Private Christian school in Lebanon to offer hybrid learning
LEBANON, Tenn. (WKRN) — Imagine your student learning three days a week in the classroom and spending the other two school days at home. It's a unique model a private Christian school in Lebanon plans to use next year.
"On school days, parents actually have a break, so we're actually going to take the load off of them Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday. They're not going to have to prepare all the lessons and keep up the curriculum," said Ryan Coatney, the head of school for Imago Classical Academy , which is set to open inside The Journey Church next year.
According to Coatney, on Mondays through Wednesdays, students will learn in the classroom. Then, on Thursdays and Fridays, they will review the material with their parents at home.
Nashville counselors visit Asheville with support from Covenant School students
"My hope is that because of that, their kids' best memories of their education are going to with their parents," Coatney said.
He told News 2 the demand is present, with private schools having wait lists across Middle Tennessee.
"We've had already about 300 families express interest, so the interest is there, and now it's just the process of more clearly defining what we're about so families can make good decisions," Coatney explained.
Tennessee lawmakers weigh in on new school voucher bill
However, he said the goal is to have smaller class sizes and enroll around 150 students from Kindergarten to ninth grade, eventually adding high school grades.
This news comes after Tennessee leaders introduced a new school voucher bill on Wednesday, Nov. 6 after the last version failed. The proposal would allow taxpayer money to cover the tuition of a student going to a private school.
According to Coatney, if that were to pass, it could potentially help students attend Imago Classical Academy next school year.
Read today's top stories on wkrn.com
"It would be awesome if families could have a way to offset the costs of an education like this, but we're kind of at the mercy of the legislature to see what passes and what doesn't," Coatney said.
