Bethany Christian Schools Explained

Bethany Christian Schools
Streetaddress:	2904 South Main Street
Zipcode:	46526
Country:	United States
Coordinates:	41.5455°N -85.8271°W
Established:	1954
Grades:	1–12
Head Of School:	Tim Lehman
Principal:	Hank Willems, Juanita Hershberger^[1]
Enrollment:	316 (2023-2024)^[2]
Teaching Staff:	21.6 ^[3]
Ratio:	13.2
Nickname:	Bruins

Bethany Christian Schools (BCS) is a private Christian school for grades 1–12 in Goshen, Indiana, United States.

History

The Indiana-Michigan Mennonite Conference chartered a high school on June 4, 1953, to be built in Goshen on land that had been "home to a Potawatomi tribe".^[4] It opened on September 7, 1954. There were building additions as the school grew, in 1957, 1964 and 1989.

Bethany Christian was founded to serve Mennonite secondary school students.^{[5] [6]} Following a 24,000 sq. ft. addition to the school in 1990,^[7] a middle school was added in 1996,^[8] and grades 4–5 were added in 2011. The school added third grade classes in 2021, and added first and second grades in 2022.^{[9] [10]}

Approximately 80 percent of the school's 350 students in 2018 joined walkouts by students from around the country to protest federal inaction on preventing school shootings. Bethany's protest included song and prayer. Students not participating gathered in the middle school gym.^[11]

Athletics

In 2021 extensive sports renovations were begun, including new tennis courts, a new pavilion, upgraded concessions and restrooms, and a new soccer facility, with a field surrounded by a new track, bleachers, press box and scoreboard, as well as new LED lights.^[12] Other planned changes include renovations to the baseball field and dugout, the softball field, and a new batting cage, with new landscaping around the entire complex.

In 2007, BCS was barred from hosting sectional championships because of its refusal to play The Star-Spangled Banner at sporting events, as the lyrics are at odds with pacifist ideals of Mennonites.^[13] By the 2015 school year, the BCS board decided to play the national anthem at certain sporting events, but it was criticized by some in the community for yielding to considerations of home-field advantage, revenue, and the publicity of hosting championship series, to make the decision.^[14]

Bethany Christian won its first state championship in 2023 in the 1A Boys soccer state championship.^[15]

The Bethany Christian Bruins are members of the Hoosier Plains Conference. School colors are royal blue and white. The following Indiana High School Athletic Association (IHSAA) sanctioned sports are offered:^[16]

• Baseball (boys)
• Basketball (girls and boys)
• Cross country (girls and boys)
• Golf (boys)
• Soccer (girls and boys)
• Softball (girls)
• Tennis (girls and boys)
• Track and field (girls and boys)
• Volleyball (girls)

Awards

• BCS received Elkhart County's 2006 Urban Conservation Award for its wetland study site, which transformed a retention pond into "a diversified wetland and a research site for students".^[17]
• In 2017, Bethany Christian Schools received the U.S. Department of Education's Green Ribbon Schools Award, one of two schools in Indiana and 63 schools nationwide to be commended for excellence "in the areas of reducing environmental impact and costs, improving the health and wellness of schools, students, and staff, and providing an environmental education, incorporating Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math (STEM), civic skills, and green career pathways".^[18]
• The Indiana Department of Education recognized Bethany Christian Schools among 70 schools statewide for student success on Advanced Placement exams in 2018.^[19]

External links

• Bethany Christian Schools

Notes and References

1. Web site: Faculty and Staff Directory . 2024-01-19 . www.bethanycs.net . en.
2. News: Bethany Christian Schools. 2 February 2024. Indiana Department of Education.
3. Web site: Search for Private Schools - School Detail for Bethany Christian Schools. nces.ed.gov. 21 September 2022.
4. Web site: A History of the Winona / Bethany Christian Schools Historical Marker . 2022-09-29 . www.hmdb.org . en.
5. Web site: 2020-2025 Strategic Plan for Bethany Christian Schools . 2022-09-21 . www.bethanycs.net . en.
6. Web site: December 1, 2021 . Bethany Christian Schools announce new mission, vision statements . 2022-09-21 . Goshen News . en.
7. News: 1990-05-16 . Troyer Group . 56 . The South Bend Tribune . 2022-09-21.
8. News: 1996-04-09 . Bethany will add middle grades . 9 . The South Bend Tribune . 2022-09-21.
9. Web site: Weiser . Joseph . October 15, 2021 . Bethany to grow again, add first and second grades . 2022-09-21 . Goshen News . en.
10. Web site: Explore Bethany Christian Schools . 2022-09-30 . Niche . en.
11. Web site: 2018-03-14 . Students Stage Walkout Across Indiana . 2022-09-25 . WFYI Public Media . en-us.
12. Web site: Lepak . Evan . August 21, 2023 . Prep Soccer: Bethany Christian introduces facility renovations . 2022-09-25 . Goshen News.
13. Web site: Kline . John . February 17, 2010 . Bethany staff considering anthem issue . 2022-09-30 . Goshen News . en.
14. Web site: Kaethler . Andy Brubacher . 2016-11-01 . Encounters with God: Humanizing experiences amidst questions of faith and identity . 2022-09-30 . Anabaptist Mennonite Biblical Seminary . en-US.
15. Web site: 2023 Soccer Sate Tournament . November 7, 2023 . IHSAA.
16. Web site: myIHSAA . www.myihsaa.net . Indiana High School Athletic Association . September 22, 2022.
17. News: 2007-04-28 . Sustainable living tour showcases solutions . D1 . The South Bend Tribune . 2022-09-21.
18. News: May 5, 2017 . Indiana Department of Education congratulates winners of the U.S. Department of Education's Green Ribbon Schools Award . States News Service . October 19, 2022 . Gale Academic OneFile, EBSCO.
19. News: State of Indiana House of Representatives . Jun 19, 2018 . Culver: Bethany Christian School recognized for AP success . US Official News . October 19, 2022 . EBSCO.