Founder, Executive Director

Lauren Zealand

I have not only been a homeschool mom for eleven years, but I have also tried out every educational avenue available to my children in the Lynchburg region. I have personally seen the downfalls and missing elements of each offering, and I have desired an option that would fill those gaps. As they say, necessity is the mother of invention. Though I longed for a better education solution for years, I never thought I was the person for the job or imagined that it might really succeed. In the last couple years, though, I have seen God’s leading in this area of my life, and I have finally felt that He has been opening the doors for me to walk through. After a great deal of prayer in the matter, I finally decided to take those first steps of obedience to what I felt He was calling me to.

When I imagine what both parents and educators desire for their children in life, I think of children who have a love for life, learning, and God. I think of children who learn that success is not necessarily what is important but an ability to keep persevering even when things are difficult. I think of children who aren’t forced into a mold but are allowed to blossom in their giftings and develop in their struggles. I think of pointing children to what matters most—a love for God—and continuing to re-align their thoughts, habits, and activities with the goal of knowing God more each day. I think of Philippians 3:14, which states, “I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.” Onward and upward. I see collaboration between parents and Christian educators in encouraging children to continually move onward, onward in life and onward toward Christ—whatever this may mean for them at their stage.