Tri-State Christian Academy to become part of Reach Church school group

Tri-State Christian Academy in Elkton, Maryland, which serves students in Delaware, Maryland and Pennsylvania, is being absorbed by the ever-growing Reach Church, the church announced on Facebook Friday.

Reach already operates four schools and has a large church campus in Bear. 

"With the addition of TSCA, Reach Christian Schools is now a Christian School District of five schools located on three campuses partnering with over 700 families and 1,330 students to offer distinctively Christ-centered education through the service of 250 school employees," the post said. "We believe that God has called us to spread the message of Nothing But Jesus to as many people as possible!" 

Reach also owns and operates Red Lion Christian Academy, Tall Oaks Classical School, Glasgow Christian Academy and Journey Christian Academy, which are all located in the Bear area. 

Glasgow Christain Academy is a homeschool academy, while Journey serves students with special needs. All four schools operate collectively as Reach Christian Schools. 

Tri-State Christian Academy serves grades preK-12 and has a steady enrollment of 330 students. The school will be overseen by Head of Reach Christain Schools Tim Dernlan. 

Tri-State's Principal Keith Wilson is no longer at the school, according to the school's Facebook page.

"The previous board made the difficult and painful decision to dismiss him after working closely with him for many years," said the administrators of Tri-State's Facebook page. "From our interactions with the previous board, our opinion is they are a group of godly people who absolutely love the school, have sacrificed greatly to keep the school moving forward to little to no personal benefit, and have spoken with unity.

"We have been asked to lead the school forward and we are excited to get to work. But we do acknowledge the heartbreak of parting ways with a beloved leader." 

A town hall meeting will be held at 6:30 p.m. on Thursday, April 19 at Crossroads Bible Church in Elkton giving parents a chance to ask questions about the transition. 

Crossroads started the academy, originally known as Elkton Christian School, more than 50 years ago, according to Tri-State's website. 

In 2011, the church made a move to get out of the education business, but the school's administrators asked church leaders to allow them to continue the school in the building under a new name led by a newly formed board of directors. 

On Friday, parents on Facebook expressed concern over the school's acquisition by Reach and asked why they were not informed of the change earlier. They also expressed concerns that tuition at the school would be raised or that its policies would change. 

Administrators of the school's Facebook page said it is uncommon for such acquisitions to be made public until they are finalized. Families that want to leave the school will have their deposits refunded, page administrators said.     

Some families and teachers said on Facebook that they were excited about the opportunity to join Reach and thought being part of the Christian schools group would give the school access to additional resources. 

"Reach Christian Schools provides school choice in Christian education and fosters a love for learning in the hearts and minds of our students," according to its website. "The unique educational methodology of each school provides parents with options from which to choose when deciding on the best educational fit for the children God has given them." 

Contact Jessica Bies at (302) 324-2881 or jbies@delawareonline.com. Follow her on Twitter @jessicajbies.