Our Story - Our Values - Our Faith

About Stafford Academy

Located ideally off Stafford Road between West Linn, Wilsonville, and Tualatin, Stafford Academy stands as the hidden jewel in private education in our region for more than 20 years. Your child will grow on 30 acres of farmland, and participate in agricultural events from the annual Sunflower Festival, to the Pumpkin Patch and Christmas Light display. On campus we have goats, chickens, pigs, turkeys, peacocks, and several gardens. Children grow best surrounded by things that grow.
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We prioritize excellence in education, and parents in our schools love our small class sizes, averaging under 15 students per class.
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You will love the community families in our school develop with our many school events, from the Christmas pageant, to family breakfasts.

Our History

Founded in 1933, Neighborhood Church (Stafford Academy) has a history in education. Through the years the church has operated daycare and preschool ministries, an elementary grade school and a school for children with learning disabilities. In 1986, the congregation made a significant decision to relocate south of Portland.
In 1994 the church began constructing facilities on 30 acres southwest of the Interstate 205 and Stafford Road intersection. The campus was sufficiently developed to begin Stafford Academy in the fall of 2004. Excellent classrooms, common spaces, and play areas make a great campus for preschool and elementary grades. The Neighborhood Church believes Stafford Academy is a great blessing to our community and a wonderful ministry for the Neighborhood Church congregation

Our Values

We Value
Great Teachers – Committed to ongoing personal & professional improvement.
Faith – Connecting every subject to our belief in Jesus Christ and the Bible.
Life Giving Environments – In class, at chapel, on field trips, via music, PE, art, etc.
Achievement – With the bar set high calling every student to reach it.
Technology & Opportunity – As a educational tool with necessary skills to develop
Organizational Health & Communication – With a commitment to learning & growing at every level.
Integration & Experience – Creatively connecting strong core curriculum to holistic life skills to activate passion, purpose and direction.

Our Faith

Stafford Academy seeks to unite children of all racial, ethnic, and economic backgrounds from Greater Portland area through an engaging, content-rich curriculum. We strive to empower and equip each child with a love of learning, a passion for truth, a heart for others, and an understanding of God’s love and grace for us in Jesus Christ. We actively partner with parents in the training and education of their children with a Biblical worldview through quality, Christ-centered education.

Scripture is God’s Word to us.
The Bible is God’s message to all of us.  Written by human authors, over thousands of years, under the supernatural guidance of the Holy Spirit (inspired by God),  the Hebrew Scriptures (Old Testament) and the New Testament are the supreme source of Truth for living on the mission and knowing who God really is.  
 
God is Good.
God is the Creator and Ruler of the universe.  He is love.  His creation is good-very good.  There is one God who exists forever in perfect community as three persons: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.

Jesus is both Human and God.
Jesus is the Son of God – fully human and fully God.  Jesus was tempted just as we are and yet lived a sinless human life and died on a Roman cross as a perfect sacrifice for the sins of all people everywhere.  Three days later, Jesus rose from the dead to show He had conquered sin and death.  Jesus ascended to the Father and will return again to earth as the Savior of the world.

We have all sinned.
We are made in God’s image – to be like Him in character, but because humans   rebelled against God (remember Adam & Eve?) everyone is born with a selfish nature that “misses the mark.”  Although every person has tremendous potential for good, all of us are marred by an attitude of disobedience toward God called “sin.”  Somehow we all think we are smarter than God in some part of our life!

Only God can save us.
God, through Jesus’ life and death, offers us the gift of undeserved forgiveness.     This gift is freely offered, but we must accept it.  We begin this journey of faith by saying “yes” to letting Jesus lead.  We can never make up for our sin by self-improvement or trying to be really good people.  Salvation is offered in grace and received by faith in Jesus Christ alone.

We will live forever.
We have choices.  We can either let Jesus lead us and live forever with God (Heaven) or choose to not let Jesus be the director of our lives and  be eternally separated from God (Hell).

The Church is on the mission with Jesus.
When people choose to follow Jesus, God plants inside of them all that is needed to go, make disciples, baptize, and teach their friends, family, neighbors and co-workers how to love God.  As people go on the mission with Jesus, churches emerge and God changes the world heart-first.

The Holy Spirit is our Power.
The Holy Spirit is equal with the Father and the Son of God.  He is present in the world to make people aware of their need of Jesus.  The Holy Spirit lives in every follower of Jesus.  The Holy Spirit provides all followers of Jesus with power to live a life of love, understanding, spiritual truth, and boldness in sharing God’s message with others.