Via the Union Tribune San Diego
Unable to find right school,
mom starts her own
In 2006, after searching for the right school for her son, Jean Kim founded the Cambridge School, a classical Christian campus in Carmel Valley that this year has enrolled 202 students. Photo by Tom Pfingsten (Union Tribune)
CARMEL VALLEY — Eight years ago, when Jean Kim’s eldest son was in kindergarten, she knew exactly what kind of education she wanted for him: challenging and academically sound, but also spiritual — something that “cared both about head and heart, about character as well as intelligence.”
She knew its name, as well: classical education. Think Greek and Roman, “great books” and parliamentary debate.
Kim went looking for a classical Christian school for Josh, now 13, but her search came up empty. Not a single campus in San Diego County fit the bill.
“I decided, well, I could home school classically, or I could start a school,” Kim recalled last week, when I sat down with her on the Carmel Valley campus. “The more I thought about it and prayed about it, I realized this was such a rich form of education … and I really wanted it to be a blessing for the community at large, not just my own children.
“I decided to be the crazy lady … and start a school from scratch,” she said. “I had no money, I had no location, no families who were interested at that point, but hey, we’re going to start a school!”