A LUMNI
Missouri S&T
Sarah
U of Central Missouri
Liberty U
Dodge City CC
Wichita State U
MCC Longview
Palm Beach Atlantic U
Evangel U State Tech College of MO
Creative Images Salon
U of Central Missouri
U of Central Missouri
U of Minnesota
Fort Scott CC
NW Missouri State U
MCC Longview
Northwestern College
Wichita State U
Louisiana Tech U
Evangel U College of the Ozarks
MCC Longview
State Fair CC
Hermida
Elissa Hesman
Brookelyn Hess
Jaidyn Hohl
Alaina Huckabee
Angelina Huckabee
Peydn Jeffries Ella Jones
Marcus Jones
Hunter Keithley
Aubrianna Kennedy
Sarah
Hannibal LaGrange U
Grand Canyon U
Torchlighters Bible School
Cornell U
Evangel U
U of Nations
MCC Longview
U of Kansas
Kansas State U
Welding Trade School
Grand Canyon U
Comm Director @ DHA
MCC Longview
MCC Longview
MCC Longview
MCC Longview
Kansas State
Southwest Baptist U
Plumbing Industry
MCC Longview
Cosmetology
Wichita State U
Sarina Manjili
Karinton Newton
Mackenzie Osborn
Marina Parks
Hayden Perry
Carli Poppen
Kash Pritchard
Natalie Rouse
Nora Schuh
Morgan Sommers
Owen Stienstra
Olivia Thompson
Savanah Topping
Isaac Truesdale
Harry Williams
Bella Wilson
Javen Wilson
Christian Wiseman
Sarah Woodall
Braeden Wooldridge
Hannah Wyssmann
Tyler Yarbrough
Chaz Yunger
U of Central Missouri
Wichita State U
MCC Longview
US Coast Guard Acad
Golf Industry
Iowa State U
RR Construction
Missouri State U
Cottey College
Plumbing Industry
Drury U
MidAmerica Naz U
Cottey College
Jefferson College
MCC Longview
U of Central Missouri
MCC Longview
Wichita State U
MCC Longview
Colorado Christian U
Lipscomb U
Grand Canyon U
Missouri S&T
MCC Longview
Xander Zumwalt UMKC
Kina
U of the Nations
Queens U of Charlotte
What’s New at SCA
The 2023-24 school year at Summit Christian Academy was the school’s 34th year and had a record enrollment of over 1,240 preschool-12th grade students. Twenty-six of these students are children of SCA Alumni (second-generation Eagles)!
For the second year in a row, SCA was ranked first in the Kansas City Metro area top private schools list by the Kansas City Business Journal. This is the 10th consecutive year that SCA has been ranked as a top five private school in the Kansas City Metropolitan area.
The Board of Education has announced adjusted leadership positions for the 2024-25 school year. Early Education and Lower Elementary Principal Charissa Sanders and Upper Elementary Principal Dr. Julie Madsen have stepped down from their ministry roles at SCA after 10+ years serving at the school. SCA named previous Administrator Kelly Montgomery as the new Kindergarten6th grade Principal, previous teacher Shauna Borgstadt as the Elementary Assistant Principal, and previous teacher aide Jessica Fisher as the Early Education Director. In addition, previous Administrative Intern Andy Pfeifer has been named the Secondary Principal, as previous Secondary Principal Joe Hesman has been named Assistant Head of School.
Alumni Updates
SCA welcomed grandparents back to campus for the ever-popular Grandparents’ Day for the first time since 2019! Nearly 1,500 grandparents and special friends were welcomed to the Fieldhouse & Activity Center for a special program put on by Kindergarten - 12th grade students.
Robin Cook, Class of 2011, and Bri Myers (Slagle), Class of 2014, collaborated on and published a children’s book, The Duckling Who Made a Difference. Robin wrote and Bri illustrated the book which teaches the lesson of friendship and being a blessing to others each day.
Congratulations to Megan Mosier (Gensky), SCA Class of 2012! Megan and her husband Trent welcomed their baby girl in December of 2023!
Congratulations to Savvy Guzman (Hughes), SCA Class of 2015! Savvy and Mario were married in September of 2023!
Congratulations to SCA 2018 graduate, Luke Moehle! Luke and Mati were married in February of 2024, and the couple lives in Frisco, TX where Luke is broadcasting for the Texas Rangers Double-A affiliate!
