On a weekday morning in Habersham County, the school day begins much as one might expect. Students file into classrooms carrying backpacks and lunchboxes, teachers greet them by name, and lessons soon give way to mathematics, grammar, and history. Yet before long, another scene unfolds that reveals what River Christian School believes sets it apart.
Between classes, children spill onto the playground and athletic fields before returning indoors for music, art, or Thursday chapel. The atmosphere feels less like an institution and more like an extended family whose members happen to gather each weekday between eight o’clock and three.
For Sheila Addis, the school’s elementary education facilitator, that culture has always mattered more than enrollment numbers.
“We don’t allow bullying,” she said. “It’s a safe place.”
She pauses only briefly before adding another sentence that captures the philosophy she and her colleagues work to cultivate.
“There is no bullying and drama. It’s family.”
River Christian School opened during the 2022–2023 academic year as a ministry of The River Church, which was founded in 2012. Church leaders originally hoped to construct a gymnasium before opening a school, but circumstances changed after the pandemic.
(Photo by Carly McCurry / The Cute North Georgian Magazine)
“We wanted to open the gym first, but God had other plans,” recalled Debra Roach. “Several families came to us in crisis after the pandemic and needed us then, not later.”
Today, seventeen students attend the school, divided into two small groups. Eight elementary students study under Addis, while nine middle and high school students learn with Kimberly Watson. The ratios, one teacher for every eight elementary students and one for every nine secondary students, allow instructors to know each child well enough to notice far more than grades.
Addis deliberately refers to herself as a facilitator, though she quickly explains that the role is, in practice, that of a teacher. Elementary students follow the Abeka curriculum while moving through lessons at a pace that reflects individual needs rather than the demands of a crowded classroom. First grade has been offered before, she said, but younger children generally require more structure than the current program provides.
(Photo by Carly McCurry / The Cute North Georgian Magazine)
That emphasis on individual attention surfaces repeatedly in conversation.
“What makes River Christian School unique?” Addis asked before answering her own question. “It’s all about the kids and what they need based on their needs, not as a whole, but as an individual.”
Those words describe more than academic instruction. Faculty members repeatedly returned to the importance of emotional security, particularly for children arriving from difficult circumstances.
“Their comfort is really important,” Addis said.
Watson nodded in agreement.
“You build that trust with them,” she said. “You never know what students have come in with.”
The school welcomes children that struggle to conform to the expectations of a larger classroom. Faculty members spoke candidly about accepting what Addis described as “the tough cases” when they believe a student can succeed with the school’s support, maintaining that every child deserves the opportunity to thrive.
(Photo by Carly McCurry / The Cute North Georgian Magazine)
Transportation can sometimes be arranged. Scholarships may be available. The goal, they explained, is to remove obstacles whenever possible.
“There’s a willingness to try to do what you can with what you’ve got,” Addis said.
The faculty itself reflects that same spirit of adaptability.
Kimberly Watson, now twenty-four, graduated from high school before stepping directly into the role of facilitating the secondary program. Her experience serving students through the church’s youth ministry made the transition feel natural, and she now teaches high school courses while coaching the school’s competitive volleyball team.
“She’s Big Sister,” Addis said with a smile, “and I’m Mama Bear.”
Their different personalities complement one another. Watson often builds relationships through shared interests and close conversations with teenagers, while Addis provides the steady reassurance younger students frequently seek.
Learning extends well beyond textbooks.
River Christian School’s elementary classroom is arranged to encourage both academic instruction and independent learning. Flexible workspaces, a reading corner, classroom displays, and individualized learning areas reflect the school’s emphasis on small class sizes and meeting students where they are academically.
(Photo by Carly McCurry / The Cute North Georgian Magazine)
Students participate in music classes where they learn instruments before joining chorus. Art classes meet on Tuesdays. Chapel gathers the school each Thursday, creating a rhythm that combines academics with worship throughout the week.
Outside the classroom, athletics play an equally important role. Students compete in volleyball and basketball, with Watson coaching the volleyball team. Although every match currently requires travel, the team has competed against schools as far away as Sylva, North Carolina.
The school’s leaders hope that one day those visiting teams will instead travel to Habersham County.
Building a gymnasium remains the ministry’s primary long-term goal.
Learning also reaches beyond campus.
Students work independently while facilitator Sheila Addis provides individualized instruction in River Christian School’s elementary classroom. With small class sizes and flexible learning spaces, teachers are able to tailor lessons to each student’s academic needs while maintaining a structured, supportive classroom environment.
(Photo by Carly McCurry / The Cute North Georgian Magazine)
Once each month, students load onto buses for field trips that range from ice skating in Greenville and snow tubing during winter to Medieval Times, the World of Coca-Cola, bowling, and Christmas caroling throughout the holiday season.
Those outings often include opportunities to serve others.
One Christmas, students rang bells for the Salvation Army while singing carols outside local businesses.
“A little old lady started dancing to the music,” Addis recalled, laughing.
Moments like those illustrate another lesson faculty members hope students carry into adulthood.
“Keep ’em humble and grateful,” she said.
Parents who visit River Christian School quickly notice another feature that distinguishes the campus from many traditional schools.
Children spend time outdoors.
(Photo by Carly McCurry / The Cute North Georgian Magazine)
They play on open fields, gather on the playground, and occasionally take lessons outside, allowing the natural surroundings to become part of the school day rather than merely the view through classroom windows.
Mondays and Thursdays carry another tradition.
Administrator and principal Myra Benfield prepares home-cooked meals for students, occasionally replacing the menu with Chick-fil-A, another reminder that the school often feels more like an extended household than an institution.
The community remains small, but its ambitions continue to grow.
Faculty members hope to expand extracurricular offerings through theatrical productions and seasonal performances while continuing to strengthen the academic program. Throughout every conversation, however, they returned to the same conviction that shaped the school’s beginning.
Photo by Carly McCurry / The Cute North Georgian Magazine
Academic success matters.
Athletics matter.
The volleyball team matters.
Music, art, and field trips matter.
Yet the measure they repeated most often had nothing to do with test scores or championships.
It was whether children felt safe enough to learn.
For families searching for a classroom where every student is known by name, where older children naturally mentor younger classmates, where teachers speak of trust before grades, and where bullying finds little room to take root, River Christian School has built its identity around a simple promise voiced by Sheila Addis near the beginning of our conversation.
“It’s family.”
