School News

Congratulations to the 23 Prestonwood Christian Academy Juniors and Seniors who placed in the 2024 National Merit competition. Seniors Ben Bower, Mason Cruse, and Ian O’Brien (as pictured) were named National Merit Finalists based on their results of the Fall 2023 PSAT. In addition, Jack Berthelot, Jackie Dominguez, Cade Eskew, Madelyn Gray, Brian Lim, Andrew Ratcliff, Shirley Yang, and Weiming Zhou were named National Merit Commended. Adrian Martens, Caden Monk, Javier Gonzalez, and Kylie Winger have been named College Board National Hispanic Recognition Program Scholars. Ayokanmi Adenle, Ayokunnumi Adenle, Caiden Collins, Cayla Williams, Dagem Alemu, Landon Murphy, and Taylor Onyinanya have been named College Board National African American Recognition Program Scholars.  

National Merit Finalists rank in the top 1% of all students in Texas who took the 2023 PSAT. National Merit Commended students rank in the top 97 percentile of all students in Texas who took the 2023 PSAT. Approximately 1.5 million high school Sophomores and Juniors from across the country compete each year in the National Merit Competition. 

The College Board, which administers the PSAT and SAT among its activities, recognizes academic excellence through its National Recognition Programs. Students selected for this prestigious honor can cite it on their college and scholarship applications. In turn, colleges use the listing of this honor as a way of identifying students from underrepresented groups—i.e., ethnic minorities and/or those who attend school in rural areas or small towns—who have excelled on their PSAT/NMSQT, PSAT 10, or AP Exams and in their classwork.

“We are incredibly proud of our students who have achieved this status and know that their hard work and scholarship honors God,” said Dr. Shannon Cole, PCA School System Assistant Superintendent and PCA Plano Head of School, “Even more profound is how these students have grown in their faith over their years at PCA and are fully prepared to defend their faith as they move on to higher learning and making life choices where God will use the talents that were nurtured through a partnership between PCA and their families.”

Prestonwood Christian Academy serves more than 2,200 students enrolled at three campuses: PCA Plano (PreK-3 through 12^th grade), PCA North in Prosper (PreK-3 through 12th Grade) and PCA Online. PCA North is celebrating its tenth school year! PCA Online is celebrating record-breaking enrollment and has been serving students for 15 years. PCA has been recognized as having one of the strongest Christian education programs in the country providing intentional biblical worldview training and integration. The school places great value on the growth of students’ spiritual health in addition to their scholastic endeavors and co-curricular activities. Tantamount to its Spiritual Development plan is PCA’s rigorous Liberal Arts academic program. Since its first graduating class in 2002 through the class of 2023, graduates have been offered more than $178.9 million in scholarships for Academics, Fine Arts, and Athletics from universities and other institutions of higher learning.

Prestonwood Christian Academy School System is proud to announce that Association of Christian Schools International (ACSI) again awarded Exemplary Accreditation for another five years.

ACSI Exemplary Accreditation is designed for high performing schools who are seeking to be held to higher standards for all programs and operations. Exemplary schools are expected to effectively meet the Inspire standards and indicators at a high level as well as the modified and additional indicators contained within the Exemplary Addendum. 

“We just went through the ACSI accreditation process, and it was a big deal,” said Dr. Michael Goddard, PCA Superintendent. “Sometimes you hear about Christian schools or private schools not having a lot of accountability, but that’s just not true. We went through a hard process that has taken multiple months.”

In addition to simply meeting the indicators at an effective or highly effective level, an ACSI school must have a demonstrable history of exemplary programs and practices in governance, executive leadership, school viability, academic instruction, student learning, spiritual formation, and overall school culture (a vibrant, Christ-centered ethos among students, faculty, and leadership). The school must demonstrate a commitment to ongoing school improvement, evidenced by stakeholder feedback, multiple forms of data, and past accreditation reports to drive successful school improvement initiatives.

