Kimberly Grimes is the daughter of a minister, but her decision to send her son to Walnut Grove Christian School in West Mifflin was based more on logistics than religious convictions.

When Mrs. Grimes enrolled her son in kindergarten seven years ago, she liked the fact that Walnut Grove Christian provided day care that stayed open from 6 a.m. to 6 p.m. At the time, she was divorced and working full time.

Her young son, Jeremy Vernon, could go to the day care after school, without even leaving the building.

Jeremy, now 12 and in sixth grade, has thrived at Walnut Grove with its small classes, Bible-based education and dedicated teachers. He belongs to the school's Bible quiz team and amazes his mother with his knowledge.

"Christian education was a special bonus," said Mrs. Grimes, who has remarried, lives in Clairton and doesn't mind paying the annual tuition, $2,995, because she is so happy with the education.

"The classes are small. The teachers are compassionate. Children don't fall through the cracks. No one makes fun of anyone," Mrs. Grimes said.

"He would be a different child if he were in a different environment," she said.

Tough times

In an era when competition for education dollars is growing, when public, private, parochial, charter and home schools are splitting education money into smaller pieces, Walnut Grove Christian School has managed to survive.

But board president Tammy DiLiscia, of Union Township near Finleyville, worries about the little school's ability to compete in this educational free-for-all. Parents who don't want public education now have many choices, including tuition-free charter and cyber schools or home schooling.

"I don't want to see us become a statistic," said Mrs. DiLiscia, who was greatly disturbed when South Hills Christian School on Route 88 in Finleyville closed in 2004, reportedly due to declining enrollment.

Mrs. DiLiscia said parents who believe in Christian education often struggle to afford it. Many start their children in kindergarten, but can't afford to keep them in a private, Christian school.

Walnut Grove Christian is one of the ministries of the Walnut Grove Assembly of God Church, which has about 200 members, mostly from West Mifflin and neighboring communities.

It is in the old Walnut Grove Elementary School, a public school on Adams Avenue that closed in the early 1980s. The school, church worship center, church offices, day care center and food bank all operate under one roof.

The school has a kindergarten, six grades and 90 students. Its enrollment was about 130 students for the three years when it had eight grades, plus kindergarten.

But Walnut Grove Christian dropped its seventh and eighth grades this year because of declining enrollment and because too many parents wanted their children to have more activities, such as band and home economics.

The school's problems in retaining students are evident in these figures: Walnut Grove Christian has 24 children in its kindergarten, but there are only seven children in the sixth grade.

"A lot of parents have left to home school. They simply can't afford the tuition," said Mrs. DiLiscia, who has a son in the fourth grade and a daughter in the pre-school at Walnut Grove. The school discounts tuition for multiple siblings.

The Rev. William Galus, senior pastor of Walnut Grove Assembly of God, said the congregation helps subsidize the school, which is part of its ministries. But the church community is not a wealthy one.

The majority of the students not affiliated with the church, but come from many Christian denominations. They come from across the South Hills, from McKeesport, Munhall and Duquesne to Whitehall, Baldwin Borough, Bethel Park, and even as far away as Finleyville.

Strictly Christian

Even though the school is a ministry of an Assembly of God church, its education is not slanted toward any denomination. The school doesn't teach dogma and doesn't bash the beliefs of any particular Christian denomination.

"Unabashedly, we are a Christian School," said the Rev. Galus. "We are going to pray with your children. We teach creation. We teach the Bible.

"I tell people if you don't want a Christian environment, this is not the school for you."

Principal Connie Williamson of West Mifflin, is also director of the day care and a second grade teacher. She helped found the school and day care.

The school uses the Christian-based A Beka curriculum, she said, which is phonics-based for reading and "spiral-based" for math. She said the school's test scores always are above the national average.

Her 16-year-old daughter, Jaime, graduated from the eighth grade at Walnut Grove Christian and is now an honors student at West Mifflin Area High School who lettered in soccer, her proud mom said.

Back in time

A day at Walnut Grove Christian school is like a visit back in time, when schools were small and simple.

The day care, which cares for about 100 children, is on one side of the long hallway; the elementary classes are on the other. Two women prepare hot lunches each day for the staff and children.

The school gym doubles as a lunch room and the church chapel is used as an auditorium.

Monday is gym day, a day when most students wear their sweat pants.

It's also a day when Sue Darnay, of Port Vue, the part-time computer teacher, takes students from each grade into the world of technology in the school's small computer lab.

There's also part-time teachers for art, music, library and gym.

Ms. Williamson said all teachers are certified, with at least bachelor's degrees in education. She said the school does accommodate some children with special needs, but it is not the place for children with severe learning disabilities.

Mike Sarraino, of Munhall, the former school board president, said the board went the extra mile to try to expand into seventh and eighth grades, but some parents felt that their middle school children needed more extracurricular activities than the school could provide.

Mr. Sarraino said the school had served his children well. His two sons, David, 14, and Nicholas, 13, now are in Steel Valley public schools, where they are excellent students.

"If you want education, you come to Walnut Grove," he said. "If you want extracurricular activities, you don't want to come to Walnut Grove."

First Published: February 23, 2006, 5:00 a.m.