The Living Curriculum: A Fund for Teacher Excellence
One idea every Christian school should consider to retain and bless its teachers.
In my last two posts — Honor the Calling: Why Teacher Pay and Retention Matter in Christian Schools and 5 Strategies to Increase Christian School Teacher Compensation — I shared some honest perspectives and hopeful paths forward for how we value and support our teachers.
Across the many compensation conversations I’ve had over the years, one phrase kept coming up:
“We have to do more to support and keep the people who are shaping our children every day.”
The Problem We Can’t Ignore
Christian school teachers are often paid $10,000 to $20,000 less than their public-school counterparts — despite the added spiritual weight they carry, the dedication and training required of the position, and the increasingly complex challenges they face.
This gap isn’t sustainable. It affects morale, recruitment, and retention. And over time, it threatens the very heart of what makes a Christian school distinct: a faculty that sees education as ministry.
If this is true in your context, it may be time to take an intentional step toward honoring and retaining the teachers at the center of your mission.
Consider Creating a Teacher Excellence Fund
One idea private schools might explore is launching a Teacher Excellence Fund — a mission-aligned initiative designed to bless and retain the teachers who make Christian education possible. Funds could be placed in an endowment, managed by a third party with clear guidelines for distributions and use.
Such a fund could provide:
Retention bonuses for long-serving faculty
Recognition awards for excellence in teaching and discipleship
Professional development grants aligned with your biblical worldview
Recruitment support for new mission-fit educators
But beyond those immediate goals, a fund like this can serve as a long-term investment — a way to build legacy impact for teachers in the many years to come.
If your school community is ready to explore this, consider starting with:
Seed funding from key donors who want to lead the way
A matching gift to help launch the endowment
Invitations for multi-year gifts that provide stability and momentum
Aligning fundraising efforts with natural moments of generosity, like:
Christmas bonuses for teachers
Special teacher recognition at an annual auction or gala
This kind of fund doesn’t replace responsible budgeting for salaries. But it reinforces your values. It communicates that the ministers of the gospel are essential to a quality Christian school and should be honored as such.
Launching something like this doesn’t necessarily require a six- or seven-figure donor to get it off the ground.
Start with a story. Share a vision. Invite a few key supporters. Build slowly and stay aligned with your mission.
Why This Matters
There’s a reason to focus on teachers — not just programs, buildings, or branding. It’s because teachers set the cultural temperature of a school.
They shape how students experience love, discipline, grace, and truth. They model how to pursue excellence while walking humbly. They are the living curriculum of the Jesus-centered values we claim we believe.
Programs come and go. Curricula shift. Trends evolve. But teachers are the heartbeat of a Christian school — and more than that, they're the engine that makes the entire school experience worth the investment.
This is why Paul writes in 1 Corinthians 11:1:
“Be imitators of me, as I am of Christ.”
He’s not pointing to his own ego. He’s pointing to the value of visible, faithful leadership. He knows that discipleship happens through imitation — not just instruction. Think apprenticeship.
Final Word
When we invest in teachers, we invest in the lives of students.
Let’s not just thank them. Let’s honor them. Let’s bless them in tangible ways.
Because the future of Christian education depends not just on what we teach — but on who’s teaching it.
“Because the future of Christian education depends not just on what we teach — but on who’s teaching it”.