The interdenominational Christian school at 9391 Washington Church in Montgomery County’s Miami Twp., which serves more than 1,300 students in Pre-K through 12th grade, is the largest private school in the Greater Dayton area.
It has hired Troy-based Level MB Construction to design and lead construction of the center. A groundbreaking ceremony for the project occurred Thursday.
“This groundbreaking isn’t just the beginning of a construction project, but a symbol of God’s faithfulness as Dayton Christian continues to uphold its mission to Christian families within the Greater Dayton community,” Matt Baker, Dayton Christian’s head of school, said in a statement. “We chose to partner with Level MB not only because of their industry expertise, but their leadership team’s respect for our vision.”
Mike Twiss, president of Level MB, said the firm is “extremely honored” to partner with the school on the project.
“We certainly can get behind their mission and look forward to working together to bring this exciting project to life,” Twiss said in a statement.
The multipurpose center is one of two projects that comprise the Genesis 7 Campaign.
The second project is a full-size athletic field, enabling the school to eventually host soccer, football, and track events on site.
The school said it has a third of the $3 million needed to begin construction on the field project.
The start of construction comes just a year after the school launched the silent phase of its campaign, a reflection, school leaders say, of “both the project’s urgency and the strong support behind it.”
Dayton Christian School said its students must travel up to 20 minutes for practices and home games, “which not only poses safety concerns but also limits the sense of community that on-campus sports could provide.”
Approximately 80% of the school’s high school student body participates in athletics, underscoring the importance of the project, Dayton Christian said.
“The name of this campaign is inspired by the moment in scripture when Noah steps out in faith to build the ark,” Baker said. “As Noah responded to God’s call to prepare a sanctuary, our senior leadership team and board of trustees feel a similar call to create a place where students can discover and grow in God’s truth in an ever-darkening world.”
Over the past five years, Dayton Christian School has experienced a 75% increase in enrollment, the school said. That rapid growth placed pressure on the school’s facility, which operates in a former NCR training center.
In the 2020-2021 school year, the facility was at just 45% capacity, but by last school year, it was operating at more than 80% capacity, Dayton Christian said.
An earlier feasibility study projected the school could eventually grow to 1,500 students, but it did not fully account for the growing demand for space in extracurricular areas such as chapel, physical education, fine arts and athletics, the school said.
A portion of physical education classes are held in a makeshift gym that occupies 4,000 square feet of educational space.
“The multipurpose center will free up this area, allowing the school to add five additional classrooms and better accommodate projected enrollment over the next five to 10 years,” the school said.
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