Parent Testimonials

Parent Testimonials

John and Courtney Montgomery

In doing our research about where we were going to send our oldest child to kindergarten we heard rumblings of a “classical” school forming in Shreveport. After reading Dorothy Sayers’ essay The Lost Tools of Learning and Douglas Wilson’s Recovering the Lost Tools of Learning we said “That’s what I want for my child!” so we set up a tour to check out school with only one class.

We fell in love with Ascension from the moment of our first visit. We waited in the foyer of the church building with other terrified parents who would be sending their child to school for the first time. How did we begin our time? Prayer. A prayer for us, a prayer for our children, a prayer for the work of the gospel in this school. We were off to a good start.

We haven’t looked back once in our four years. The school integrates the gospel into the fabric of each day. From the liturgies of morning chapel to the presentation of fractions, the aim is to form Christ’s image bearers who live lives of worship. Parents bear the incredible burden of discipling our children. We are blessed to have Ascension assist us in that task.


Kenneth and Jill Favrot

We never planned to send our kids to a private elementary school. We just didn’t think we were “private school” people. But as we started to visit the open houses of the public schools in our area, we both walked away from each one feeling like none of those schools were exactly what we were looking for. They were impressive but just missing something. And since this was going to be a place our children would spend a significant portion of each day, we needed to feel in our hearts that it was the right place. And that is when, through word of mouth and recommendations, Ascension came into our lives. And it is, without a doubt, the answer to our prayers. Since beginning school at Ascension, our daughter Kate has thrived academically, spiritually, socially and artistically. She is constantly challenged in her education while also loving to learn. When we look back and reflect on the ways Kate has grown over her time at Ascension, there is indisputable evidence that Ascension has cultivated an environment that enabled her to do so. As parents, our goal is to raise kids who are intelligent, capable and confident while also being loving, selfless and thoughtful. We want our children to grow into adults who can lead a country but also love it. Become an adult who can change the world through policy as much as through compassion. A two-sided coin so to speak, and that, we realized, was that missing piece that we weren’t finding at the other schools but saw in Ascension. Ascension has the same vision that we do when it comes to the development of our child. And they have the structure and plan to implement that vision. We know that raising good kids is a job God entrusted to the two of us, but he also placed a community of support within our grasp to help us achieve the job he has set before us. We are so lucky that, as our school, Ascension is a part of our community of support.


Richard and Leslie Crowell

Like most parents embarking on sending one’s oldest to school, we researched, visited schools, and depended on testimonials of other parents who had older kids already in school. We followed along and tested our little girl for the magnet program. We were happy when we received word that she had a spot in our first choice magnet school. However, we were still uncertain. We wrestled with our convictions to raise our children in the fear and admonition of the Lord, to train them up in the way that they should go, to instill Godly wisdom and write Biblical instruction on their hearts. At the same time, we also wanted each of our children to receive a solid academic education. We didn’t just want to send them to a “Christian” school; we wanted to disciple their hearts and train their minds. And being a mom of four small children, I was overwhelmed with the thought of homeschooling, although, at the time, we thought this might be our only option for such an environment. So, we prayed and sought the Lord for wisdom. Interestingly, we heard word of a group of parents, just like ourselves, who were searching and praying for the same educational environment. After much praying and fighting the Holy Spirit (because frankly, this was a huge leap of faith), we gave away our magnet spot and joined a Classical Christian school with 8 other families. God provided us with an incredibly Godly teacher who discipled our children and surpassed all of our academic expectations. Our class grew from 8 to 14 students that first year to a full class each year afterwards. Every year God has been faithful to our school in countless ways and has blessed our family, through our children, by being a part of Ascension. The classical curriculum has proved to be challenging, timeless, and God-centered. And our children are bathed in scriptural teaching each day, whether in chapel, during class, or in a discipleship moment with a teacher bringing two friends together in forgiveness. Ascension Classical School is truly a precious place.       


