The King’s School was founded in September 1982. There have been several administrative changes over the years, leading up to the present arrangement in which the school is operated by The King’s Christian School Society. But throughout that time the school has been successfully educating young people within the framework of a philosophy of Christian education that has remained constant.

The King’s School began in 1982 as a church school. It was born out of a vision shared by two pastors, Barney Coombs of West Coast Christian Fellowship (WCCF) in Vancouver, and Howard Carter of Vancouver Covenant Community, located at that time in Abbotsford. In those days, WCCF consisted of a number of congregations spread around the lower mainland, including one that was based at the present site of the school. The two churches shared a common vision revolving around their understanding of the teaching of the New Testament on “The Kingdom of God”, and as part of that vision, saw Christian Education as a vital area in which we were to be involved in seeking ways for God’s will to be done on earth as it is in heaven. Education, like all of life, is to be done God’s way.

The two churches had large congregations. Together they established the school for their own church families, initially run as a non-fee-paying school funded by the two churches. The curriculum was based on the ACE (Accelerated Christian Education) system, a self-taught, self-paced Christian program, supplemented with additional courses in practical areas. The school began with 85 students.

The school was located on its current site, then known as “Springcrest.” The property at that time was being used as a Christian Retreat Centre, operated by WCCF, and in the early days the two ministries of retreat centre and Christian school shared the site, later joined by a third, when The King’s Bible College opened there in 1983. As the school’s needs for more facilities grew, the Retreat Centre programs gradually diminished, and by 1989 the Bible College had relocated to England.

Peter Davis, an experienced educator from England, was invited to Langley to assist in the establishment of the school, working alongside the first Principal, Mr Steve Stewart. The school was staffed entirely by personnel from within the two churches; some were qualified teachers, but in the ACE program prior to government accreditation, parental volunteers also played a big role. Children were attending the school from the wide catchment-area represented by the two churches, with daily carpools from such places as North Vancouver, Ladner, Abbotsford and Washington State. There were two graduates in that first year.

In 1985, the school began to make changes in the curriculum, starting a gradual shift away from the ACE program. As well as broadening the scope of academic studies, the school also benefited from the creation of a playing field, cleared and established by volunteer help from the churches. In that year, some senior students also enjoyed the School’s first international mission trip – to Belize. Many such trips were to follow over the years, to such places as Uganda, Mexico, Slovakia, Estonia and India.

In 1986, Steve Stewart left the school to plant a church in Ontario. After a period of nine months with Brian Watts (Pastor of the Langley congregation that was part of WCCF) as Interim Principal, Mr Rob Beck was appointed Principal in September 1987. By then, the school’s graduates had written Provincial Exams for the first time, in June 1987. Mr Beck oversaw the conclusion of the transition to a full Provincial Curriculum throughout the school. The process was complete by October 1989, when a successful government inspection confirmed our accreditation and funding as an Independent School.

By this time, the school had opened its doors to families outside the church congregations that had founded the school, and as the school grew and continued to need more qualified teachers, some of the new staff also reflected this wider community. Sadly the Vancouver Covenant Church in Abbotsford was no longer in existence. WCCF was going through a period of transition, and among other changes, the congregation in Langley that had been part of WCCF was planted out as a fully-fledged daughter church, known then as Langley Covenant Community Church (LCCC). As this new church became established, it was decided that the local congregation in Langley was the most appropriate place for the government of the school to rest, and in time, WCCF began their own elementary school in their church building on East Georgia Street in Vancouver.

From that time, The King’s School was operated as a ministry of the local church, with the only change being to the name of the church, when LCCC became TKCC - The King’s Community Church. The structure remained unchanged until 2003, run by a School Board appointed by the eldership of the church, and accountable to the church for the day-to-day running of the school. While there were always a number of Board members holding that position as parents of children in the various age-brackets in the school, these members were church appointees (though not necessarily church members) rather than elected parent representatives.

Subsequently The King’s Community Church bought the school property from WCCF, and as well as having new owners, the property also had a change of name – from “Springcrest” to The King’s Centre. In this transition, TKCC sold another property where it had been meeting in Langley, and, as well as purchasing The King’s Centre, was able to build a gym where the church could meet, while at the same time making greatly improved facilities available for the school as well. This new building was opened in 1998.

During the 1999/2000 school year, Mr Beck offered his resignation after 12 years of fruitful leadership in the school. This opened up another period of transition in the life of the school as some of a staff that had remained largely unchanged for nearly ten years either retired or moved on. Part of that transition involved adjusting to the situation where the local church that operated the school could no longer provide the majority of the staff, especially as one of the co-founding churches now ran its own school and was equally concerned to find like-minded teachers. One blessing of this transition was that a more broadly-based staff enabled us to more effectively fulfil the goal of serving the community as we grew beyond the perception of being an insular church school.

In 2003, it was decided that the new situation would be better served by the School being run independently of the church. A new non-profit, charitable Society, The King’s Christian School Society, was founded to operate the school. KCSS was incorporated as a Society in June 2003 and at that time acquired the assets and operations of The King’s School from the church.

While this represented a significant change in government, it was considered vital that there would be no change in direction or distinctives for the school, compared with its operation under KCSS’s predecessors. The choice of founding members of the new Society and its written constitution ensured a commitment in perpetuity to the philosophy of education for which the school had been founded.

A fresh challenge emerged for The King’s School. In this new legal structure, with a new governing body, and with a broader constituency of staff and students, how was it to maintain the single-minded vision that had become increasingly precious to a local body of believers who had invested in that vision for many years and wanted to see that vision realized in the continuing education of their children? Mrs Patti Thomas was appointed as Principal, and in addition to bringing a significant level of educational professionalism to the task, her leadership has been geared toward fostering that common vision among a new generation of staff, students and parents drawn from the wider Christian community.

“Thus far the Lord has helped us” (1 Sam 7:12). His faithfulness to the school in the past reassures us that our confidence in his continuing blessing upon the community of The King’s School (staff, parents and students) in the future is not misplaced. This brief record of God’s faithfulness does not allow room for the countless miracles of his provision over the years, nor testimonies of many graduates now serving Him effectively in numerous ways. It seems that He has been pleased to own the school that is dedicated to his name – THE KING'S School.