Starting and Growing A Classical Christian School

Posted on by Society for Classical Learning

Join this session to hear from three founding Heads of School from three locations (New York City, San Diego and Waco). Collectively, these three ladies have 50+ years of school leadership experience. They will share why they started their schools, the challenges of running a school and the unique challenges of being female leaders and moms. is session’s format will be a panel discussion with plenty of time for Q&A.

Rim Hinckley

Prior to starting the Geneva School of Manhattan, Rim taught math for 12 years. Along with other believers, she began planning for a classical Christian school in Manhattan in 1995. A er a year of planning, praying, pursuing real estate leads and completing city requirements, e Geneva School of Manhattan opened with 22 students in three grades. A er several years, Rim stepped down to spend time with her young family. She served on the board until 2011, when she resumed Head of School responsibilities. Under her leadership, the school has grown to 280 students and two campuses. Rim also serves on the boards of SCL, PAVE Academy and Messiah College, and has previously served on the board of Hope for New York. She and her husband, Carter, have two sons, C.J. and Charlie.

Jean Kim

Jean has been an educator for more than 20 years, first as a high school history and humanities teacher, then as an educational policy analyst at a Washington D.C. think-tank and then as the owner of a successful a er-school tutoring center. She then founded and became the Head of School at The Cambridge School in San Diego, where she continues to serve in that role. Jean holds a bachelor's degree in history from Yale University, where she completed her teacher preparation, as well. She serves on the SCL board, and enjoys helping classical Christian schools flourish. Jean and her husband, Scott, have three children.

Liz Caddow

A er receiving a bachelor’s degree in business, Liz turned to education, earning her master’s degree in education and a history credential from the University of Southern California. She taught in the California public school system for eight years before founding Trinity Classical Academy. Her passion and leadership have helped Trinity to become one of the fastest growing classical Christian schools in America, having grown from 28 students in grades K-2 in 2001 to its present enrollment of 565 students in grades TK-12. Liz continues to serve as the Head of School at Trinity.

Staying Mission True (or Preventing Mission Drift)

Posted on by Society for Classical Learning

Facing mission drift is inevitable unless your school intentionally seeks to and works to remain mission true. Starting from the assumption that classical Christian schools have a fantastic mission to protect, this session will outline common ways that schools can suffer mission drift and provide practical suggestions for remaining mission true, generation after generation.

Jean Kim

Having graduated from a top NAIS school and Yale University, and after having spent her entire career in education, Jean Kim fell in love with the ideals of Christian classicism, swallowed a few (very large) crazy pills, and decided to start a Christian classical school in one of the most expensive, challenging areas of the country—San Diego—while trying to juggle being mother to three children under the age of four at the time and being a supportive wife to her entrepreneur husband. By God’s grace, The Cambridge School is thriving and she has lived to tell about the experience and share some humbling and hard-won lessons learned from the rst 10 years.

10 in 10: Top Ten Lessons in the First Ten Years

Posted on by Society for Classical Learning

Is your school less than 10 years old? Are you thinking of starting a school? Are you involved in setting your slightly older school on a new trajectory for the future? If so, administrators and board members will want to hear the top ten lessons learned in the trenches over the first decade from Jean Kim, founder and headmaster of The Cambridge School in San Diego.

Jean Kim

Having graduated from a top NAIS school and Yale University, and after having spent her entire career in education, Jean Kim fell in love with the ideals of Christian Classicism, swallowed a few (very large) crazy pills and decided to start a Christian Classical school in one of the most expensive, challenging areas of the country—San Diego, CA—while trying to juggle being mother to three children under the age of four at the time and being a supportive wife to her entrepreneur husband. By God’s grace, The Cambridge School is thriving and she has lived to tell about the experience and share some humbling and hard-won lessons learned from the rst ten years.