning resulting in a misconception or presumption. By accident or design, fallacies may exploit emotional triggers in the listener or interlocutor , or take advantage of social relationships between people...
, etc. Essentially, the learning of facts continues from the grammar years and analytical skills are added to those facts.
The rhetoric
Rhetoric
Rhetoric is the art of discourse, an art that aims to improve the facility of speakers or writers who attempt to inform, persuade, or motivate particular audiences in specific situations. As a subject of formal study and a productive civic practice, rhetoric has played a central role in the Western...
phase is completed in grades ten through twelve. This phase is all about application. Students make practical use of the knowledge and skills they acquired in the grammar and logic phases. They are taught to creatively, eloquently, and effectively express themselves in writing and speech. There is also significant focus given to debate
Debate
Debate or debating is a method of interactive and representational argument. Debate is a broader form of argument than logical argument, which only examines consistency from axiom, and factual argument, which only examines what is or isn't the case or rhetoric which is a technique of persuasion...
in the rhetoric phase.
Administration
Upper SchoolIn the second half of the 2010 school year, Mark Cox joined NCCS as the Headmaster. He took over for Jason Van Bemmel who was the Headmaster for nearly eight years but left to pastor a PCA church in Cheraw, South Carolina
Cheraw, South Carolina
Cheraw is a town on the Pee Dee River in Chesterfield County, South Carolina, United States. The population was 5,524 at the 2000 census and center of an urban cluster with a total population of 9,069. It has been nicknamed "The Prettiest Town in Dixie." The harbor tub USS Cheraw was named in the...
.
Mr. Cox has headmaster experience in three other Christian and classical schools. He has a Bachelor of Arts in Humanities and Biblical Studies from Atlanta Christian College
Atlanta Christian College
Point University is a private, Christian, liberal arts university in East Point, Georgia, southwest of Atlanta....
, a Master of Arts in Theological Studies from Reformed Theological Seminary
Reformed Theological Seminary
Reformed Theological Seminary is a non-denominational, evangelical Protestant seminary. RTS's first campus remains in Jackson, Mississippi, United States though the school has expanded to include several additional campuses.-Founding:...
, and is currently a Doctoral candidate, finishing his dissertation to complete his Ph.D in Theology from the University of Glasgow
University of Glasgow
The University of Glasgow is the fourth-oldest university in the English-speaking world and one of Scotland's four ancient universities. Located in Glasgow, the university was founded in 1451 and is presently one of seventeen British higher education institutions ranked amongst the top 100 of the...
in Scotland
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
.
Grammar School
Jean Armstrong, who was the principal when the doors opened in 1999 is still the principal of the Grammar School. She spent several years teaching fourth and fifth grade at NCCS but eventually returned to the primary position of principal. Mrs. Armstrong graduated from UMBC with a Bachelor’s Degree in Elementary Education and Psychology. She also has a Master's Equivalency with a background in Applied Behavioral Science and Administration and Supervision. Mrs. Armstrong went on to spend 11 years teaching in Baltimore City Schools. During her time teaching in the city she earned her Advanced Professional Certificate from the Maryland State Department of Education.
Athletics
NCCS athletic teams compete against other local public and private schools.The school's sports teams incldue:
- Girls Varsity and Junior Varsity Volleyball
- Girls Varsity and Junior Varsity Soccer
- Girls Varsity Basketball
- Boys Varsity and Junior Varsity Soccer
- Boys Varsity and Junior Varsity Basketball
The NCCS sports teams also include students of New Covenant Christian Academy, the home school organization affiliated with New Covenant Presbyterian Church.