News Talk 94.1/AM 1600 Where The Upper Cumberland Talks
A new Christian private school will open to students in August, 2025.
Collegeside Church of Christ Teaching Minister John Nichols said the Cookeville Christian School will stand on three pillars: spiritual formation, academic excellence, and Christian partnership. Nichols said the project is not meant as a step away from public education but rather a step towards what the church is supposed to do.
“There were a lot of people within our body, a dozen or more, that just kind of simultaneously felt like, ‘okay, there’s something that we can do,'” Nichols said. “There’s a gap that exists and I think the Lord just kind of guided them to, okay, how can we fill in this gap?”
Nichols said the church has been hard at work planning every aspect of the school including location, staff, meals, supplies, and curriculum.
“One of the things that we don’t want to settle on is academic excellence,” Nichols said. “And so how do you blend curriculum that follows many of the state guidelines while also finding curriculum that views those things through a gospel-centered lens? So that’s proved to be quite challenging, but we’re there and we feel really good about what we’ve found.”
Nichols said spiritual formation means growing students into followers of Christ, servant leaders, and participants in the community. Nichols said the program will focus on academic excellence by presenting students with truth and helping them with standardized testing and college and career readiness.
“We want to partner with our community, the Cookeville and Upper Cumberland community,” Nichols said. “We want to partner with organizations, businesses, other institutions, higher learning centers, and engage our students in such a way that they see themselves as participants in this community.”
Nichols said the school will be located in the church’s building for the first two years. Nichols said there are plans for a standalone building for a K-12 school in the future.
“(The church is) right across the street from Tennessee Tech,” Nichols said. “Great location, we have a great facility. Everything that students need will be here.”
Nichols said the church has been overwhelmed by the community’s response for the upcoming school. Nichols said the school is being promoted this early so families can take the time to decide if they want to commit and budget for tuition.
“We’re going to keep tuition as low as we can,” Nichols said. “This is a nonprofit. We’re not interested in making money. And so merely the tuition is just what it takes to run a school, but we know that that will be a cost on families.”
Nichols said there will have a public meeting about the school at the church at 6:30pm on Tuesday, December 3. Nichols said that meeting will go over the timeline of the program going forward, including when registration opens.
“The application process begins very soon,” Nichols said. “We have not started taking applications yet but in December the application process will begin.”
