Partners, February 2015

MEMPHIS, Tenn. — Children served by this nonprofit, supported by Churches of Christ, are striding in style thanks to Payless ShoeSource.

The retailer named Agape as an official partner of Payless Gives Shoes 4 Kids. Selected from 700 applicants nationwide, Agape received 200 gift certificates valued at $20 each for distribution to children in under-resourced communities in the region.

Workers with Agape transported children from the Raleigh and Frayser communities to Payless stores. “The children were so excited to go to the store, pick out their own new shoes and pay for them with their Payless card,” said Marquis McPherson, youth outreach specialist.
HIGHER EDUCATION
FREED-HARDEMAN UNIVERSITY

HENDERSON, Tenn. — The Commission on Collegiate Nursing Education has accredited Freed-Hardeman’s baccalaureate program in nursing.

 
The accreditation “communicates to prospective students that they are coming to a reputable program,” said Chris White, the program’s chairman, “and assures potential employers that our students are engaged in a rigorous program of study committed to the high academic and professional standards they desire.”

Forty-one juniors and seniors are enrolled in the university’s Bachelor of Science in Nursing and RN to BSN programs.

OKLAHOMA CHRISTIAN UNIVERSITY

BAURU, Brazil — This South American city is one of many that Oklahoma Christian students will have the opportunity to visit through the university’s Brazil summer campaign, revived after a 20-year hiatus. 

Lee Anne Paris, associate dean of academics, and Mel Latorre, missionary in residence, grew up in Brazil in missionary families and fondly remember hosting the OC campaign as children. 

So the pair plans to “revive that tradition,” Paris told the university’s student news service, The Talon .  

Campaigners will travel to cities including Bauru, Campinas, Curitiba and Rio de Janeiro, visiting churches in hopes of making a spiritual impact and forming lasting relationships.
K-12 schools
MOUNT DORA BIBLE SCHOOL

MOUNT DORA, Fla. — Children in Florida rarely — if ever — get a snow day.

That changed after Mount Dora Bible School’s Student Government Association hosted bake sales and other fundraisers to hire a snow-making machine. They blanketed the elementary school with 6 tons of snow during the school’s homecoming week. The students, some of whom had never seen snow, had snowball fights, built snowmen and slid down a hill on plastic lunch trays.

Elementary students in Mount Dora sled down a hill during their Florida snow day. (PHOTO PROVIDED BY MOUNT DORA BIBLE SCHOOL)

OKLAHOMA CHRISTIAN ACADEMY

EDMOND, Okla. — Oklahoma Christian Academy is growing — fast. 

“God is blessing OCA,” said President Brandon Tatum. “Over the past two years we’ve seen an enrollment increase of 64 percent.” The school has more than 350 students. “It’s put us in a position where we need to enhance our facilities, and we need to grow.”

For that reason, the school recently purchased 35 acres, about four miles south of its current facility. Leaders plan to start a feasibility study to prioritize the phases of construction, Tatum said. 

The school received several gifts from donors who asked to remain anonymous to help purchase the land, he added, and seeks additional funds for construction of the new facilities.