Insights & Information

Driven: New building, faculty mark start of Academy year

New TBCA faculty Kathy Hand, Soloman Patrick and Chelsie Orenstein and Driven theme logo

The return to class Aug. 18 marked the start of more than just a new school year for students at Triad Baptist Christian Academy.

Members of the high school classes of 2017 and 2018 literally walked into a new school — a 44,000 square foot building that features a full-size gym and locker rooms, commercial kitchen and new cafeteria, science lab, media center, other classroom space, and more.

“It was worth the wait,” Director of Education Donna Mannon said of the new building, which opened in June.

“All the new facilities position us to further advance our mission which is to provide excellence in academics, fine arts and athletics, and instill Biblical principles as we work alongside parents to develop students who will impact their works for Christ.”

The Academy’s theme for the 2014-2015 school year is “Driven,” which comes from 2 Corinthians 5:14 (“For the love of Christ controls us, having concluded this, that one died for all, therefore all died.”)

Creative Communications Director Jeremy Chandler said that the theme, which came from a yearbook staff retreat earlier this spring, appears on the Academy’s website, social media, and signage and will guide chapel topics, special events, and Academy activities throughout the year.

It’s the Academy’s second theme year — a tradition that will continue along with a day-long spiritual retreat for the freshman class (scheduled for Aug. 29).

New activities

Among the new additions to the Academy calendar:

  • Sept. 26 Dinner theater fundraiser for the new Titan Booster Club to support athletic and fine arts programs. The vaudevillian-themed evening will feature the church’s Script’d drama troupe, KNOWName Media ministry, and the Academy’s Drama and Music departments.

  • Oct. 15 PSAT testing to begin to prepare sophomores for the SAT to help them get ready for college and applying for scholarships their junior years.

  • Nov. 5-7 World Market featuring the food, music and culture of several countries and held as part of the church’s annual Missions Conference.

New faculty

Along with new classrooms, the Academy also welcomes new faces — second-grade teacher Kathy Hand, fourth-grade teacher Soloman Patrick, and middle-school teacher Chelsie Orenstein.

Hand, a graduate of High Point University and teaching veteran with nearly 20 years of experience, learned about Triad through her son, Kenny, who attends. She made her first visit during the Easter drama.

“I was impressed with the family atmosphere of Triad and the warmth of the people,” said Hand, who lives in Greensboro. “I met the teachers, and they were upbeat and excited about the coming year.

Biology teacher Jennifer Locklear and students in new science lab

“There are very few jobs that are as rewarding as teaching,” Hand said. “You really get more than you put into it. What I’m looking forward to is teaching the whole child. A child is a mental, physical and spiritual being. Whether it’s character education or anything else, you can’t be successful unless you address all three.”

Patrick relocated from Raleigh to join the faculty. A graduate of Luther Rice Seminary & University in Lithonia, Ga., the Triad position marks his sixth year of teaching in a career that includes stints at schools in Creedmoor, Morganton, and Raleigh.

A bivocational pastor for 15 years, Patrick wants to have the same kind of impact on students that he experienced himself as a child growing up in Warrenton, N.C., thanks to a second-grade teacher. “I was able to see her not just as someone who taught subjects in a classroom but a person who cared about me as a person,” Patrick said. “A good teacher can impact a child’s whole being for life.

“What I enjoy most about teaching is the look on a child’s face when they learn something they didn’t know or recognize something they knew but couldn’t put into words.”

Orenstein came to Kernersville in 2012 when she married her husband, Joe, a Kernersville native and former East Forsyth High School grad. There weren’t teaching openings at the time, so the Lynchburg College grad joined the staff of the Triad Baptist Christian Academy Preschool instead.

When she heard about the middle school opening, Orenstein, who by then had also worked a brief stint at Mineral Springs Middle School, eagerly applied. During the 2014-2015 school year, she’ll teach sixth-grade literature, history and math, seventh-grade English, and eighth-grade pre-Algebra.

“We can give knowledge to our children but they need wisdom for how to use that knowledge, and the skills they’re taught, and that’s where our work at the Academy comes in,” she said.

Orenstein said that all the new space means more opportunities for students.

“We’re offering more courses, the sports program is growing, we have a new booster club, and we’re offering more and more activities our students can get involved in to tap their God-given talents and skills,” she said. “For the faculty, students and parents alike, it’s an exciting time to be part of the TBCA family!”

Phase 2 Shot of TBC B&W 17

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