“ACSI accredits hundreds of schools. We did the math and about 2% of their schools achieve Exemplary status,” said Dr. Shannon Cole, Assistant Superintendent and PCA Plano Head of School. “I am so grateful for families who sacrifice to have their students here. As I think about our Academic offering, I want parents to know the value of what they are getting. Our teachers are exemplary, and that is why we have obtained this incredible status!” 

Former NCAA Head Coach brings more than 35 years of college experience

Prestonwood Christian Academy Plano (PCA Plano) announced Vic Shealy as new Lions Football Defensive Coordinator. He will begin his role on July 1.

Shealy comes to PCA Plano after serving ten years as the first head coach of Houston Christian University. He was previously the defensive coordinator and secondary coach at the University of Kansas.

“We are excited to welcome such a high caliber person and coach in Vic Shealy to PCA,” said Dr. Michael Goddard, PCA School System Superintendent. “He and his wife Holly have been looking for a place to serve with church and school connected, and they will be making Prestonwood their home. Having another former NCAA Head Football Coach on our staff helps prepare our Lions spiritually, academically and athletically for today, and for what their dreams hold for tomorrow.”

During his tenure at Houston Christian University, Shealy oversaw the quick ascension from a start-up program to a nationally ranked team in Division I. Two of his players were signed to NFL active rosters.

“I feel blessed to join the PCA community and Lion football,” Shealy said. “I have been fortunate in my career to coach at some tremendous programs, and I consider PCA and Coach Yantis to be second to none. I’m looking forward to getting to know the faculty, staff and families at PCA and most importantly, the opportunity to impact the lives of our players both in the game of football and spiritually.”

Shealy joins a strong PCA Plano program that has won five Texas Association of Private and Parochial Schools (TAPPS) state championships (2005, 2009, 2010, 2015 and 2017) and qualified for the playoffs in 14 straight seasons and is under the leadership of Head Coach Donnie Yantis.

Prior to working for University of Kansas, Shealy spent five years in the Defensive Coordinator role at UNLV and University of Richmond and six years as a Secondary Coach at the United States Air Force Academy. His first head coaching job was at Azusa Pacific University. Shealy’s 1998 team was National Champions, and he was named the NAIA National Coach of the year. His other coaching roles included two stops at Austin Peay State University and two at Mars Hill University.

Shealy was a quarterback at University of Richmond, where he earned a Bachelor of Arts. He later earned a Master of Science in Education from Baylor University, where he had his first coaching job as a Graduate Assistant Coach at Baylor University from 1984 to 1986.

The 147 seniors in the Prestonwood Christian Academy (PCA) class of 2023 have garnered more than $13.1 million in scholarship offers. PCA honored the seniors at a special ceremony this morning, including three students who have received full academic scholarships. 

Ben Smith received the Honors College Scholarship from Texas A&M Commerce. He participated in an interview process that rated him on educational skills, ability to think critically and creatively, and ensuring he would be a good fit with the University. “Ben has used ingenuity to create a small business with a few of his friends that focuses on character creation for video games,” said Amber Beckles, PCA Plano Guidance and College/Career Counseling Lead. “His entrepreneurial spirit will be a great asset to Texas A&M Commerce. I know that Ben will use the talents and gifts he has been given to glorify God and impact the culture for Christ.”

Isaiah Lawshe was awarded the Williston Jones Diversity Leadership Scholarship at Coe College in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. Historically the scholarship is awarded to the top five percent of the applicant pool for Coe College. “Isaiah has dedicated himself to both his academics and swimming throughout his high school career,” said Beckles. “His commitment and strong work ethic have brought him to this very moment. Isaiah’s heart for the Lord and desire to serve others is evident in all that he does. I look forward with excitement to seeing how God uses him at Coe College in the fall.”

Brody Douglass will attend Harvard University on a Navy ROTC Scholarship. He went through an extensive application process with Harvard in addition to the completion of a rigorous scholarship process for Navy ROTC. “Brody has been determined and extremely diligent all throughout his high school career,” said Beckles. “He has developed a strong passion for learning and education. I have no doubt that Brody will leave a lasting impact on the community at Harvard and in NROTC. I believe that he will continue to follow in the footsteps of the legacy that was set before him, keeping Christ at the center of it all.”

