Hickory Classical Christian School is a full time K-12 school that will open in the Fall of 2025 in Cookeville, TN. We aim to provide an uncompromising classical, Christian education for Protestant Evangelical families, who believe discipleship and education are a serious joy. We covenant with parents to grow children into courageous, intelligent disciples of Christ.

The monies donated will go to launch the school, for expenses like purchasing curriculum, insurance, hiring staff, faculty, and a head of school. Funds will also be used for rent, preparing the building, and utilities.

Why “Hickory Classical Christian School?”

The Tennessee Shagbark Hickory is a tree unique to our region. It is our desire for the school to be unapologetic about our heritage as Americans, Southerners, and Tennesseeans. Hickory grows slowly, reaches an enormous height, lives for centuries, and is incredibly strong. One of Tennessee’s most famous sons, Andrew Jackson, was known as “Old Hickory” as a nod to his physical toughness. It is our desire to plant a seed that will grow to become equally as strong and enduring as the mighty hickory tree. We hope the roots run deep and that our students will not only consider going afield to reform culture, but will return to their roots and strengthen their home by their courage, intelligence, and nobility.

We have included “classical” to be clear about the type of pedagogy and curriculum that we will be using to accomplish this task. “Christian” is included because of the rise of a growing number of secular classical schools, and we wish to keep the Christian faith and the Lordship of Christ at the center of the education we provide. Finally, we have chosen “School” as a return to simplicity to keep us grounded and focused on the task of educating young people.

Statement of Faith

I. Holy Scripture The Bible, consisting of sixty-six books in the Old and New Testaments, is without error and cannot be wrong. It is the only sufficient rule for all saving knowledge, faith, obedience, and life that pleases God. The Apocrypha, though historically useful, is not Holy Scripture. Every word in the original texts of the Bible is inspired by God and carries His authority. The perfect rule for interpreting Scripture is Scripture itself. When a passage is hard to understand, it must be explained by other passages of Scripture that speak more clearly.

II. God, the Holy Trinity There is one God, who eternally exists in three distinct Persons—Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. He is personal, sovereign, eternal, loving, holy, just, unchanging, all-powerful, all-knowing, all-present, all-wise, and beyond full human understanding. The Father is neither begotten nor proceeding. The Son is eternally begotten of the Father. The Holy Spirit eternally proceeds from the Father and the Son. These three Persons are one God, one divine Nature, and have no beginning or end. God is singular and infinite, existing entirely from Himself. He has no parts and no needs. He is in control of all things and works everything according to His righteous will for His glory, characterized by holy love, mercy, and justice. He rewards the faithful, hates sin, and judges the guilty.

III. Creation God—Father, Son, and Holy Spirit—created all things in six days out of nothing, for His own glory, without evolution. Everything was created very good. God alone determines the design and purpose of His creation. He made humanity, male and female, in His image to reflect Him.

IV. Sin God created Adam and Eve very good, but the serpent deceived Eve, and she sinned. Adam, who was not deceived, knowingly sinned. Because of Adam’s sin, all humans are conceived in and dead in sin, and are sinners by nature, inclination, and choice. All are guilty in Adam and are children of wrath by nature. Before salvation, all people can do toward God is to sin due to our corrupt natures, until the Holy Spirit draws us to Christ. This corrupt nature remains in Christians, and although it is forgiven and mortified in Christ, both itself and the first impulses it produces are truly and properly sin.

V. God the Son, Jesus Christ Jesus Christ is God the Son Incarnate. He is truly God and truly Man. In the virgin Mary’s womb, God the Son, by His Holy Spirit, united with a human nature. He is one divine Person with two natures—divine and human—united without mixture and distinct without separation. God chose and ordained the Lord Jesus to be the Mediator between God and humanity. He is the true Prophet, Priest, and King, the Head and Savior of the church. He performed miracles, lived a sinless life, is the heir of all things, and will judge the world. From eternity, God the Father gave a people to Jesus that He would redeem, call, justify, sanctify, and glorify. He willingly took on the role of Mediator, fulfilling the law, bearing our punishment, without corruption, through His crucifixion, death, and burial. He rose from the dead on the third day, ascended to heaven to intercede for His church at His Father’s right hand, and will return to judge all. Through His perfect obedience and sacrifice, Jesus fully satisfied God’s justice, procured reconciliation, and purchased an everlasting inheritance in heaven for all those the Father gave Him. Even before Jesus came, Old Testament believers were saved by grace through faith in Him. They trusted God’s promises and types as they participated in ceremonies and sacrifices, and looked ahead in faith to the Seed of the woman who would crush the serpent’s head, Abraham’s Seed, David’s Son, and the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world, who is the same yesterday, today, and forever.

VI. God the Holy Spirit The Holy Spirit is truly God. He inspired holy men to write the Bible and enables people to understand it. He exalts Christ, convicts people of sin, righteousness, and judgment, calls sinners to the Savior, and effects regeneration. Christ baptizes believers with the Holy Spirit at regeneration into the church. The Holy Spirit cultivates Christian character, comforts believers, and gives spiritual gifts to serve God in His church. He seals the believer to the day of final redemption. His presence in the Christian is the guarantee that God will bring the believer into the fullness of Christ. He enlightens and empowers believers to worship, evangelize, and serve God, His church, and others.

VII. Salvation The gospel is to be preached and offered to all. By grace alone, through faith alone in Christ alone, God justifies us, forgiving our sins and declaring us righteous, for His glory alone. Through repentance and faith, God credits Christ’s sinless life and atoning death to Christians. We are righteous in Christ, and our sins are fully paid for.

VIII. Sanctification Though Christians cannot be sinless in this life due to our sinful flesh, God gradually sanctifies His church on earth through His word and Holy Spirit. In Christ, sin no longer controls believers. Through repentance, faith, and obedience, its lusts are increasingly put to death, and we grow in all saving graces and the practice of true holiness. Empowered by the Holy Spirit, all true Christians are enabled to live for Jesus and will persevere in doing so.

IX. Last Things At the right time, Jesus will return visibly to the earth. The dead will rise, and He will judge everyone in righteousness. The unrighteous will face eternal punishment in hell. The righteous, in resurrected and glorified bodies, will receive our reward and will rule and reign with Christ in a new heaven and new earth forevermore.