Chris and Ann Burford

Before Max was born, Ann was praying for a school that would partner with us in reinforcing the values and beliefs we hold dear as Christians. We were looking for a Christ-centered school with His-story woven into the academics so Max would understand the depth and breadth of the fact that Christ holds all things together by the word of His power. There were many schools with strong academics in town and maybe one school in the area who could disciple him to our satisfaction, but we could not find a school that combined both well. I wanted the same things but was content to have him in Magnet schools until he was in the 3rd-4th grade. My attitude was, "How much harm can the public school do in the early years?" Plus it would save us thousands of dollars that we could put toward a good school once we found one. Then I went to the interest meeting for what would become Ascension. It was during that meeting that I realized our family would be spending valuable time undoing the philosophy and values Max would learn each day in public school. When I compared that to the daily reinforcement of our beliefs as Ascension partnered with us to teach and disciple Max, the decision was obvious. After many years at Ascension, we see the fruit of the instruction in his love of learning, love for God's Word and frequent exercising of his faith as he grows in applying scripture to his everyday life. Ascension is a place where Max is loved deeply, challenged academically and disciplined biblically.  


Alexander and Daphne Mijalis

The decision of selecting where to send your child to school is trying, unnerving, and exciting all at the same time. As parents, we all want the best for our child—a place where he or she will be challenged academically by a specifically tailored curriculum, where he or she will be nurtured emotionally by loving and giving teachers, where he or she will develop friendships among his peers, and where he or she will find a group of parents that want the same things for their children. We found all of those things and more at Ascension. We could not be more pleased with everything that ACS offers to all three of our children and are thrilled to be on this journey with a group of parents that share our vision for a successful and worthwhile complete educational experience.


Murphy and Jennifer Anderson

When we look back at the last five years, we are so thankful for Ascension Classical School. Our hope is that our children would know God at an early age and that they would know the meaning of glorifying God with their lives and with the gifts He has given them.
 
Over the course of our lives, we have both learned that knowing God and knowing His Word is absolutely imperative for navigating through this journey of life the way God intended. Hearing our children learning Scripture through song is such a blessing. These songs and these Truths will be with them all their lives, and they are learning more and more every single day – not just on Sunday.
 
Knowing that our children are being discipled at school is another blessing. Their teachers point them towards God’s Word in every circumstance at school. What a blessing to know that the answer for any quarrel, any test that didn’t go as planned, any hope, any joy, any success, anything they experience is connected to God’s will for them. This is so important to us because education without God is missing the entire reason for the existence of education. He created all that is good and worthy of examination: Science, Art, Math, History, etc. If one takes the Creator out of His creation, one cannot have the complete picture. The depth of His creation, His mind, His creativity – all the fascinating aspects of life that He is sharing with us = the mysteries that He reveals to man over the course of a lifetime = all these are taken away in an education that excludes God.
 
Along with an education emphasizing discipleship, Ascension also offers an excellent academic education. Our children love going to school each day. They are challenged; they are engaged in Socratic dialogue with their teachers and classmates; they learn many lessons through song and chant unaware that they are memorizing history, science, or Latin; they are exposed to the Arts every week, learning classical art and music.
 
These years are wonderfully challenging years. We are so thankful that our children are growing in an environment that honors and adores God - a school that truly believes that everything we do should be for the glory of God.


Chris and Leah Rea

When our daughter was three, we heard about a new school in our area and decided to go to their Open House to learn more. What we learned at that meeting about Ascension and the classical Christian approach used by the school set the bar for our daughter’s elementary school education. We had hopes that, once it was time for kindergarten, Ascension would be our choice.

The following year, we went back to the Open House meeting to learn more and see how the school had grown, as our daughter would likely be attending kindergarten there that Fall. We toured Ascension and saw the teachers and students in action. It was beautiful. The kids knew their material. They sang songs, recited chants and facts. The first graders were conjugating sentences. We were overwhelmed with amazement, joy and a longing for God to tell us if our daughter should bridge or start kindergarten.

As we were leaving, the Headmaster at the time consoled me (Leah) as I cried, not yet knowing which direction to move. I have no doubts that she prayed for our family after we left that day. Not long afterward, we got our answer. Bridging was our course and our days at Ascension would be held off one more year.

The Open House came around once again. We went and had strong affirmation that this was where our daughter belonged. This time we left the school tour with joy, for we knew our daughter would be getting a solid Christian education, be able to have Chapel daily, and learn about who she is in Jesus Christ.

What we have found at Ascension Classical School is a community of families, committed to building and growing a school where our children have a loving, Christian environment in which they are taught using the time-tested classical education model.

What and how the teachers teach is beyond words. Our daughter’s mind has blossomed with biblical knowledge, a love of reading, math, spelling, science, and so much more. She enjoys school and we are so thankful and blessed to be part of the Ascension family. 

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