Employment

Oakdale Academy is a classical Christian school in Waterford, Michigan for Junior Kindergarten- 12th Grade.

Our Mission is to instill Character, Truth, and Wisdom in our students in order to prepare them for a lifetime of service to God, family, community, and country through classical Christian education.

With that Mission as our driving force, these are some of the criteria we consider:

Faculty

• Bachelor's Degree or higher in an academic discipline
• Experience in teaching and training in classical Christian education
• Adherence to our Statement of Faith

All Faculty and Staff
All employees of Oakdale Academy should be committed Christians who demonstrate their spiritual walk through the spiritual fruit they produce in their lives. They should be seeking to honor God in all they do and say.

Experience
Oakdale Academy Staff have the following traits:

• dedicated
• hard-working
• love to serve others
• committed to excellence
• grace-filled
• 50% hold a Master's Degree or higher
• have served an average of 12 years in Christian education

Ultimately, the Faculty and Staff work as a team of committed Christians with a sense of determination to prepare our students for a lifetime of service and defense of our faith.

The Oakdale Academy Statement of Primary Doctrine reflects the purpose of this institution: to be a community of Christians dedicated to and united in educating our children in the Classical tradition. Oakdale holds a foundational commitment to advancing the unity of all Christians who hold to the eternal teachings of our Lord Jesus Christ and His apostles as contained in the Holy Scriptures and taught by His Church since Pentecost. In commitment to Christian unity, we cultivate and nurture habits of prayer, worship, and scriptural study that a wide range of Christian believers can support without compromising distinctions. A primary purpose of Oakdale Academy is to support families in raising Christian children, and we recognize that parents hold the ultimate responsibility for faith formation according to the beliefs and traditions of their chosen denomination or church. In light of these considerations, we set forth the following Primary Doctrine which faculty, staff, parents, and students must uphold:

The Holy Trinity: There is one God existing in three divine persons: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.

• Father Almighty: Maker of heaven and earth and of all things visible and invisible.
• Lord Jesus Christ: The only begotten Son of God, Light of Light, true God of true God, begotten not made, of one essence with the Father, by whom all things were made, who for us men and our salvation came down from heaven and was incarnate of the Holy Spirit and the Virgin Mary and became man; and He was crucified, and suffered and was buried, and on the third day he rose again according to the Scriptures, and ascended into heaven and sits at the right hand of the Father; and He shall come again with glory to judge the living and the dead; whose kingdom shall have no end; He is the Way, Truth, and the Life, and no man comes to the Father but by Him.
• Holy Spirit: the Lord, the giver of life, who with the Father and Son is worshipped and glorified, who spoke through the prophets.

Holy Scripture: The written Word of God as contained in the Holy Bible and consisting of the Old and New Testaments; inspired by God Himself; profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness; perfectly consistent, authentic, and true; containing no formal errors or inner contradictions.

Sanctity of Human Life: Humans are fearfully and wonderfully created by God in His image, male and female; human life is therefore considered sacred in all its forms, regardless of age, health, or any other status, from conception to natural death. The incarnation of Christ demonstrated God’s love for humanity and His ascension into heaven elevated human dignity.

Traditional Christian Morality: Scripture provides the guidelines and standard for marriage (between one man and one woman), family, and all matters concerning relationships between the two sexes.

Christian Unity: It is the desire of Christ that His church be unified and thereby show the world God’s love.

Behold, how good and pleasant it is when brothers dwell in unity!
Psalm 133: 1 (ESV)

Iron sharpens iron, and one man sharpens another.
Proverbs 27:17 (ESV)

The Mission of Oakdale Academy is to instill Character, Truth, and Wisdom in our students in order to prepare them for a life of service to God, family, community, and country through Classical Christian education.

Classical Christian education is a learning process in which teachers disciple students in the appreciation of Truth, Goodness, and Beauty using the Greco-Roman Trivium to support a distinctly Christian worldview. This process aims to inspire students to develop a life characterized by intellectual and spiritual pursuits and a sense of wonder.

The Mission of Oakdale Academy is one where we do not shy from our Christian faith, sincerely held religious beliefs, and values rooted in the Bible as God’s Word and delineated in our Statement of Faith. We wish to communicate to our community and the outside world in our speech and conduct, our religious nature. We are proud Members of the Association of Classical Christian Schools (ACCS).

We believe that all human life is sacred and created by God in His image. Human life is of inestimable worth in all its dimensions, including pre-born babies, the aged, the physically or mentally challenged, and every other stage or condition from conception through natural death. We are therefore called to defend, protect, and value all human life. (Psalm 139.)

As a Christian school and ministry, Oakdale Academy has specific criteria for its employees and volunteers.

