Podcast: Interview 76: How to Spot a Counterfeit Christian School (Mark Stupka)

Today we are looking at the May/June edition of FrontLine which came out recently. The theme of this edition is “The Christian School Revival.”

My conversation for this podcast is with Mark Stupka, who teaches in the education department of Faith Baptist Bible College in Ankeny, Iowa. The title of his article might surprise you, “How to Spot a Counterfeit Christian School.”

In the opening editorial for this edition of FrontLine, Ken Rathbun says this about Mark’s article:

Dr. Mark Stupka, chair of our teacher education program, offers a soul-searching perspective on what a genuine Christian school looks like. He describes its “DNA”—its ultimate priorities and concerns.

Since the Covid years exposed the weakness of the public school system to more and more people, many new families are interested in a better alternative. Many of them are turning to Christian schools. However, parents and churches and Christian school teachers and administrators need to do their best to ensure what we offer these parents is not only a quality academic experience, but also a quality Christian education experience.

There is nothing wrong with being the best we can be in Christian education. In the article, and in our conversation, we talk about what makes for quality Christian education. I think you will find it interesting.

A couple of technical notes, though, before the commercial and the beginning of the interview.

1. We had a bit of an echo in the audio somehow. I did all that I could within the limitations of my schedule and my equipment to eliminate it, but it still shows up a bit. I hope you will ignore that and just listen to the content.
2. It appears that I only have one education experience, because I told Dr. Stupka the same story I told David Horner in our interview last week. (We recorded these a couple of weeks apart.) I’ll try to think of more stories for future podcasts.

And now, let me remind you that Mark’s article is available on our substack right away for paying subscribers. We have previews for everyone else. I hope you will join with us and support the ministry of the FBFI by becoming a paying subscriber.

• FrontLine Contents and Editorial May/June 2023: FrontLine: The Christian School Revival
• Mark Stupka’s article (for subscribers, preview for everyone else): How to Spot a Counterfeit Christian School
• The podcast: Interview 76: How to Spot a Counterfeit Christian School