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+ History

Founded in 1971 as an elementary school by the then senior pastor of The Peoples Church, Dr. Paul B. Smith, Peoples Christian Academy (PCA) has been providing quality Christian education to the Markham, and Greater Toronto Area (GTA) families for well over forty years. In 1976 it became an all-grade school with the addition of a high school wing. In 2013, with the opening of the Early Learning Centre, the school began serving families of children aged thirty months through to high school graduation.

Offering a strong academic program, PCA follows the academic standards set by the Ministry of Education for Ontario and awards the Ontario Secondary School Diploma to its graduates. Historically PCA student performance exceeds provincial and national norms in all areas, so it is clear that educational strength is not diminished through the emphasizing of spiritual values.

Recognizing the central importance of spiritual formation in the lives of its students, PCA offers a well-rounded curriculum, presented from a Biblical worldview. PCA understands that it cannot do the job alone. The home provides the primary base for the spiritual orientation and nurturing of the child. Ideally, the school serves to carry out the wishes of the parents in how it approaches the duty of spiritual instruction and guidance. It is expected that, just as in academics, the parents are to be vitally engaged in the spiritual progress of the child.

Also, as far as it is possible, PCA seeks to partner with the child’s church so that it can complement the church’s influence. All in all, there ought to be a harmony and a consistent message delivered to the student from a three-stranded partnership — the home, the church and the school.

+ Statement of Core Family Values

All members of the board, administration and staff of Peoples Christian Academy believe that the Bible is the written Word of God and without error in all its teachings. Because of our understanding of the Old and New Testaments our school teaches these Core Family Values:

1. That it is unacceptable for Christians to teach hatred against any group or individual.

2. That human life begins at conception and that an unborn child at any stage of development is a human being and should be treated as such.

3. That sexual intimacy is only morally acceptable within a marriage relationship.

4. That premarital or extramarital sexual intimacy heterosexual or homosexual including but not limited to intercourse is morally wrong.

5. That marriage is an exclusively heterosexual institution.

+ Statement of Faith

THE SCRIPTURES: We believe that “All Scripture is given by inspiration of God” (II Timothy 3:16-17), and we understand this to mean that the whole Bible is inspired in that holy men of God “were moved by the Holy Spirit” (II Peter 1:21) to write the very words of Scripture. We believe this to mean that, the whole of Scripture as it appeared in the original manuscripts is inerrant.

THE TRIUNE GODHEAD: We believe in one God (Mark 12:29) eternally existing (John 1:1-4) in three persons (II Corinthians 13:14, I John 5:7-8), namely Father, Son and Holy Spirit.

VIRGIN BIRTH: We believe that Jesus Christ was conceived by the Holy Spirit (Luke 1:27-35), born of the Virgin Mary(Isaiah 7:14; Matthew 1:18) and was truly the Son of Man (John 12:34) and the Son of God (Luke 1:35).

THE RESURRECTION OF THE LORD JESUS CHRIST: (Romans 10:9-10) We believe in the literal resurrection of the crucified body of the Lord Jesus Christ (Romans 4:24-25), that He ascended into heaven (Acts 1:10-11) and is presently in heaven acting on behalf of believers as their High Priest and Advocate (Hebrews 4:14-15).

MAN CREATED IN THE IMAGE OF GOD: We believe that man was created by and in the image of God (Genesis 1:26-27, John1:3) and that man sinned, and in his natural state is lost, alienated from God and incapable of attaining salvation by any personal effort or merit (Romans 3:24-25).

ATONEMENT FOR SINS: We believe that Christ died as a sacrifice for our sins and that, because He shed His blood, the salvation of man is a free gift of God by grace, through faith in the Lord Jesus Christ and his death for us (Romans 6:23; Ephesians 2:8-9).

SALVATION: We believe that salvation is a free gift by God’s grace through faith without works of any kind (Ephesians2:8-9), that all who accept the Lord Jesus Christ by faith are born again by the Holy Spirit and become the children of God (John 1:12).

