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High school's Bible class celebrates 15 years
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Published: January 7, 2009
Fifteen years after Bible classes began at Mooresville High School, teacher Kathy Black said she has watched the program change and flourish since its inception as nearly 2,000 students have come through her doors seeking knowledge of the historic text.
"Most kids just want to know what's in there," she said of the Bible, noting many students come into the class with an idea of the context, but leave following instruction that emphasizes "history, geography, literature, culture and art" as it relates to the book.
Bringing the Bible and religion into the public school classroom can be controversial. But Black says the MHS classes are designed "to present the Bible as an object of academic inquiry and not an object of faith or worship."
Black, who has been with the program since it began and currently job-shares with Traci Willis – each teaches half a day – said it was more than 15 years ago when the concept of an in-school Bible course emerged from a Sunday school class at First Presbyterian Church.
As a response, the community formed the Mooresville Area Bible Teacher's Association (MABTA) "and began studying the possibility of having Bible classes at MHS," she noted.
Approaching the Mooresville Graded School District Board of Education with the idea that individuals "need some knowledge of the Bible to become culturally literate," Black said the program was approved as "MABTA agreed to fund the teachers and the MGSD agreed to furnish the room."
With the community's monetary help through donations and fundraisers – MABTA pays the school district for the teachers' annual salary and benefits – Black said the course has grown each year, welcoming more and more students as word of mouth piques an interest in the program.
"In the first 10 years, we taught 900 students. In the last five years, we have taught over 1,000!"
With students of all denominations, Black said some teenagers come into the course with "little or no exposure to the Bible" at all. Thirty percent, she added, "do not attend any place of worship" either, although many arrive with a vast knowledge of the historical document.
Black said she believes it's the text "as an object of academic inquiry" and the approach she and Willis, who came on board five years ago, take toward teaching the course that keep students interested in the Bible year after year.
Whether it's a craft project creating different characters from the Old or New Testament or a group of students acting out a specific scene, Black noted the teachers want to make learning the Bible fun for those students who chose the course over other social studies electives.
For Mallory Kipka, a junior at MHS, the course provides her with a background of different events within the Bible she may not have otherwise learned.
"We learn about the Bible, but not religion," she noted, echoing the course's objective of teaching the text in an "academic, objective, non-denominational, non-sectarian" fashion, as Black noted.
Freshman Jessica Johnson said she's able to connect the stories of the Bible together as a result of the class.
"I'm really liking it because you learn all the history you wouldn't have (otherwise)," she added. "It's a really good class. I would recommend it."
According to Black, the Bible's context also helps create an interest in studying the text.
"It has all the things that teenagers are interested in … murder, adultery, intrigue, lust," she said.
But without the MGSD administration, the town and, most importantly, the community, teaching the Bible at MHS would not be possible, she added.
"Mooresville has been very supportive, (both) the town and the school board," she said, noting how vital the community and its churches have been toward keeping the program alive for 15 years.
"MABTA's funds come primarily from area churches (of all denominations), businesses and individuals," she added. "MABTA also has an annual Captain's Choice Golf Tournament in the spring."
This year, for the first time, the organization will conduct a Port-A-Pit BBQ to raise additional funding on Feb. 6 from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. at Mooresville ARP on Carpenter Avenue.
With the hopes for another 15 years of Bible teaching ahead of her, Black said she came into the project not knowing how it would develop over time, but watching the program thrive has been "wonderful."
"It's always been year to year … But the more classes we offer, the more (the students) come," she added. "It's been great."
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