SCA was so happy to see 2020 graduate & international student from France, Christopher Tsamas, this summer while visiting his SCA host family! Christopher is living his dream of playing professional basketball and just completed a year playing in Monaco! Christopher shared his gratefulness for his time at SCA, for lessons learned, and people he met. Although, he wishes he could have played basketball in our new Fieldhouse!
Congratulations to Avery Lake, SCA Class of 2020! Avery recently won first place in the Senior Year Department of Architecture exhibition at the Arkansas Fay Jones School of Architecture and Design!
Class of 2021 graduate Aleah Finnegan competed in the NCAA Gymnastic National Competition as an LSU gymnast and was part of the history-making team. The LSU Tiger gymnastics team were named the 2024 National Gymnast Champions! Aleah represented the Philippines at the Paris Olympics in August.
Highlights from the 2023-24 School Year Academics
The Class of 2024 had 72 graduates who were awarded approximately $5.5 million in scholarship offers. In addition, SCA had four seniors receive Missouri Bright Flight scholarships with a 30 or higher on the ACT.
Class of 2023 summa cum laude recipients were Siyuan (Tony) Bu, Anna Hammond, Elissa Hesman, and Isaac Truesdale.
Senior Hunter Harris was named the 2023-24 Student of the Year. Hunter attended SCA for eight years and will study biblical studies and medicine at University of the Nations.
Anna Hammond was named a 2024 National Merit Scholar Finalist.
Senior Anna Hammond was the recipient of the Missouri Distinguished Seal of Biliteracy in Spanish; seniors David Beltran, Ginny Baxter, and Karly Gregg were recipients of the Missouri Seal of Biliteracy in Spanish; and senior Adrian Haack was the recipient of the Missouri Seal of Biliteracy in German, in conjunction with the Missouri Department of Education.
Class of 2024 graduate Marina Parks was offered a $30,000 scholarship and appointment to the United States Coast Guard Academy Scholars Program and a $350,000 scholarship to attend the United States Coast Guard Academy, upon appointment.
SCA hosted seven international students: five from China, one from South Korea, and one from Vietnam.
SCA celebrated their 12th annual International Education Week, part of SCA’s commitment to building a global community throughout the school.
Secondary History Teacher Greg Finch was named this year’s winner of the Smart/ Maher Veterans of Foreign Wars National Citizenship Educational Award for VFW Post 5789. Mr. Finch has taught at SCA since 2001. He received a plaque, certificate of recognition, and monetary prize. Mr. & Mrs. Finch matched the financial prize and donated it to the Wounded Warrior Foundation in memory of former SCA student and Iraq War Veteran Robert Geoffrey Long.
More than 75 elementary students were celebrated for their accomplishments in reading over summer break.
Athletics
Seventy-three percent of junior high/high school students were part of the SCA athletic program.
Twelve graduates committed to compete in collegiate level sports: Will Bisbee, football at Evangel University; Fischer Etheridge, baseball at Evangel University; Laiysha Freeman, track and field at State Fair Community College; Ellianna Gramling, basketball at Hannibal La Grange University; Marcus Jones, track and field at Southwest Baptist University; Carli Poppen, swimming at Iowa State University; Nora Schuh, golf at Cottey College; Owen Stienstra, soccer at Drury University; Savannah Topping, golf at Cottey College; Isaac Truesdale, baseball at Jefferson College; Tyler Yarbrough, track and field at Grand Canyon University; and Xander Zumwalt, baseball at Queens University of Charlotte.
All high school teams earned the MSHSAA Scholastic Achievement Award. Eleven teams earned the Outstanding Award, averaging an unweighted team GPA of 3.5 or higher, with the other six teams earning the Distinguished Award, averaging 3.4 or higher. The highest team average GPA was 3.73 by the varsity girls swim team.
STATE
STATE CHAMPIONS
Girls Soccer, Class 1 - The first girls team in SCA history to win State!
BACK-TO-BACK STATE CHAMPIONS
Boys Golf, Class 3 - State champions, even as they were up a class from the previous year!
Savannah McConnell is the first girls soccer player to earn All-State honors as Co-Player of the Year!
