A new education initiative was introduced to the public at Ruach Church in Esterhazy on December 5. The Canadian Christian Education Movement (CCEM) hosted an informational meeting about an alternative school that would support families seeking a faith-based educational experience for their children. The event gathered local parents, educators, and community members to discuss the growing need for schools that align with values not prioritized in the public school system.
The evening featured presentations by three key figures: Noel De Beer (founder of the initiative in Esterhazy), Greg Needham (Project Director for CCEM) and Rod Rilling (Principal of Regina Christian School). Together, they outlined the vision, mission, and goals for the new school, which aims to provide an alternative to the worldview with which the curriculum is taught in public schools.
A Call for Parent Involvement
Noel De Beer, who opened the meeting, emphasized the critical role that parents must play in their children’s education. “Parents are a key and crucial part of education,” De Beer said. “We want to raise children who know how to function as families with faith as their foundation, with morals as their core. This is not just another project, this is the next generation we’re shaping.”
De Beer acknowledged the fast-paced nature of the initiative, admitting that while there are still many unknowns, the urgency of the project is clear. “We’re moving quickly because this is important,” he said. “This is what we need. This is for the next generation.”
The Vision of Teach
Greg Needham, Project Director for CCEM, shared insights into the broader movement that spans across Canada and globally. As part of the larger organization Teach, CCEM works with 35 churches to begin new educational projects ranging from preschools to afterschool programs. Needham highlighted the movement’s global success, which includes 40 schools and more than 1,500 members in 79 countries.
“Teach has been active in education for 70 years,” Needham explained. “We’ve been involved in over 300 educational projects worldwide. But Canada, despite being the birthplace of Teach, is one of the most at-risk countries we serve. We need to reclaim territory and preserve the faith, especially for our children.”
Needham also emphasized that this movement is not just about building schools, but about bringing Christ-centered education into various forms within the community. “Not every church is going to start a school,” he said. “But perhaps it’s an afterschool program or fundraising to help kids get into Christian schools. We envision every church in Canada involved in Christ-centered education in some way.”
”I want to talk a little bit about the top reasons for finding a school like this and finding a Christ-centered education. It offers a supportive nurturing environment. Parents understand it’s safe. And when they say safe, they’re not talking about from other kids; they’re actually thinking about cultural movements. Actually we thought when they did this study that it was about the safety from other children. The parents actually know that they want something that’s safe from the teachers and from the administration and that the school emphasizes character development.”
Needham said, ”If the student is at a school that aligns with their family and their faith, they outperform kids that are at an unmatched school. This is the unmatched versus the matched, outperforming at tremendous levels and this isn’t insignificant. The consistent messaging is that one type of education does not fit all.”
Success Stories from Regina Christian School
Rod Rilling, Principal of Regina Christian School, spoke next, sharing the success of his school and how it has grown over the years. “When I first came to Regina Christian School 30 years ago, we had only 60 or 70 students,” Rilling said. “Today, we have 850 students from preschool through grade 12. God has been faithful in making this happen.”
Rilling attributed much of the school’s growth to the need for a faith-based educational environment. “A lot of new Canadians, especially those from countries where faith is important, have come to us because they want an education that aligns with their beliefs,” he said. “Our school is about discipleship, and it’s exciting to see students come to faith and grow spiritually.”
Rilling also emphasized the integration of biblical truth into every aspect of the school’s curriculum. “Teachers are expected to integrate biblical truth into what they teach,” he noted. “As Greg said, all truth is God’s truth. We don’t need to fear science or any other discipline. We teach from a biblical worldview, and it’s essential that our students see how God’s word intersects with every area of life. We don’t have to be afraid of science. We from time to time bring in creation-science people to come and talk to the kids too, to encourage them in that. But we don’t have to be afraid.”
A Vision for the Future in Esterhazy and Area
The new school initiative in Esterhazy, which aims to serve the community with a Christ-centered, independent educational option, is still in its early stages. Noel De Beer clarified that the school would be a parent-initiated project, not affiliated with any single church or denomination. The ultimate goal is to create an independent school that operates outside of government funding to avoid potential ideological conflicts.
“The purpose of this school is to raise a generation that knows who they are, who they’re called to be, and that has the skills to fulfill that calling,” De Beer said. “We don’t want this school to be about just sitting at a desk all day. We want children to learn in a way that engages them and builds their skills while also grounding them in their faith. Our heart says we don’t want kids to come to school, sit at a desk all day, go home and that’s what their day was. We need a generation that rises up. We need boys who can become men so they can lead their families. We need women, girls who are raised as women who can also lead their families. There’s a unity and there’s a union and we need both. The education system has broken down families and it’s broken down identities that we have a whole generation that does not know who they are. The purpose in the heart of this school is that we raise a generation who comes out of school go, ‘this is who I am, this is who I’m created to be, this is who I’m called to be’ and they have the necessary skills to do it.
De Beer acknowledged that there are still many unanswered questions, including the specific structure of the school, its costs, and its location. “Our first priority is to assess the needs of the community,” he said. “We need to know how many families are interested, and we want parents to be involved in shaping the vision of the school.”
Community Engagement and Next Steps
The next steps for the initiative include conducting surveys to gauge interest in the community and securing the necessary registration to operate as an independent Christian school. De Beer stressed that this process would not be rushed, as the goal is to ensure the school is sustainable.
“We’re in the beginning stages, but we’re moving fast because the need is real,” De Beer concluded. “This school is for the next generation. It’s not just about education; it’s about building a foundation of faith and character that will last a lifetime.”
”Our goal is to have pre-K to 12 ultimately because we want that whole concept of we don’t want one kid here, one kid there, one kid there. We want to be able to have a school that can cultivate families where siblings are in school together, where families are integrated into schools.”
The meeting ended with a call for parents and community members to actively participate in shaping this vision for Christian education in the Esterhazy region. The project leaders encouraged everyone to stay engaged as they move forward with their plans to create a school that not only teaches academics but also disciples the next generation in the faith.
For more information or to express interest in the school, parents can contact the Canadian Christian Education Movement directly or visit their website at www.cemovement.ca