PROGRESS: Siouxland Christian opens new school

For years, Siouxland Christian School operated out of a church. There were only 20,000 square feet for schooling at Morningside Bible Church, 6100 Morningside Ave.

With the new building, the space for instruction has tripled, to 60,000 square feet, on the far east edge of Sioux City at 6000 Gordon Drive. The school is west of the intersection of U.S. Highway 20 and U.S. Highway 75, in the former Cornerstone World Outreach Church.

Due to some expense overruns, Superintendent Steve Peters said the cost of the building has risen from $12 million in August to $12.6 million. That, he said, means it will take about $2.4 million more to fully pay for the school. Peters said a March fundraiser dinner will feature Siouxland Christian alumni Aaron Luse, who is an author and a missionary in New Guinea.

Peters said the new building is a "night-and-day" difference in terms of improvement.

"We are still carrying momentum. If you look at the kids, they are still happy and talking about the building," Peters said.

Junior Rachel Pirrie, of Lawton, Iowa, said students continue to rave about the new facility. She said it is nice to have the elementary and high school portions separated into wings.

"I love it here. ... We don't all have to be crammed into one little space," Pirrie said.

Pirrie said her favorite new classroom is the music and theater area.

"Our old room, we were literally in the basement and there was a pole in the middle," Pirrie said.

A few years ago, Siouxland Christian School student Trenton Armstrong heard about the private school's plans to build a new school.

At one point, it looked like that might happen for his sophomore year, but that timeline didn't pan out. Now, Armstrong is pleased to spend his junior and senior years there.

"It is really big compared to our old building. There is a lot of cool new stuff," said Armstrong, of Sioux City.

Peters said some additional school elements will come in later months, as more money is raised. Those pieces will include gym bleachers, sound-proofing the music room, a student lounge, some new flooring and a security system.

School enrollment - 240 students for the 2017-18 year - is reaching new heights. The high school has 73 students, the highest in history, with the freshman, sophomore and junior classes having more than 20 per grade, Peters said. He compared that to his arrival seven years ago, when there were 146 students.

Peters leads the school after relocating from California, where he also worked in public and private schools.

Peters said the new school will serve to further boost enrollment. He said lots of inquiries are being made by prospective students and parents.

"We will add some more this spring (semester) and next year," Peters said.

The school was founded in 1959 as Morningside Christian School. The name was then changed to Siouxland Community Christian School, and then Siouxland Christian School last year, when it became fully accredited for all grades, preschool through 12th grade.

Beyond the new structure, new courses and programs also were added, such as physics and pre-calculus, plus middle and high school band.

However, with all the new pieces, the mission to teach students with a religious focus won't change.

"If we didn't have the Christian-centered part, there would be no reason to go here," Peters said.