Forty senior athletes were named Scholar Athletes. Scholar Athletes participate in at least one sport and have an overall grade of 90% or higher for the whole year.
Eagle Award winners were Will Bisbee (football, track & field) and Grace Hay (basketball, soccer)! The Eagle Award recognizes senior athletes who display excellence in athletics, academics, leadership, and represent Christ on and off the field. Secondary faculty vote on the nominations to select a male and female recipient.
Sophomore Lucas Wiseman was the 2023-24 Alec Rush DASH Award recipient for the Varsity Boys Soccer team! This award recognizes a single athlete from all of the soccer, football, and track & field teams who embodies Alec’s spirit as a Fearless Warrior, Forever Friend, and Faithful Follower! Nominees are anonymously given to Alec’s mother Ange Rush to review and select a winner.
Eagle Elite recipients were Peydn Jeffries (softball, basketball, track & field), Marina Parks (cross country, swim, track & field), and Sarah Woodall (softball, basketball, track & field, soccer). The Eagle Elite award recognizes athletes who earn at least nine varsity letters throughout their high school athletic career.
Fine Arts
SCA freshman Christine Xiong’s “Reflective Self Portrait” won the U.S. Fifth Congressional District Art Competition which will be framed and displayed at the United States Capitol building for one year.
Senior Sarah Woodall was selected as the Missouri Senate District 8 Art Contest winner. Sarah’s painting was selected by Senator Mike Cierpiot to represent District 8 in the Missouri Senate Hall Student Art Exhibit. A copy of her artwork will hang in the Senate hallway gallery from April 2024 through March 2025.
Five vocal soloists and three ensembles received the top rating of Gold at the Missouri State High School Activities Association (MSHSAA) State Music Festival.
SCA sophomore Kate Hagan was selected for the KC Metro District #3 string orchestra.
National Art Honor Society Members sophomore Kailee Burke, junior Tristen Hamline, and seniors Charlotte Brownlee, Isabella Wilson, and Sarina Manjili contributed another set of portraits for the Memory Project. The Memory Project is a youth arts organization that promotes intercultural understanding and kindness between children around the world. The Memory Project matched the SCA artists with young children facing difficult circumstances in Columbia, South America, and emailed the childrens’ photos to them. The SCA artists then drew or painted portraits that will be delivered to these children and provide some of the first personal mementos of their lives.
Four senior members of the National Art Honor Society spent a day of their Christmas break painting a Student Section mural in the SCA Fieldhouse & Activity Center! Solomon Anderson, Charlotte Brownlee, Carli Poppen, and Sarah Woodall did an amazing job and we know the mural will be enjoyed at events and games for many years to come!
The SCA Theatre department put on productions of Brigadoon and The Lion, The Witch, and The Wardrobe.
Abbie Cook received a Cappies Award for Choreography in a Musical for Brigadoon
Mackenzie Osborn received a Cappie Award for Dancer in a Female Role in Brigadoon and was also nominated for Dancer in a Female Role in The Lion, The Witch & The Wardrobe.
Ella Jones and Nora Schuh received a Cappies Award for Costumes in a Play for The Lion, The Witch & The Wardrobe.
Community Service
The Class of 2024 spent a week in Nashville as part of SCA’s 20th annual Senior Mission Trip. Partnering with Students Living A Mission (SLAM), a part of Global Outreach Development International, the 64 seniors were the biggest single group of the summer for the organization. Seniors were able to divide into multiple, intentional small groups and therefore impact several different people groups and/or organizations in Nashville each day.
Secondary Service Week: Students in 7th-12th grade took time away from the classroom to serve in nonprofits across the KC Metro area including Hillcrest Transitional Housing, Lee’s Summit Social Services, Powell Gardens, City Union Mission, and Harvesters.
SCA’s National Honor Society organized their first-ever Blood Drive! Partnering with SCA 2015 Alumnus Ethan Lind who is an Account Manager with the American Red Cross, the first blood drive was a huge success with all of the available donation slots filled by parents, staff, and age-eligible high school students!
SCA elementary school students united to give almost 6,000 food items and paper products to bless families with a meal for Thanksgiving through the annual SCA Thanksgiving Food Drive. This was the 15th annual elementary food drive. Since 2008 (the first year of the Food Drive), SCA has collected over 120,000 items, helping feed over 6,000 families.
