What’s up with those T-Shirts?

If you are the parent of a PCA elementary student you may be wondering why your child came home today with a “Building on…” t-shirt. We had a short assembly today to update the kids on the building campaign and to ask them to pray for our school. The panther mascot was there to greet them and Mr. Randall explained that soon they will begin to see a crane and equipment at the new high school building. The kids were so excited to learn how they can help make the new high school a reality through their prayers.
In the next couple of days, the Middle School and High School students will receive their t-shirts. A couple of weeks from now we will be asking parents and friends of PCA to join us in a 100 days of prayer campaign for our new HS building. We hope your will join us as we Build on Prayer!
“By the grace God has given me, I laid a foundation as an expert builder, and someone else is building on it. But each one should be careful how he builds. For no one can lay any foundation other than the one already laid, which is Jesus Christ.” 1Corinthians 3:10

Remember the old women who lived in a shoe?

PCA has been blessed with the same problem; we have so many children but we do know what to do. We need to build the new high school to make space for the students. God has blessed our school with an increase in enrollment and even more who want to attend when we have additional space. The demolition has been completed on the interior of the building, the electrical demolition is underway and the roof will soon be raised. The key to keeping the construction moving forward is funding.
The original estimate for the cost of just construction of the first phase of the new high school building was $3.8 million. The new estimate for full completion and integration of the new high school is now $4.6 million. The increase reflects the additional site costs to blend the high school campus with our existing campus, furniture and fixtures, exciting technology to use throughout the high school as well as finalization of cost in conjunction with the finalization of plans. We need to raise that money quickly to keep the construction going and open the new building as soon as possible. $4.6 million seems like an impossible number. It may be for one person, but not for the entire PCA family. If divided equally, the cost of the new high school building would only be about $7,000 per family, paid over the next three years. While we realize some families will not be able to give $7,000, we know that others are willing to give more. If each family commits to donating what they are able to support PCA, the dream of the high school building will soon become a reality.

We make a living by what we get, but we make a life by what we give. Winston Churchill

"Some people give time, some money, some their skills and connections, some literally give their life's blood. But everyone has something to give." Barbara Bush

What do the business neighbors think?

During the process of purchasing the property and making plans for the new PCA High School, the school administration has been in close contact with the businesses who are “neighbors” to PCA. While the school was seeking rezoning from the Town of Pantego to use the former Stripling & Cox building as a High School, 128 businesses from Pantego wrote letters to the Town Council supporting the rezoning to permit our high school. After the approval, the school administrators cautiously approached the beauty salon owners who will be next door to the new high school about the plans to renovate the building. The concerns would have been obvious- a salon with mostly senior clients right next door to a high school- it doesn’t sound like a great mix. The salon owners had a less than predictable response. They are actually delighted that our high school will be their next door neighbors. They stated that our students are polite to their clients, open doors for their clients and are generally positive to be around. Wow, what an amazing testimony to the character of our students! As we move forward with the building program for our new high school it is important to keep in mind that we are not building just a building; we are building character in our students.

Haven't you heard we're in the middle of a recession?

There are some who may question the logic of pursuing a school expansion and large capital campaign in the middle of what may be the worst financial crisis in our nation’s history. The answer to “Why now?” is that as a school, we are following the provision and calling of God to expand the school.
One interesting fact about recessions that the major news outlets do not focus on is that in times of financial crisis, people turn to “religion” for comfort. Christians stand out in this environment as beacons of hope knowing our future is secure in Christ. Now more than ever, we need to train our children to be salt and light in the world. We need to follow God’s direction in expanding our school to train those He is sending our way. While it may seem an unlikely time for a successful fundraising effort, all evidence to the contrary. Our pre-campaign feasibility study conducted by an outside firm, indicated that our PCA family shared the vision and is ready to give in order to assure our success.
We are not alone in this pursuit. Here is a link http://www.star-telegram.com/schools/story/1246062.html to a recent front page article in the Fort Worth Star Telegram, stating that private schools in the area (Christian Schools were highlighted in the Article) are flourishing. PCA is one of several Christian schools in the DFW area that are growing and pursuing significant building campaigns. God’s economy is not that of the world, he is calling us to grow now and prepare our students to be the Christian leaders of the future.

