Wednesday, September 29, 1999
Christian school in city 'a natural'
Academy leader knows of no precedent
BY CHRISTINE WOLFF
The Cincinnati Enquirer
SYMMES TOWNSHIP — When officials of Cincinnati Hills Christian Academy (CHCA) began planning an inner-city school, they had one problem: They couldn't find a model for their venture.
“There's no other like it that we can find — where you have a successful suburban school and it comes into the inner city,” said Dr. Bill Balzano, headmaster of the school, which has campuses in Symmes and Sycamore townships.
Academy officials announced Monday they will open an elementary school downtown for neighborhood children in fall 2000 inside the vacant Crosley Square building at Ninth and Elm streets. It's an idea in the works since a master plan for the young academy was developed in 1994.
The academy counts outreach and decisions such as the inner-city move as essential parts of its mission, Dr. Balzano said.
“Enlarging in the suburbs was not in the picture,” he said. “We looked at other countries, at other states. It's the core inner city that is a natural for us. We strongly feel like it is the right thing to do — an expansion of our faith in Christ.”
It's a good idea to offer oth ers the “best nurturing environment,” of CHCA, said Caroline Boykin of Loveland, who has two children at the academy's Symmes Township elementary school.
“I wish every kid could have this education,” she said. “It can only add to this school. It will be a great extension, especially for us as parents to get involved. How many times have we said we would love to help (inner-city children) but don't have a vehicle?”
Standing pat was not on the list of choices, Dr. Balzano said, for the 10-year-old, nondenom inational academy that already is one of the fastest-growing private school systems in the nation and one of the largest systems in the Tristate. It has 1,183 students in kindergarten through 12th grade — up from 1,101 in 1998.
Enrollment began in 1989 with 165 students in kindergarten through seventh grade, growing to 557 by 1993 and expanding to buildings on three campuses on both sides of Snider Road. It draws students from 35 public school districts as far away as Oxford and Northern Kentucky.
In 1998, CHCA's elementary school won a national Blue Ribbon in the first year the school was eligible for the award, the highest recognition from the U.S. Department of Education. (A school must exist five years before applying.)
“There's a feeling that we've been blessed. We feel it is working, what we're doing — blending Christ-
centered education with high academic achievement,” Dr. Balzano said. “There are a lot of kids in the inner city who are forgotten, and there are a lot of parents there who would do anything for their kids.”
Those parents should not let the school's tuition — $5,300 a year at CHCA's suburban campuses — stop them from applying. Backed by a $4 million scholarship fund from the Carl Lindner family — a large financial contributor to CHCA since its inception — academy officials said children will not be turned away solely for financial reasons.
“We're saying, "If you're interested, contact us,'” Dr. Balzano said. “We will have certain admission requirements but not based on financial. We'll start with the same academic requirements, that the child be achieving at or above grade level.”
The downtown school, funded by a $6.8 million gift from the Otto Armleder Trust, will provide a home for an early childhood program run by Cincinnati educator Dr. Obadiah Williams. The program — which, like CHCA, stresses parental involvement — has been operating in community centers and churches.
Dr. Balzano sought the help of Dr. Williams and others to see if the inner-city community would be interested.
“We asked the question, "If we build it, will they come?'” Dr. Balzano said. “We think the results will be phenomenal.”
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