Athens Christian School

Athens Christian School (ACS) is a private, PreK–12 non-denominational Christian school located in Athens, Georgia, United States.

Athens Christian School
Address
1270 Highway 29 North Athens , (Clarke County) , Georgia 30601 United States
Coordinates	34°00′26″N 83°19′35″W
Information
School type	Private, coeducational Private Christian School
Motto	"Quality Education in a Christian Atmosphere."[1]
Religious affiliation(s)	Christian
Established	1970[2]
Founder	Drs. Buhl and Lois Cummings
School number	[phone]
Head of school	Steve Cummings
Grades	PreKindergarten – 12
Enrollment	494 (2021-2022[3])
• Grade 9	48
• Grade 10	70
• Grade 11	63
• Grade 12	41
Average class size	19–70
Student to teacher ratio	11.7
Classrooms	40 +
Campus type	urban
Color(s)	Purple and gold
Sports	Baseball, basketball, cheerleading, cross country, flag corps, football, golf, soccer, softball, tennis, track, volleyball, wrestling
Mascot	Golden Eagle
Team name	Golden Eagles
Accreditation	Georgia Accrediting Commission[4]
Website	http://www.athenschristian.com

History

Radio minister and bookstore owner Buhl Cummings opened Athens Christian School with his wife in 1970. They offered Bible study and opened each day with worship and prayer.^[5][6]

The initial enrollment consisted of white children whose parents wanted to avoid enrolling them in racially integrated public schools.^[7] According to historian Ashton Ellett, white elites enrolled their children in Athens Christian School as part of the transition to a class-based system of racial exclusion that was nominally colorblind and revolved around the rhetoric of individual rights, personal freedom, and meritocratic enrollment.^[8]

In 1985, Athens Christian School suspend a student for participating in an off-campus theater's production of Jesus Christ Superstar. Headmaster Buhl Cummings explained that school banned dancing because "it inflames the passions of youth". Rock-n-roll music was also banned because the "jungle type beat" was reminiscent of the "drums of Africa where they don't know the gospel".^[9][10]

In 1995, an Athens Christian School representative stated that the school was seeing additional applications in response to Clarke County School District's "controlled choice" plan to reduce school segregation.^[11]

Academics

ACS is accredited by the Georgia Accrediting Commission.^[1][12]

Notable alumni

• Alan Busenitz (2008), MLB pitcher^[13]
• Seaver King (2021), third baseman and outfielder in the Washington Nationals organization^[14]