Education

Ministry in Motion members Bria Bernard (’21), Camille Stepney (’21), Andrea Gibbons (’21) and Zipporah Leonce (’22) appear in an outdoor video.

Story by Tracey Jackson

School started with high hopes and bubbling excitement as students and staff reunited on the campus that has become a second home to so many. It soon became apparent, however, that the anticipated dip in morale would be monumental.

With the stress of a steadily raging pandemic and continued political discourse in the country, the students’ and staff focus was continuously tried.

Connor O’Geare

Story by Vicki Swetnam

This year, Spring Valley Academy (SVA) introduced a new high school course exploring the world of entrepreneurship. Students learned how to hire, fire, sell, explore the market, read financial statements, create a business plan, give an elevator pitch and ask for funding. The capstone project was a Shark Tank contest in which each student presented their own business plan to a group of local business leaders requesting an “investment” in their company. The students delivered and staged their presentations using props such as cupcakes, prepared meals, lawn mowers, clothing and other items.

Blue Mountain Academy runs an organic farm

Story by Jenevieve Lettsome & V. Michelle Bernard

Schools around the Columbia Union Conference are also striving to teach students about caring for the earth, using various activities such as installing solar panels and planting gardens.

Mountain View Conference’s Highland Adventist School in Elkins, W.Va., recently received a rain barrel from the West Virginia Department of Environmental Protection (WVDEP) Division of Water and Waste Management to help provide water for their greenhouse growing program.