The private school pairs older pupils with younger buddies, teaches logic and rhetoric, and keeps tuition under 10,000 dollars.
HUNTSVILLE, Texas. Alpha Omega Academy is marking 30 years in Huntsville, and the classical Christian school measures its work less by test scores than by what graduates do after they leave. Amber Van Roekel, who works with students on academics and their futures at the school, said the goal is graduates who can defend their faith in a conversation without raising their voices.
“We are sending them out equipped to really do some amazing things out in the world,” Van Roekel said.
Van Roekel moved to Huntsville with her husband in 1999 and has worked at Alpha Omega for 11 years, a job she calls her dream job. She taught a Sam Houston State University freshman course for about nine years, worked five years with a local real estate team, and joined the school when the position opened. She said working at the school changed her own walk with the Lord.
The school serves pre-K through 12th grade and starts each day with an assembly where students read scripture, celebrate birthdays and hear a message from head of school Nolan Newberg, followed by worship led by Alan. Juniors are paired with pre-K pupils and seniors with kindergarteners as buddies for the year, a setup Van Roekel said teaches older students to build relationships with younger ones. Her own son, a junior football player, left lunch early one day so his pre-K buddy Callaway could read to him.
Grammar, logic and rhetoric in the classroom
Alpha Omega teaches from a classical model in three stages. Grammar school pupils learn through rote memorization and chanting, including Bible verses. Logic school, roughly sixth through ninth grade, teaches formal logic, including how to spot fallacies and circular arguments. Rhetoric stage pupils in 10th through 12th grade run Socratic seminars where the teacher moderates while students lead discussion, write papers and give presentations. Juniors deliver a mini-thesis with a 10-minute persuasive talk, and seniors deliver a full thesis with a 20-minute talk and 10 minutes of questions from a panel.
Seniors also study apologetics with Tim Ramsey, youth pastor at Fellowship, including a book review of I Don’t Have Enough Faith to Be an Atheist and lessons on answering non-Christian beliefs. Van Roekel said the point is graduates who can talk with a non-believer, state facts, defend their position and present the gospel without getting heated.
“How we measure our success is our students able to leave Alpha Omega and go impact the world for Christ,” Van Roekel said.
The most recent graduating class numbered 17 students and drew more than 1.2 million dollars in offered scholarships. Graduates went on to Texas A and M, LSU, Oklahoma State, Baylor, Dallas Baptist, Texas Tech and Sam Houston State, among others. Van Roekel also noted this year’s college acceptances already include Ole Miss, Oklahoma State, Texas Tech, Texas A and M, Sam Houston State and Dallas Baptist, and she advised parents not to dismiss private colleges, which she said often award more aid than state schools because they know tuition is higher.
National Merit news in context
The school year also brought national academic recognition, which this feature notes only briefly because the news was covered separately. Adam Mayes, a member of the class of 2027, was named a National Merit semifinalist, a distinction that places him in the top one percent of the 1.3 million students who took the PSAT. About 16,000 semifinalists are named nationwide each year, and roughly 6,700 go on to become finalists. Maddox Goins was named a commended student, a group of about 34,000 pupils in the top three to four percent nationally.
Maze has applied to about 10 colleges and is interested in bioengineering, medical ethics and biogenetics, Van Roekel said, and Sam Houston State University is among his options. Goins, she said, plans to pursue a trade in the construction field. Van Roekel presented both results as part of the same picture. A small school that teaches logic and rhetoric, she said, should expect its pupils to do well on a test that rewards careful reading and reasoning.
Thirty years, state titles and tuition under 10,000 dollars
Alpha Omega was founded by Paul Davidhizar, and Van Roekel said every head of school since has tried to carry on that foundation. The school charges tuition under 10,000 dollars, a figure Van Roekel said surprised a state representative who compared it with schools 20 to 30 minutes away charging 20,000 to 30,000 dollars. The parent teacher fellowship recently donated money for a new press box and concession stand, and it is now selling raffle tickets for two sides of beef to raise money for playground equipment.
Athletics are part of the picture too. The football team won a six-man state championship last year, the baseball team has won back-to-back state championships, and basketball has reached the final four for years. Van Roekel said the school is not perfect, describing it as four walls and humans, but said staff work to fix mistakes when they happen.
Van Roekel said the school spends more waking hours with pupils than parents do during the school year, and staff do not take that lightly.
“We want to walk beside you and with you as you raise your kids,” Van Roekel said. “We want to partner with that.”
Families can arrange a tour by contacting the school office and asking for Van Roekel or for Miss Stepha, who handles tours and questions.
About Alpha Omega Academy
Alpha Omega Academy is a classical Christian school in Huntsville serving pre-K through 12th grade in its 30th year. Families interested in a tour can contact the school office and ask for Amber Van Roekel. You may visit AOA online at: https://alphaomegaacademy.org/