 |
|
 |
Mission Statement
“Great Plains Academy is dedicated to the education of young people in the spiritual, mental, physical, and social spheres with service to both God and humanity as the ultimate goal.”
Our Philosophy
The Great Plains Academy is operated by the Seventh-day Adventist Church to provide a spiritually oriented education for children. A belief in the existence of the Creator God is fundamental in the philosophy of Seventh-day Adventist schools. We respect His divine authority and recognize His intervention in human affairs. We believe that true education develops the spiritual, mental, and physical powers of each student; preparing them for the joy of service in this life and for the higher joy of service in the life to come. To achieve this goal, we encourage each student to:
- develop a personal relationship with God and his fellow men
- master the basic academic skills
- value labor, physical and mental, as the
- blessing God intended
- cultivate physical fitness, mental ability, and moral purity as the blessing God intended.
Great Plains Academy is operated in harmony with the guidance and direction of the Office of Education, North American Division of the Seventh-day Adventist Church.
2009 - 2010 Staff
Stephen Bralley - Principal / Government / SA Sponsor
Mr. Bralley has worked in Adventist education since 1999. Nominated 6 times for the Who’s Who Among America’s Teachers award, he recently moved from the position of Boys Dean to Principal. Mr. Bralley is a member of ASPA, ASCD, and Phi Kappa Delta. In his free time, he enjoys motorcycling, reading, paintball, computers and “honey do” lists.
Judy Miller - Vice Principal of Finance / Art
Mrs. Miller has been in Adventist Education since 2004. She received a Bachelor of Science degree in Accounting from St. Mary of the Plains College, after attending Virginia Commonwealth University and Andrews University. She is kept busy managing the financial aspects of GPA including banking student accounts, payroll and regulatory reports. In her free time she enjoys reading, quilting, sewing, crocheting, tatting, remodeling and decorating. jmiller@gpaschool.org
Teresa Peterson - Registrar / Secretary
Mrs. Peterson is new this year but not new to our campus. She was the Food Service Director in 2005-2007. She went to grade school at the Enterprise SDA School 1972-74 when her father was Industrial Arts Teacher at then Enterprise Academy. She said she never dreamed of returning to Enterprise, KS let alone to serve as staff at the school, but it's been a very rewarding experience. She enjoys working with young people and has 4 grown children. She has worked in accounting and secretarial positions with Adventist Health Systems and Memorial Hospital in Abilene, Ks. She enjoys, quilting, needlework, reading, growing violets and most of all time with her 3 granddaughters. tpeterson@gpaschool.org ext 102
Darcy Force - Development Director darforce@gpaschool.org
Miss Force enjoys spending time outdoors, playing with her dog Kiefer, dirt biking, horses and music. Her goal for the development office is to give students who want a Christian education a possibility to do so at GPA. She has degree in Business Administration from Southwestern Adventist University.
Joy Maas - Food Service Director / Sophmore Class Sponsor
Mrs. Maas was born in Virginia and raised in Texas where she graduated from Southwestern Adventist University. She recently worked for the KS-NE Conference as an accountant, then worked at the Eisenhower Presidential Library in Abilene, KS before becoming the Food Servie Director at GPA. Mrs. Maas is excited to work at a place that did so much for her family as she now has the opportunity to give back. It also affords her the opportunity to work with her mom, Lottie Tanksley, a volunteer in the GPA Cafeteria and the person who taught Mrs. Maas how to be a good cook. Mrs. Maas' husband, Dennis ('69), and Daughters, Rachel ('04) and Melody ('05) Savage, are also graduates of EA.
Lindsay Christiansen - Assistant Cook
Mrs. Christiansen spent the last two years in Norway at the European Bible School as the Girls Dean and Librarian. She is the wife of the Assistant Boys Dean/Asst Chaplain and the mother of 19 month old Naomi. She feels working in the cafeteria gives her a special opportunity to interact with the students and provide them with ways to think about who they are, what they want to do with their life and how they can serve God in the process.
Tom Reynolds - Science
Mr. Reynolds attended Sunnydale Academy, Union College and State University of West Georgia. In addition to teaching at two other academies, he worked for Johnson Space Center training everyone from astronauts to the support staff. As a child of missionaries, he spent part of his childhood on a small island in the Pacific. It is his desire that his students gain a deeper appreciation for our great God through the study of His creation.
Kyle Gladding - Math
Mr. Gladding graduated from Union College in 2008 with a B.S. in Mathematical Education. His passion for understanding math is only trumped by seeing students' faith grow in Jesus amidst an environment where there academic understanding grows as well. He loves watching sports, playing guitar, and building legos.
