A Strong Foundation

History of Growth

This year, Foundation Academy is celebrating its 65th year in Christ-centered education! Our story began in 1958, when the Plant St. Campus first opened its doors in historic Downtown Winter Garden. Nearly fifty years later, in 2006, Foundation expanded to 67-plus acres on Tilden Rd., allowing us to serve 7th–12th grades on campus.  Finally, in 2019, we expanded once again, partnering with The Family Church to establish Foundation Academy Lakeside to K-6 grades.  At Foundation Academy, we’re proud to call this our “family of campuses”—three beautiful campuses, all Christ-centered, one great school!

Meeting Demand

Over the past decade, the demand for high-quality Christian education has increased. According to Director of Marketing and Communications Joseph Cioffi, “The demand for a Christ-centered education started with the cultural shifts in philosophy and values that influenced students’ environment and ultimately their curriculum in most public school offerings.”

In addition, he believes the pandemic played a pivotal role. “For the first time in a long while, parents were experiencing first-hand what their children were being taught. They began to weigh the value of what their students were receiving, and in many cases, this led parents to seek a better, more meaningful educational experience that fit more closely with their values.”

With such demand in sight long before the pandemic, the school formed a comprehensive expansion plan in 2016.  Under President Dave Buckles’s leadership, the plan would not only accommodate demand, but continually improve the school’s specialized educational space. The $17 million expansion project, called Expansion Set Apart, is taking place on the 67-plus acre Tilden Campus, which enrolls 550 students. The initial expansion included a 17,000-square-foot addition to the main educational building, including an athletic annex housing weight and agility training, and the Collegiate Recruiting Office for Prospective college athletes. The current phase of expansion includes a cafeteria/worship center slated to open in the 3rd quarter of 2024 and a new 40,000-square-foot educational building to be completed in time for the 2025-26 school year.

Building Christian Leaders

With Expansion Set Apart firmly in motion, Vice-President of Education Carol Grosshans and Principal Sarah Reynolds are keenly focused on building the Academy’s curriculum to meet the demands of high-quality education in a world influenced by technology. Supporting that effort, Foundation Academy received a transformational gift from Cynthia and William E. Perry that will be strategically utilized to enhance and innovate the Foundation’s educational programs, support faculty development, and fortify the school’s infrastructure with the Cynthia and William E. Perry Innovation Center which will reside in the new educational building.

“Teaching is such a noble pursuit, and there is nothing  more rewarding to our team than witnessing the growth and development of our students,” says Cioffi. “Our portrait of a graduate comprises three elements: Love, Learn, and Lead. All of our efforts are made with the intention that Foundation Academy students will love by Christ’s example, continually desire to learn, and lead their generation in the truth of His word today, tomorrow, and into eternity. As passionate, committed Christian educators, we are excited about meeting the ever-increasing demand and reaching our goal that every graduate that walks our stage will know the love of Christ.”