Cincinnati Hills Christian Academy

Cincinnati Hills Christian Academy is a private Christian university-preparatory school, located on two campuses in Cincinnati, Ohio. Its main campus, North Campus, is located in Sycamore Township and Symmes Township, near the intersection of Interstate 71 and Interstate 275; the elementary school and middle school facility is separated from the high school by about one block. The Otto Armleder Memorial Education Center, which houses a K-8 school, is in downtown Cincinnati.

CHCA is a non-denominational school, not affiliated with a particular church or religious group, though its religious teachings are primarily based in Protestant theology.

History

Overview

The school was founded, in large part by Cincinnati businessman Carl Lindner, Jr., in 1989 on a 25-acre (100,000 m²) plot of land. In its first year it enrolled 165 students in pre-kindergarten through seventh grade. It has since expanded to one elementary school, one middle school, and one high school on two campuses with 1,434 students in 2005. It is a college-prep school.

Edyth B. Lindner Elementary School

The construction of the Edyth B. Lindner Elementary School adjacent to the original building took place in 1992. This elementary school building houses preschool through fourth grade; the original building has fifth through eighth grade.

Martha S. Lindner High School

In 2001, a high school was constructed on a nearby 20-acre (81,000 m²) plot of land. In 2008, a $3 million addition to the high school was begun. It was completed in January 2009 and houses grades 9-12.^[3]

Otto Armleder Memorial Education Center

The school system purchased the historic Crosley Square Building in downtown Cincinnati to establish a school for inner-city students from pre-kindergarten to sixth grade. In March 2006, Lindner announced a $16 million gift to the school, which would allow the Armleder Center to add seventh and eighth grades to its current kindergarten through sixth grade offerings, and would also fund scholarships for some Armleder students to continue their college-prep education through high school at the main CHCA campus in Symmes Township.

The Armleder student population is predominantly African-American; the North Campus student population is ~17% from diverse racial backgrounds.

Academics

Three of the four schools have been designated Blue Ribbon schools by the U.S. Department of Education: the Edyth B. Lindner elementary school in 1997, the Martha S. Lindner High school in 1999, and the middle school in 2003.

All students take Christian Studies courses. Through eighth grade these are primarily devotional in scope, while the high school courses tend to be more academically rigorous, with a focus on historical critical interpretations, biblical exegesis, and theological issues inherent in developing a thoroughly Christian worldview.

Fine arts

Cincinnati Hills Christian Academy has participated in the Cincinnati chapter of the Cappies program for high school theater since the 2003/2004 school year. CHCA received the "Best Orchestra" award for both the 2004/2005 and 2005/2006 school years, along with nominations in other categories. The school's orchestra also played for the Cincinnati Cappies Awards Ceremony in 2006/2007, and in the following year, played Tchaikovsky's original score of his ballet, The Sleeping Princess. This ballet however, was modified so that the school's Electric Jazz Orchestra (EJO), could also take part in it, with a jazz-inspired second act. The EJO has also traveled nationally and internationally, including making trips to Puerto Rico and Kenya for a humanitarian tour.

Athletics

In the varsity high school athletics, boys soccer won the state championship in 1993 with only freshmen and sophomore players.

Notable alumni

• Katie Reider, singer-songwriter

References

External links

• CHCA official web site
• Community Press: Downtown students coming to CHCA