Middle and Upper School Advisory Program

When I pause and try to recall my high school years, I am surprised by just how much comes back to me. I remember the uniforms I wore, the color of the walls and lockers, the giant bronco (our school's mascot) stretching across the gymnasium wall, the layout and ambiance of my classes, and even many of my teachers' faces. Perhaps I was more reflective than most, but I even recall observing the style, habits, and disposition of my teachers and thinking, "That's good—I like that." It is amusing to reflect on my previous experiences and evaluations as I now find myself likewise leading a classroom with students.

While I can envision the general layout of my high school—all its various rooms, hallways, and sections—there is one room that genuinely escapes my memory: the faculty lounge. I believe this is symbolic. I knew my teachers' classroom presence well, but I did not know them very well as people, as leaders, or as friends. I wish I could recall more "that's good—I like that" moments, not just about how they taught, but how they lived.

I do not allude to my high school experience to disparage it. On the contrary, I am full of deep respect and gratitude for the education I received and the momentous influence it has had on me. I bring it up simply to call your attention to how unique the dynamic is at Faith Christian School in comparison.

The Advisory Program

At Faith Christian School, our advisory program creates intentional space for middle and upper school students to form these deeper relationships with their teachers. Our teachers serve as advisors to the young men or women, respectively, within a single grade level, meeting regularly together throughout the year.

Every Wednesday, advisors gather with their students over lunch for a dedicated time of fellowship, conversation, and connection. Over food, students and teachers come together to bond beyond the classroom, learning about life, developing practical skills, and enjoying each other's company.

On Fridays, advisors lead their groups in prayer. These gatherings typically involve reading Scripture together and taking turns praying for one another and for the needs of our school community. Students learn what it means to bear one another's burdens and to seek the Lord together in prayer.

These practices, however, represent a floor, not a ceiling. Advisors may plan special moments like baking cookies, venturing on a hike, going out for Starbucks, or something else out of the ordinary to experience together. Our advisory program provides a consistent, structured touchpoint for connection while encouraging a dash of life-giving spontaneity.

Significantly, students receive different advisors as they progress through each grade. Thus, students get to peek through multiple windows into the unique gifts, character, and wisdom of the teachers at Faith Christian. Since each is unique, every advisor leaves a distinct impression, imparts peculiar skills and lessons, and strikes notes that shape the melody of a well-formed character.

I have shared my school experience; now I invite you to reflect on yours. What do you remember about your school? What do you recall about your teachers? What were you like in those days? Moreover, what would it have meant for you had you enjoyed a similar privilege as our students—to have a wiser, invested teacher spend time with you in this way, not just once, but year after year? What impact would that habit have made on your life? Week by week, students are learning the benefits of wisdom and community at Faith Christian School with advisors and classmates.

In addition, I can attest to the quality and character of these teacher-advisors because now, at Faith Christian School, I know exactly where the teacher's lounge is located. We do not call it a teacher's lounge, but a Studium—and the nobler label is fitting. For me, the veil has been torn. I enter the Studium multiple times per day—mostly for lunch, to refill my coffee, to print and staple quizzes for my students, or simply to take a pause and sit quietly. There is one more thing I observe in the Studium, and so do my fellow teachers: I witness teachers, with complete sincerity, reflecting, encouraging, supporting, dreaming, and praying on behalf of their students. They desire and model for our students not just a style, habits, or demeanor that cues, "That's good—I like that" in regard to teaching; they desire and model for our students a way of life that sparks, we pray, many "That's good—I like that" moments as students and teachers come together as people, as leaders, and as friends.

- Kristan Brown, Head of Middle and Upper School