The strong scholarship offering follows the school’s announcement of its historic number of National Merit Scholar Finalists. Four seniors, Benjamin Anderson, Brody Douglass, Ian Graham and Matthew Huang placed in the top 1% of more than 1.5 million students across the nation. 

Prestonwood Christian Academy is made up of six schools serving students across the Dallas Metroplex and virtually throughout the world. More than 2,000 students are enrolled at four campuses: PCA Plano (Pre-K3 through 12^th Grade), PCA North in Prosper (Pre-K3 through 12^th Grade), PCA Hybrid (a three-day in classroom/two-day at home program) and PCA Online. St. Timothy Christian Academy in Plano serves students with learning differences, and The King’s Academy provides a Christian education to students in South Dallas. The PCA School System has been recognized as having one of the strongest Christian education programs in the country providing intentional biblical worldview training and integration. PCA places great value on the growth of students’ spiritual health in addition to their scholastic endeavors and co-curricular activities. Tantamount to its Spiritual Development plan is PCA’s rigorous Liberal Arts academic program. From the first graduating class in 2002 through the class of 2022, graduates have been offered more than $169 million in scholarship for academics, arts and athletics from universities and other institutions of higher learning. PCA is now accepting applications for the 2023-24 school year. Go to prestonwoodchristian.org/admissions for more information.

Prestonwood Christian Academy (PCA) School System appointed Mrs. Lea Ann Beem as the new PCA Plano Upper School Guidance Counselor. In this role, Mrs. Beem will facilitate students' understanding of higher education's meaning and purpose and foster their intellectual and personal development toward academic success and lifelong learning.

“We are thrilled that God has called Mrs. Beem to PCA as she brings years of experience and expertise in supporting students through academic, college, and career counseling,” said Dr. Shannon Cole, Chief Academic Officer. “Throughout the interview process it was evident that she was fully dependent on God and His will for her to serve and support students through her calling.”

Beem joins PCA after six years as the Guidance and College and Career Counselor at Wylie Preparatory Academy. She also served on the school administration team as the Director of Educational Services, overseeing various departments within the school. Prior to WPA, Beem worked with the YouScience Corporation where she sought to help young people plan their next steps beyond high school. The company’s program helps 16–26-year-olds find their hardwired design given by God and leverage that with majors and job trends.

“God has placed a heart for young adults within me,” said Beem. “I love assisting them in transitioning from high school to their next journey. I believe we are created with a God-given design and passion, and it is my pleasure and great privilege to have the opportunity to be a part of the process of helping PCA students discover God’s plan.” 

Beem earned her Bachelor of Arts in Rehabilitation Sciences with an emphasis on Vocational Counseling and Social Work from Arkansas Tech University. She has been married to Brian for 26 years and the couple has three children: Sydney (24), Caleb (22), and Trent (17).

Prestonwood Christian Academy School System is comprised of six schools serving students across the Dallas Metroplex and virtually worldwide. More than 2,500 students are enrolled at the system's campuses: PCA Plano (Pre-K3 through 12th Grade), PCA North in Prosper (Pre-K3 through 12th Grade), PCA Hybrid (K-4th Grade) and PCA Online. In addition, St. Timothy Christian Academy in Plano serves students with severe learning differences, and The King's Academy provides Christian education to students in South Dallas. The PCA School System has been recognized as one of the country's strongest Christian education programs, providing intentional biblical worldview training and integration. PCA places great value on the growth of students' spiritual health in addition to their academic endeavors and co-curricular activities. Tantamount to its Spiritual Development plan is PCA's rigorous Liberal Arts educational program. From the first graduating class in 2002 through the Class of 2022, seniors have been offered more than $165 million in scholarships for academics, arts, and athletics from universities and other institutions of higher learning.