Dear Parents:
I want to share from my worship today regarding God’s plan for Adventist education.
From the beginning, Adventist education was established for a distinctly Adventist purpose. As calls came from around the world for workers, the church needed schools that could prepare young people to carry the Three Angels’ Messages. Ellen White called for “a different order of things” in the education of Adventist youth—an education designed around the mission God had given His church.
Under leaders such as E. A. Sutherland, that vision began to take practical form. Schools were not simply to provide academic instruction; they were to produce workers. Teachers trained in these schools went out to establish other schools, and the Adventist educational system rapidly expanded. Education became one of the principal means through which the church could prepare workers and extend its mission throughout the world.
Madison College became an important model of this kind of education. Under the guidance of Ellen White, Sutherland and Percy Magan developed a school that combined spiritual, intellectual, and practical training with missionary service. Graduates went out to establish self-supporting schools, medical missions, and other institutions. Ellen White envisioned an “army of workers” made up of young people rightly trained to carry the message of a crucified, risen, and soon-coming Savior to the world.
This is the purpose of true education at Heritage Academy. We are not here simply to help students earn a diploma or prepare for college and a career. Heritage exists to prepare young people to know Christ, to develop their God-given abilities through spiritual, intellectual, and practical education, and to learn to serve others. We are here to prepare students “for what is coming upon the world” and to equip an army of young people who can stand faithfully for Christ and carry His final message to the world.
Doug Baker,
Heritage Academy Principal