Veritas School opened in 2000 in Crestwood Presbyterian Church on Jahnke Road and now has approximately 600 students at its North Side campus.
Schools often grow organically around the communities in which they reside, but some schools create their own community and often reshape neighborhoods in the process. The Veritas School in Ginter Park has been an example of the latter since its acquisition of six former Union Theological Seminary buildings in 2013. Founded in 2000 in the Crestwood Presbyterian Church on Jahnke Road, the school has made substantial moves in recent years toward increasing the Ginter Park footprint for its classical Christian curriculum.
Kindergarten teacher Diane Worden reads to her class.
Beginning with 25 students, the school has grown to 620 students from pre-K through grade 12, with an expected enrollment of 650 in the next three years, according to Head of School Keith Nix. In order to accommodate that growth, the school has continued to acquire properties in the neighborhood, including the Laburnum House in 2016, three additional academic buildings on Brook Road in 2017 and, most recently, Kraemer Hall on Palmyra Avenue in late 2019. Asked about future acquisitions, Nix mentions a 19-acre plot owned by the seminary that they “would be delighted to have,” as well as Paisley Hall and two other adjacent properties.
The school’s future plans include tennis courts and athletic fields to accommodate their extensive track and field program. The master plan, developed in collaboration with architecture firm Glave & Holmes, would require relocating the four-building Laburnum House, a move that has raised eyebrows among neighbors at the Ginter Place Condominiums, which sit in the middle of the properties in question.
In summer 2019, the school invited its neighbors, including residents of the nearby condominiums, to a presentation about the changes. Phil Nichols, the liaison between the condos and Veritas, says that the school and administrators have been “very good neighbors,” while acknowledging that he had not seen the final version of the master plan. While some other condo owners say that the relationship between the school and residents has been generally good, some misgivings remain. Some concerns stem from fears that the school could continue to grow as the seminary contracts. Asked about neighbors’ concerns surrounding the school’s growth, Nix says, “we hope that [the facilities] will be enjoyed by not only Veritas, but the neighborhood as well.”
“We hope that [the facilities] will be enjoyed by not only Veritas, but the neighborhood as well.” —Keith Nix, Veritas Head of School
Some Ginter Park and Bellevue residents have also expressed a fear of the neighborhood’s character changing. According to Nix, several families with students at the school moved from the suburbs into the neighborhood. Some Ginter Park residents who asked not to be identified say they were approached by Realtors representing Veritas families even though their houses were not on the market nor had they explored selling previously. Nix acknowledges that there are families who want to move closer to the school, but he emphasized that he would “want to know if [residents] were offended,” and that there was no school policy regarding contacting neighborhood residents about selling their homes.
The school’s master plan for the expanded campus includes playing fields, a performing arts center, a gymnasium, additional classrooms and a student life building.
Pandemic Challenges
The impact of COVID-19 created new considerations for Veritas. The school, which Nix describes as not being “super tech-heavy,” had to pivot to a distance-learning model and complete the academic year virtually. Nix says the transition in the spring “was as good as could be expected. We chose not to follow a model where students were in front of screens all day, every day. Instead, we tried to strike a balance so we could be more helpful for families who didn’t have multiple computers ready at home.”
While the school plans to resume in-person classes in late August, Nix says they’re working to “make sure that any students or families who don’t feel safe coming back to school can participate virtually.” These efforts include expanding bandwidth for streaming, increasing teacher training on virtual platforms and addressing the needs of families without computers for students.
Head of School Keith Nix with students of Veritas School
Looking to the Future
In the wake of George Floyd’s killing and the racial justice movement that it sparked, Nix explains that the school is taking a look at “how to be good at having a conversation about race in our society and community, as a classical school, and [making] sure that we are having that dialogue and helping students and parents to have that dialogue,” in light of the current climate. With a student population that is 82% white, there is some work to be done, and the school has enlisted assistance. Arrabon, an organization led by consultant David Bailey, bills itself as “a ministry that equips churches in effective cross-cultural engagement in their specific contexts,” plans to work with faculty, staff, students and families to increase the Veritas community’s awareness of racial issues. Nix adds that a committee tasked with increasing diversity among faculty and students was also formed recently. He notes that the school has made improvements in that regard but wasn’t able to provide exact numbers.
Nix says he feels good about how Veritas is adjusting to changing times and suggests that the school’s fiscal conservatism has prepared it for any uncertainty that may lie ahead.
“We’ve tightened our belt significantly,” he says, “so that we can address new changes as they come along.”
