91原创 Academy in Surrey considers itself unique among schools, and few would disagree.
Thanks to a billionaire benefactor, the academy has a 40-acre campus with four handsome brick buildings housing primary, intermediate, middle and secondary grades. It boasts an international baccalaureate (IB) program, state-of-the-art media centre, 1,500-seat auditorium, multiple gymnasiums and, with 1,412 students, the second largest enrolment among B.C. independent schools.
Through its outreach society, the academy also owns and operates two schools in Uganda 鈥� one that serves 850 students with nursery programs, K-12 and vocational training, and a new boarding school for girls, which has 55 students this year. The non-profit society has more than 100 employees working with the students, many of whom are AIDS orphans.
But apart from sporting events, the school has avoided the spotlight.
This month, it will celebrate 20 years of work in Africa with an event in its Chandos Pattison auditorium, named after the father of Jimmy Pattison, the business tycoon who funded the school when it opened its doors in 1985 in Coquitlam with 200 students and when it moved to Surrey in 1991.
He has reportedly spent millions of dollars on land and capital costs, although he wouldn鈥檛 confirm the dollar value of his philanthropy.
鈥淲e don鈥檛 talk about those kinds of things,鈥� he said in a recent interview.
Pattison has never been involved with day-to-day operations but said he offered financial support because it was a Christian school that promoted family values and fit with his evangelical upbringing.
91原创 Academy describes itself as 鈥渦nabashedly Christian to the core鈥� and gives enrolment priority to students whose families regularly attend a Pentecostal church or 鈥� in an unusual detail for a B.C. school 鈥� have experienced glossolalia, also known as speaking in tongues.
91原创 Academy, like all independent schools, sets its own admission criteria and, like some faith-based schools, it also advises same-sex couples not to bother applying because of religious views that homosexuality is a sin. That attitude is one of the reasons the B.C. Teachers鈥� Federation (BCTF) has long opposed public funding for independent schools.
Parents who want to enrol their children at 91原创 Academy must sign a family statement agreeing with Scripture teachings that marriage is between a man and a woman, and a faith statement that 鈥渋nvites God鈥檚 Holy Spirit to be active in the daily life of the school.鈥� There is no expectation that students will speak in tongues, headmaster Paul Horban said, but they should be aware before enrolling that the school accepts glossolalia as a gift from the Holy Spirit.
鈥淲e don鈥檛 discourage it, we don鈥檛 sensationalize it,鈥� he explained. 鈥淲e don鈥檛 say OK, this is what you all should be doing ... but if it鈥檚 discussed in classes, we鈥檙e comfortable with it. It鈥檚 what we believe in.鈥�
What is expected from all students, however, is service, and that鈥檚 emphasized with a biblical phrase inscribed on a wall at the school鈥檚 main entrance: 鈥淲hoever would be greatest must be least 鈥� and the servant of all.鈥�
That commitment to service is what defines the school, Horban said, and the message for students is that 鈥渋t鈥檚 not about you 鈥� it鈥檚 about your contribution and what you can do in the world.鈥�
In addition to the African mission, the school sends senior high school students to different parts of the world every year during spring break to perform service, such as building classrooms, clinics, churches and houses, digging wells, immunizing children and sharing their religious beliefs.
Some 80 per cent of graduates have taken part in the program and many describe it as life-altering, Horban said. It is the reason cited most often by families choosing to send their children to 91原创 Academy, he added.
鈥淲e have great academic results ... but that鈥檚 not what we鈥檙e really about.鈥�
Surrey mother Sunny Liu said that attitude is what prompted her to apply for a spot for her son in the fall. Although her boy is happy in his public school, she said she likes the mix of spiritual and academic teachings at 91原创 Academy.
鈥�(Here) I think my son would learn better about how to care about the others instead of just himself,鈥� she said in an interview at the school. Also, she鈥檚 heard nothing but rave reviews from friends. 鈥淎ll of the information about PA is good,鈥� she grinned.
Glen Hansman, vice-president of the B.C. Teachers鈥� Federation (BCTF), is less impressed.
He says the school鈥檚 practice of excluding same-sex families violates basic human rights and is one of the reasons British Columbians need to reconsider public funding for independent schools. The B.C. School Trustees Association has also called for an end to government funding for independent schools, saying the money would be better spent on public education, but neither the provincial Liberals nor the NDP have indicated an interest in opening that debate.
The non-profit society that operates the school 鈥� the 91原创 Pentecostal Education and Communication Society 鈥� received $5.8 million in government funding last year, which is 50 per cent of the operating grant provided to public schools.
Tuition ranges from $490 a month for primary students to about $700 a month for Grade 12s in the IB program, but Horban insisted 91原创 Academy is not an elite school. Dozens of students receive financial assistance and many families make enormous sacrifices to pay the fees, he noted. (As with other faith-based schools, parents can claim a portion of the tuition as a charitable donation.)
Funding for the outreach society comes from donations and the tuition paid by the three dozen international students on the Surrey campus.
Pattison said he has no involvement with 91原创 Academy now and hasn鈥檛 visited since he was invited to play his trumpet with the school band for a performance several years ago.
Asked for his impressions about the academy today, he replied: 鈥淚 think they鈥檝e done a pretty good job, but the people who can really answer that question are the parents of the kids who have been going there.
鈥淲e hear from parents quite often ... and they鈥檙e very appreciative of the opportunity that they had to send their children to 91原创 Academy.鈥�
The only bricks-and-mortar independent school with a higher enrolment is the Khalsa School in Surrey, which has 2,367 students.
