Constitution of the Newton Classical Academy

We believe:

The family provides the foundation of human flourishing at all levels of society;

Human flourishing grows from a right ordering of the self, the community, and society; is reflected in a state of moral, intellectual, spiritual, and cultural integration; and is expressed in mutual cooperation, support, respect, and love.

Human flourishing primarily occurs at the local scale, facilitated by locally constituted organizations;

The family is the locus of moral, intellectual, spiritual, and cultural formation;

Thriving families lead to thriving children, and ultimately to a flourishing society;

The end of education is most fully realized as the formation of love for the good, true, and the beautiful in the student;

Reality is rooted in the nature of God himself and most fully expressed in the revelation of Jesus Christ;

Working with one’s hands engages one’s body in participation with truth, goodness, and beauty;

The Classical model of education reflects centuries of accumulated wisdom regarding human formation handed down through the Great Conversation of Western Civilization.

Therefore, the Newton Classical Academy shall be:

Local, and oriented toward the good of the community;

Classical, participating in the Great Conversation through the Trivium and Quadrivium;

Christian, as expressed in Scripture and interpreted through the Apostles’ Creed, bringing to bear in a deep sense the truth of Christian revelation on every aspect of human existence, while allowing that the family and the church bear both the primary and the final responsibility for Christian catechesis and moral instruction of students;

For the family, wholly oriented toward supporting families as they form their children;

Humane, orienting itself in structure and means towards the needs and nature of the children and participating families, rather than arbitrarily structured for the convenience of the institution;

Hybrid, combining rigorous Classical professional instruction in a group setting with rigorous Classical education in the family setting, using a shared curriculum;

Minimalist, recognizing in humility the limited role of the institution, the counterproductive serial crises of classroom technology and educational fads, and the danger of undue financial burden on participating families; the rule shall be to err on the side of less institutional emphasis, less expense, less complexity, and in favor of that which has been proven over many generations.

So be it, as attested by the undersigned Founding Board Members this Third Day of March, in the year of our Lord Two Thousand Sixteen:

Brandon T. Buerge     Jeffrey A. Reimer     Phillip N. Tippin