La Sierra Academy

La Sierra Academy (LSA) is a private, co-educational, transitional kindergarten–12th grade Christian school in Riverside, California.[9] La Sierra Academy's mission statement states: "As a Christian K - 12 college preparatory school, we serve students from diverse backgrounds by providing the learning opportunities and skills needed to contribute to society, to prepare for life's work, and to flourish spiritually."[10] LSA is a part of the Seventh-day Adventist education system, the world's second largest Christian school system.

La Sierra Academy
Address
4900 Golden Avenue

Riverside
,
California
92505

United States
Coordinates33°55′06″N 117°29′43″W
Information
TypePrivate/Parochial[1]
MottoLearning, Serving & Achieving Through Christ [2]
Religious affiliation(s)Seventh-day Adventist[1]
PrincipalElizabeth Muñoz Beard (TK–12)[3]
PrincipalDr. Michael Conner (K–6)[4]
Teaching staff40[1]
GradesTK-12[1]
GenderCo-educational[1]
Enrollment819[1] (2008)
Student to teacher ratio20[1]
Color(s)  Blue and   Gold[5]
Athletics conferenceCIF - Southern Section
Arrowhead League
SportsGirls Volleyball, Girls Basketball, Girls Softball, Coed Soccer, Coed Track and Field, Boys Basketball, Boys Baseball, Boys Volleyball[6]
MascotKnights[5]
AccreditationWestern Association of Schools and Colleges[7] Commission on Accreditation, North American Division of Seventh-day Adventists
Websitehttp://lsak12.com/ [8]

History

La Sierra Academy was founded in the fall of 1922 as a secondary school.[2] The land on which it was founded was formerly part of the 1846 Mexican land grant, Rancho La Sierra.[11] La Sierra Academy's first school bulletin from 1922 stated that its students would "learn to render effective service."[11] The school grew into a junior college and later into a full four year liberal arts college. This shift created a need to separate the academy into other academic levels. Thus in 1940, La Sierra College Preparatory School, now known as La Sierra University, was established. In 1955 the school moved to its current location along Pierce Street and Golden Avenue less than a mile away from the University.[2]

Academics

The required curriculum includes classes in the following subject areas: Religion, English, Social Studies, Mathematics, Science, Physical Education, Health, Computer Applications, Fine Arts, and Electives.

Spiritual aspects

All students take religion classes each year that they are enrolled. These classes cover topics in biblical history and Christian and denominational doctrines. Instructors in other disciplines also begin each class period with prayer or a short devotional thought, many which encourage student input. Outside the classroom there are spiritually oriented programming that relies on student involvement year-round.

Incidents

On March 4, 2020, counselor Matthew Johnson was arrested for creation, possession, and distribution of child pornography. He was accused of secretly videotaping inside a boys' restroom on campus.[12] Three alleged victims have sued La Sierra Academy for continued employment of Johnson despite his previous alleged inappropriate conducts with children. Victims' attorney Morgan Stewart stated that La Sierra Academy has "failed in their most basic moral responsibility to protect vulnerable children from a serial sexual predator."[13]

See also

References
  1. "School Detail for La Sierra Academy". National Center for Education Statistics. Retrieved October 14, 2010.
  2. "Elementary Parent & Student Handbook 2015-2016" (PDF). 2015–2016. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2013-09-21. Retrieved October 11, 2017.
  3. "High School". LSA High School Website. La Sierra Academy. Retrieved March 5, 2020.
  4. "Elementary". LSA Elementary Website. La Sierra Academy. Retrieved March 5, 2020.
  5. "La Sierra Academy High School". MaxPreps.com. Retrieved October 14, 2010.
  6. "2009/2010 School Profile" (PDF). La Sierra Academy. Archived from the original (PDF) on November 26, 2010. Retrieved October 14, 2010.
  7. "Search Details for La Sierra Academy". Western Association of Schools and Colleges. Archived from the original on July 26, 2011. Retrieved May 9, 2010.
  8. "La Sierra Academy". Archived from the original on October 10, 2017. Retrieved October 10, 2017.
  9. "La Sierra Academy School Profile 2015-2016" (PDF). 2015–2016. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2017-03-22. Retrieved October 11, 2017.
  10. "La Sierra Academy". Archived from the original on October 10, 2017. Retrieved October 10, 2017.
  11. University, La Sierra. "Our History - La Sierra University". La Sierra University | Change Your World. Retrieved 2017-10-11.
  12. McMillan, Rob (March 5, 2020). "Riverside school counselor arrested on child pornography charges, accused of placing hidden camera in boys' restroom on campus".
  13. "Alleged Victims of Former School Counselor Matthew Johnson Sue Riverside Seventh-Day Adventist School".
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.