From Dreams to Discipleship: Reflecting on CCA’s 25 Years

11/8/2024

When we look back on our lives and see evidence of God’s faithfulness, our hearts become filled with gratitude. In this article, Dr. Jason Rachels, President of Calvary Christian Academy, shares the story of CCA’s history and reflects on God’s goodness to the CCA community over the past 25 years.

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You’ve heard it said that hindsight is 20/20. That’s because it’s always easier to see something clearly after it has occurred. The same is true for a school when it reflects on its history.

The discipleship theme for this school year at Calvary Christian Academy is the word REFLECT. This word was chosen because we want to be intentional about reflecting on God’s faithfulness as we celebrate our 25th anniversary.

Take a closer look at how CCA first began and how it’s grown into the largest Christian-accredited, private school in the nation.

The Very Beginning

Discussions surrounding starting a Christian school as part of Calvary Chapel Fort Lauderdale began back in 1994. With the church growing, this dream of a Christian school seemed like a possibility initially, but unfortunately, those dreams came to a stop after deals that were expected to come through for an expansion of the church’s property on Gateway Drive fell through. So, our leaders continued to pray and dream, asking God for His plans to come to fruition in His timing.

Two years later, the Lord provided in major ways and Calvary Chapel purchased a property we now enjoy today – 2401 West Cypress Creek Road. Calvary Christian Academy opened its doors in 2000 with 400 students with the mission to make disciples of Jesus Christ in a biblical school environment spiritually, academically, and socially.

Experiencing Growth

By 2003, the school had grown significantly, requiring more space for students and staff. And so, a new dream was sparked – to create a new school building that would foster more opportunities for discipleship.

The first high school class launched in 2003. That same year we also launched two new discipleship opportunities that students get to participate in to this day – mission trips to Mexico and the Bahamas. The Lord continued to provide, and after much work and faith, in 2007, the four-story Discipleship Building (now called the Upper School Building) opened, and CCA’s first graduating senior class turned their tassels!

Charting New Waters

God continued to be generous toward CCA, and in 2019 CCA Hollywood launched in an effort to save a struggling Christian school and keep Christian education alive in that community.

2023 was a major year as two new campuses were launched – CCA North Miami and CCA Boynton Beach – and two new buildings were constructed on CCA’s Fort Lauderdale campus – the Fine Arts Scene Shop and Calvary Fieldhouse. Students are currently being discipled in these spaces and developing their gifts in the areas of athletics and fine arts.

All For God’s Glory

As we reflect on this rich history, God alone deserves the glory for these past 25 years of impact. When our hopes and plans seemed to fall through or when we didn’t know how needs would be met, God time and again was faithful to complete His mission, and always in a greater way than we could have imagined.

We look forward with great anticipation to what God has in store for our community as we continue with our mission to make disciples of Jesus Christ.

“Now to Him who is able to do exceedingly abundantly above all that we ask or think…” —Ephesians 3:20

Dr. Rachels has faithfully dedicated 25 years of service to CCA since its opening in 2000. He started as an Assistant Principal, and then God raised him up to serve as Elementary Principal, High School Principal, Head of School, and now as President. In his current role, he gets to dream and pray about the future of CCA, support all four of its campuses, and equip leaders — both staff and students — to change the world for Jesus Christ. Dr. Rachels obtained his doctoral degree in Educational Leadership from Liberty University. He and his wife Jennifer have three daughters – two who graduated from CCA Fort Lauderdale and one who is currently in Middle School.

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