Daniel Force- Boys Dean / American History / World History / Junior Class Sponsor
Mr. Force graduated from Enterprise Academy ('03) and went on to earn a B.S. in Physical Education with a minor in History from Union College. While attending Union he served as RA in his dorm and was actively involved in the sports program. His passion is working with students and hopes that the boys in his dorm will excel mentally, emotionally, physically and most importantly spiritually. He is a Kansas Jayhawk fan, enjoys playing sports and riding dirt bikes with his dad.
Andrew Christiansen - Assistant Boys Dean / Assistant Chaplain / Senior Class Sponsor
Andrew is trained in Evangelism, health ministry, youth ministry, and Christian leadership, and have worked at schools and ministries in California, Utah, Texas, Wisconsin, Minnesota. Most recently, Mr. Christiansen worked at the European Bible School in Norway; his responsibilities included Outreach/Bible Work Coordinator and Boys’ Dean. “My passion in life is teaching young people about Jesus. I see so much potential in the students here at GPA. Young people have so much energy and drive in their lives but so often spend it on things that don’t last when compared to all of eternity. After being here at GPA and getting to know the students more, I have seen something different: a desire to do something more with their lives, something for others, and ultimately something for God."
Pastor Tony Cash - Junior/Senior Bible/ Chaplain
Tony was born in Killeen, TX and raised in the Great Plains of Northern Texas, Southern Oklahoma, and Lincoln, NE. An alumnus of both College View Academy and Enterprise Academy, Tony graduated from Union College as a Registered Nurse in 1995. After working as an RN for 8 years, Tony took God’s call into the pastoral ministry. He has been pastoring in the KS-NE Conference for 6 years and is currently working on his Master of Arts in Pastoral Ministry through Andrews University.
Tressa Thompson - English I, II, III, IV, Newpaper Sponsor
thompson@gpaschool.org
Chely Dicken - Spanish I & II
Mrs. Dicken has worked in education since 1988 as teacher, teachers aide, interpreter, tutor and translator. She hopes to develop the maximum potential of her students acdemically and spiritually, as well as to have a good relationship with them.
Ben Thompson - Network Administrator/Computer Science Teacher/Freshman Sponsor
Mr. Thompson is currently completing a Bachelor of Science degree in Business Administration from DeVry University. He has worked as a substitute teacher, customer service representative for Comcast/Adelphia and as an assistant to Hardware Support for the University of Alabama. He is excited about teaching at GPA because he knows that God wants him to be here, and he loves playing with computers. His hobbies include rock climbing, guitar, trumpet, writing music, electronic audio equipment, photography, and digital photo editing.
bthompson@gpaschool.org ext 206
Lora Weygandt - Girls Dean / Life Skills / Hebrew History
Mrs. Weygandt is originally from northwest Arkansas and graduated high school from Ozark Adventist Academy. She received a degree in General Studies from Southwestern Adventist University. She enjoys 4-wheeling, outdoor activities, reading and scrapbooking. lweygandt@gpaschool.org ext 119
Keri Lundquist - Assistant Girls Dean
Keri graduated from Union College in December 2008 with a Bachelor of ARts in Religion. She was a Girls Dean at a school in Guyana, South America and at Blue Mountain Academy in Pennsylvanis. Some of her interests include camping, cooking, sports, travel, snowboarding, hiking, and almost anything involving being outside. She has a passion for helping others experience God more fully and is excited about the new opportunities God is putting in her path.
Jeff Parks - Athletic Director - Storm Basketball, Acro-Storm, Lady Storm Volleyball, Senior Sponsor
Mr. Parks came to GPA from Little Rock, Arkansas. He has an Associate's Degree in Allied Health and has attended Southern Adventist University, Wright State and Chattanooga State. Mr. Parks served as assistant gymnastics coach while attending Southern. He has exciting plans for the GPA sports and intramural program. His hobbies include working at summer camp and sports (except golf). jparks@gpaschool.org ext 110 office 132 gymnasium
Travis Weygandt - Plant Services Director
Mr. Weygandt is a graduate of Enterprise Academy ('99).
Profile Coming Soon!!
Adventist Education Video Presentations
Safe and Sound video presentation
Few decisions are as important -- and potentially life-changing as choosing a school for your children. In this video you will learn some of the history of Adventist Christian education. Hear from some of our committed Christian teachers and see how Adventist Christian education provides a quality academic experience in a caring Christian environment.
Windows users: click here for video
Mac users: click here for video
Journey to Excellence video presentation
Hear from administrators, teachers, parents and students about the quality academics, strong curriculum and integrated spiritual and moral content of our school.
Windows users: click here for video
Mac version: click here for video
|
 |