THE HOLY SPIRIT: We believe that the Christian life is impossible apart from the indwelling presence and enabling of the Holy Spirit.Simultaneous to our salvation we were ’sealed by the Holy Spirit for the day of redemption’ (Ephesians 4:30), we were ’baptized by One Spirit into one body’ (I Corinthians 12:13), and we are to live each day in the fullness of the Holy Spirit by yielding all that we are to his control (Ephesians 5:18). The Holy Spirit equips us to live holy lives, producing the ’fruit of the Spirit’ (Galatians 5: 22-23), and giving Spiritual Gifts to enable us to serve God effectively by bringing blessing to others (I Corinthians 12:4-7). We are warned not to ’grieve the Holy Spirit’ by sinful activity (Ephesians 4:30) and therefore to confess our sin in order to maintain a wholesome and effective relationship with God (1 John 1:9).

THE CHRISTIAN WALK: We believe that the Christian is called with a holy calling to live a life of obedience to God and separation from evil and to faithfully identify with and serve through a local church to fulfill the great commission to go, teach, and baptize and do the Lord’s work until He returns.

BODILY RETURN OF OUR LORD JESUS CHRIST: We believe in the personal bodily return of the Lord Jesus Christ (Acts1:9-11) to set up His kingdom (Titus 2:13).

BODILY RESURRECTION OF THE JUST AND THE UNJUST: We believe in the bodily resurrection of the just and the unjust (John 5:28-29; Daniel 12:2), the everlasting blessing of the believer (the just) (Romans 8:23; I Corinthians 15) and the everlasting conscious punishment of the unbeliever (the unjust)(Psalm 90:3-4); Revelation 20:12-15; Matthew 25:31-46).

THE GREAT COMMISSION: We believe that, until the return of Christ, it is the Christian’s privilege and duty and the supreme task of The Church to evangelize the world (Matthew 28:18-20; Acts 1:8).

+ Philosophy of Education

We believe and teach that the total Scriptures of the Old and New Testament are verbally inspired of God and inerrant in the original writings, and are the only infallible rule for faith and life. (II Timothy 3:16).

Education encompasses spiritual, intellectual, emotional, and physical development, with God the ultimate source of all truth.

Since God has given parents the responsibility to teach their children, education cannot be the sole charge of a church or of a school system. Thus, PCA enters into a partnership with the parents to educate their children, and it is important that parents fully accept the Academy’s Philosophy of Education. (Deuteronomy 6: 4-7).

We will make every effort to lead each child into a saving knowledge of the Lord Jesus Christ, and to disciple the child so the student will live a life that glorifies God, both now and after graduation.

Students of PCA are taught a Christian worldview and lifestyle. They are instructed in biblical knowledge and are offered devotional opportunities. Students are encouraged to develop Christian responses to all of the issues of life. (II Timothy 2:1, 2).

PCA is committed to maintaining high academic, personal and spiritual standards in the classroom, in all relationships and in extra-curricular activities. Our teachers have sound academic qualifications and teach both through formal instruction and as caring Christian adult role models. (Luke 2:52, II Peter 3:18).

PCA helps students develop healthy self-worth and to understand their value as part of God’s unique creation. As a means of honouring God in all they do we expect students to refrain from using alcohol, tobacco or non-prescription drugs. Students are taught to respect the uniqueness and the equal value of each person regardless of gender or race. At PCA, human sexuality is understood to be God-appointed and is to be practiced according to the guidelines of God’s Word. PCA helps students develop self-discipline and respect for others and their property. We also promote and practice appreciation for cultural and denominational diversity, while maintaining unity in Christ. (Galatians 3:28).

With this foundation, it is our goal that every student attending our school will come to a time when the most important desire of his or her life is to serve God. The students should be able and willing to use all of their God-given talents for the betterment of their fellow citizens in any area of life.