By Sandy Hodgson
“True education means more than the pursual of a certain course of study. It means more than a preparation for the life that now is. It has to do with the whole being, and with the whole period of existence possible to man. It is the harmonious development of the physical, the mental, and the spiritual powers. It prepares the student for the joy of service in this world and for the higher joy of wider service in the world to come.” —Ellen G. White, Education, p. 13.
It was my freshman year at Union College as an education major when I was asked to present a worship thought for education leaders within the Mid-America Union who had come together for meetings. I believed then that education had to be equally balanced between academic, physical, social, and spiritual development.
My object lesson was simple and even though I was scared, I was passionate about what I believed. Almost 35 years have gone by since that presentation and God continues to allow me to teach and be taught by His children.
One year after graduating from Union College with a BS in elementary education, my husband and I were on a plane headed to Italy as missionaries with Adventist World Radio. While I accepted the fact that my career in education would have to be put on hold, God had other plans.
My enthusiasm and passion to teach couldn’t be suppressed and despite my inadequacies with the language, I became involved with our local church in helping to organize the Sabbath School departments and Vacation Bible Schools, and serving as youth director. We served Adventist World Radio and our local church community overseas in Italy and Germany for 10 years in total.
Eleven years later and with three children of our own, we were back in the United States and I enrolled in classes at the University of Colorado to update my teaching credentials. Initially I did substitute teaching then moved to part- time teaching, and eventually to full-time teaching in 2004 at Vista Ridge Academy in the Rocky Mountain Conference.
The education department has challenged teachers across the Rocky Mountain Conference to be united in our core values where we have made Christ-centered living foundational for our other values of honor, exploration, responsibility, integrity, service, and heroism. Watching middle school students stop and help another student in need instead of ignoring them or laughing denotes their incorporation of the values of service and honor. How rewarding it is to hear a kindergartener stand up and let their voice be heard when someone is making a wrong choice because they learned how to be courageous in morning meeting!
These core values are strengthened when we become partners with parents. Through open communication, we better understand our common goal of helping our students develop their God-given talents. Parents and teachers who work together can support, encourage, and challenge more effectively.
As educators, we are compelled to see our students grow with a God-given ability to become thinking and responsible individuals, and we are challenged to help them to be who they already are.
In the words of Ellen G. White, “Every human being, created in the image of God, is endowed with a power akin to that of the Creator—individuality, power to think and to do. . . . It is the work of true education to develop this power, to train the youth to be thinkers, and not mere reflectors of other men’s thought. Instead of confining their study to that which men have said or written, let students be directed to the sources of truth, to the vast fields opened for research in nature and revelation. Let them contemplate the great facts of duty and destiny, and the mind will expand and strengthen” (Education, p. 17).
It is a privilege to be part of the greatest educational system in the world. That’s what I believe. Recognizing that the original purpose of establishing Seventh-day Adventist schools was to prepare pastoral and medical missionaries to serve around the world, I believe it is still our mission today to prepare young people to be leaders and servants within our local communities and across the globe. The church’s educational system is a worldwide organization that strives for excellence. At times we find ourselves inadequate and flawed, but our vision and determination to equip young people for “the whole period of existence possible to man” confirms our purpose on our journey to excellence.
True education has to be equally balanced between academic, physical, social, and spiritual development. As a Seventh-day Adventist teacher, it is an honor to uphold the trust that parents have placed in me and in our institution to provide the best for their child. I am reminded daily that, “It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me” (Galatians 2:20).
Helping young people recognize the power available to them through Christ to become all that they were created to be continues to be an incredible journey—a journey to excellence.
Sandy Hodgson is principal and teacher at Vista Ridge Academy in Erie, Colorado. www.vistaridge.org