Worthington Christian Schools

Fifty years have passed since WC opened its doors to 123 students in the fall of 1973. Much has transpired in that expanse: the student body has grown to 960 students from kindergarten through twelve. We now have three campuses and 3,000 men and women who are proud alumni. WC has remained faithful to the founding vision, proudly proclaiming its Bible-based curriculum as the hallmark of its mission. The mission of WC is best measured by the results. Students at WC are expected to achieve standards in four categories: Christian faith/spiritual formation, academics, social and community involvement, and personal growth. This combination of foundational characteristics is unique to WC and is a telling marker of our graduates. When Pastor Jim Custer was called to minister at the Grace Brethren Church of Columbus in 1968, the vision and burden for a dynamic, academically excellent, committed-to-the-Scriptures, Christian school to minister to the needs of the Church and central Ohio was already in his heart. As that vision was shared and supported through prayer, God began to raise up qualified people to make it happen. He put together a group of godly men who prayed and researched for over a year on how to begin and structure the kind of school desired. These men included: Stanley L. Fox, Earl Tarr, Harold Troutner, Charles Weed, Pastor John Willett, Stan Fox, Dick Coldren, Neil Crabbe, Jim Thorson, Bill Price, Ivor Young, Bob Daniel, Craig Wright, and Phil Markwood. Educators, businessmen, real estate developers, lawyers, architects, these men understood this ministry we call WC required deep commitment and sacrifice. Driven by a passion to follow God’s Word in helping parents train their children, the leaders of the Grace Brethren Church of Columbus founded Worthington Christian School in 1973. The commitment was so heartfelt that a group of families personally signed documents to bear the financial burden to secure a mortgage to build WC. The school was designed to assist the Christian families with an education steeped in the Truth of God’s Word. Groundbreaking for the school building was March 18, 1973, with the hope of being in the new facility by fall. However, excessive rain, a steel strike and a brick layer’s strike all hindered the on-time completion. When WC opened its doors in the fall of 1973, 126 students were enrolled. However, the delayed construction of the new building caused classes to be held in every nook and cranny of the Grace Brethren Church. It was mid-year when the new WC was finally completed. WC began with grades kindergarten through six and quickly added grades seven and eight, plus 179 more students after the first year of operation. By 1977, grades 11 and 12 were added, enrollment grew to 417, and ten students became the first graduates of WC. WC has continued to grow and flourish. Much has changed over the years, but WC’s commitment to partnering with families to provide a top-notch, distinctly Christian education is unwavering.