As such, Oakdale Academy requires all employees and volunteers to affirm our Statement of Faith or the Apostles' Creed and that they are willing to comply with the organization’s Code of Christian Conduct.

Violation of the Oakdale Academy’s Statement of Faithor the Apostles' Creed, Code of Christian Conduct, or provisions in the Employee Handbook constitutes good cause to terminate employment.

As a Christian school, Oakdale Academy freely highlights the religious and faithful character of all we do, as embodied in our Statement of Faith and Mission Statement.

This religious character is highlighted, but not limited to, the following practices:

• Regular prayer, including Bible studies and worship in the regular activities of the school;
• The conducting of and participation in special activities that include prayer, Bible studies, and worship both on the school campus as well as away from campus.
• The promotion of Oakdale Academy is a non-denominational entity bound by our Statement of Faith.
• The display of religious artwork and decorations are encouraged on campus that comply with the Statement of Faith, good taste, and decorum.
• The promotion of our religious character is promoted and highlighted through our teaching, policies, websites, brochures, logos, crest, tagline, social media, and other electronic and non-electronic means.

In order to preserve the function and integrity of Oakdale Academy as a Christian community, and to provide a biblical role model to Oakdale students and the broader community, it is imperative that all board members, employees, and volunteers of Oakdale Academy affirm and comply with this Policy on Marriage, Family, and Sexuality.

This Policy is in accordance with our Statement of Faith and Mission Statement and outlines certain fundamental elements of Christian faith and practice.

• We believe that God wonderfully and immutably creates each person as male and female (Gen. 1:26-27). These two distinct, complementary biological sexes together reflect the image and nature of God. Rejection of one’s biological sex is a rejection of the image of God in that person.
• All students, staff, and volunteers of/at Oakdale Academy will be addressed and treated in accordance with their biological sex. Likewise, all employees, volunteers, and students will be expected to dress and act in accordance with their biological sex (Gen. 5:1). All employees, volunteers, and students are seen as being uniquely created to bear the image of God and to Glorify Him (II Cor. 3:18).
• We believe that the term “marriage” has only one meaning: the uniting of one man and one woman in a single, exclusive union, as delineated in Scripture (Gen. 2: 18-25). We believe that God intends that sexual intimacy only occur between a man and a woman who are married to each other (I Cor. 6:18, 7:2-5, Heb 13:4).
• We believe that any other form of sexual behavior outside that which is specifically delineated herein is immoral, sinful, and offensive to God (I Thes. 4:3-5, I Cor. 6:13).
• We believe that God offers redemption and restoration to all who confess and repent from their sin, seeking His mercy and forgiveness through Jesus Christ (Acts 3:19-21, Rom. 10-9-10, I Cor. 6:9-11).
• We believe that every person must be afforded compassion, love, kindness, respect, and dignity (Mark 12:28-31, Luke 6:31). Hateful and harassing behavior or attitudes directed toward any individual are to be repudiated and are not in accord with Scripture or the policies of Oakdale Academy.

Grounded in our Statement of Faith, Oakdale Academy holds to Christian values and establishes parameters for acceptable behavior of its employees and volunteers.

Pursuant to our firm conviction and belief, all employees and volunteers are to conduct themselves accordingly with regard to their biological sex and all employees and volunteers shall:

• Dress in conformance with one’s biological sex;
• Use the restrooms, locker rooms, and changing facilities conforming to one’s biological sex;
• Abstain from all intimate sexual conduct outside the marital union of one man and one woman.
• Be in agreement and affirm Oakdale Academy’s Policy on Marriage, Family, and Sexuality as biblically sound.

Additionally, employees and volunteers shall refrain from the following practices as deemed antithetical to the Christian walk and faith:

• Cheating
• Stealing
• Excessive use of alcohol
• Gambling in excess
• Use of coarse and immoral language

Employees and volunteers should conduct themselves with a sense of respect for the authority of the school, vested in the Board and the Headmaster (and any other officials acting under their authority).

Failing to comply with these standards or others not listed but deemed to be antithetical to the Christian faith will subject the volunteer to removal and any employee(s) to potential disciplinary action, up to and including dismissal.

According to Michigan law and regulations, teachers in non public schools do not have to posses teaching licenses/certifications in the case of a sincerely held religious belief.

Accordingly, and in light of the People v. DeJonge (442 Mich. 266), Oakdale Academy presents our Statement of Faith as witness of our sincerely held religious beliefs we hold are not supported by current educational requirements for teaching certification.

Oakdale Academy does not and shall not discriminate on the basis of race, color, gender, national origin (ancestry), disability, marital status, age, or military status, in any of its activities or operations. Oakdale Academy is an equal opportunity employer.