Frequently Asked Questions

Q. What are you planning to do?
A. We are renovating 57,000 square feet of a former department store and adding an 18,000 sq. ft. second floor to create a new high school for our growing high school program.
Q. Why was this purchase a good move by the school?
A. The school needs space now and for the future. We are landlocked and though there are advantages to moving to more land and building new, we have the current campus that we only owe $690,000 on which is now valued at about $9 million. The department store we purchased is appraised at $6.9 million and we bought the building for $ 4.9 million. When you realize that price includes the parking that we needed and the potential for another 18,000 square feet with the second story, we believe this was a wise move by the school. The purchase of the Emler Swim School provided us with an additional one and a half acres of property plus a facility that currently has been converted into weight room/field house and coaches offices. The Emler property will have even greater use to us in the long term.
Q. What is the cost?
A. The total cost of the Capital Campaign project will be $10 million. This includes the $3.8 million for the 1st floor in Phase 1 and the $6.2 million for adjacent property acquisition, transaction costs, field house remodel, and debt consolidation.
Q. So you will raise all $10 million right now?
A. That would be nice! We are approaching the project in phases to accommodate our growing student body. The $3.8 million for the renovation is what we are calling Phase 1, and includes the elimination of portable classrooms currently in use. We have already demolished the interior of the department store and the very first remodeling we must do is to “pop the roof”. We will then build-out most of the first floor and leave the second floor for a later phase. Of course, if the Lord should bless us with the funds, we would do the entire high school.
Q. What will you do with the current high school facility?
A. Right now, we house both our high school students, 9th-12th Grades and our middle school students, 6th - 8th Grades in that facility and the portable classrooms. The middle school students will stay in that facility and we have plans for a future remodel of it.
Q. If you currently have both the middle and high school grades in the current high school facility, why the need for additional space?
A. Even though they are in the building together we have had to secure portables for a two year lease to house all of the classes and students. We must have the additional space to provide for our current students, as well as for the growth. Additionally, we believe the educational experience will be greatly enhanced by the additional space and modern classrooms.
Q. How big are you planning on the high school program to be?
A. We believe a high school student population of 400 is the optimal size for providing the best possible educational experience for students. We are managing our growth over the next 5 to 10 years so that we have the facilities we need in the future.
Q. When do you plan to open?
A. We believe it is important that we plan for the future needs as well as the current needs and it is better to take the time now to plan for the future of the school than to rush into the project without carefully thinking everything through as much as possible. We had hoped to be open by Fall of 2009 but as we have worked through the process, especially the design of the facility, it looks like it will be January of 2010.
Q. When you say the high school program, will everything be included in the new facility for the students?
A. When Phase 1 is complete, the building will house all of the academic programs, technology labs, lecture hall, administrative offices, art and commons/dining areas. A 2nd phase will finish out the 1st floor and the 2nd floor. The band hall, drama/performance center, kitchen/dining additions will be completed on the first floor. The 2nd floor is planned to house a media/library center and additional classrooms. Of course, the time frame for completing all of the phases will be dictated by how quickly funds are raised. Funds raised in excess of what is needed to complete Phase 1 will be utilized on the subsequent phases of the high school project.
Q. I know how temporaries or portables work and they end up being a part of the facility for longer than planned, is that the case with this project?
A. I guess anything can happen but we do not want the portables/temporaries beyond the two year time frame. Removing them will eliminate the annual lease and maintenance costs. We will also be able to eliminate the cost associated with leasing our current administrative office space in the shopping center when we are able to move them into our owned facilities.