June 10, 2025
Welcome, Grace Hambleton!
We are excited to announce that Grace Hambleton has been selected as a 2025–2026 School Leadership Fellow through the Hillsdale College K-12...
Ivywood Classical Academy celebrated a very special moment in school history as we broke ground on our forever home on Tuesday, May 21, 2024. In front of hundreds of families, friends and supporters, we marked the ceremonious celebration of the Ivywood Classical Academy expansion.
Board President Tyler Horning shared, “Today marks the beginning of a new chapter for Ivywood Classical Academy. We are not just breaking ground on a new building; we are laying the foundation for endless opportunities to further our mission and impact the lives of countless students.”
Today, Ivywood Classical Academy is bursting at the seams with nearly 650 scholars and a 300-student waitlist that thrived during a global pandemic.
“Reflecting back five years ago, none of us could have imagined standing here today, on the cusp of such a significant milestone,” said Horning. “It is a true testament to the unwavering belief in the Ivywood Classical mission that resonates within this very crowd.”
The school has purchased this 22-acre property just south of Northridge Church and will build a 60,000-square-foot building with a bond to finance the project and allow the school to grow to become a Kindergarten through 12th-grade school. Construction has begun, and the hope is to move in early 2025.
We want to extend our heartfelt gratitude to the Ivywood Classical Board of Directors, including Tyler Horning, Myranda Fabian, Hanna Brown, Jeff Fettig and Kris Morris. Without them, this vision wouldn’t have become a reality. We’d also like to thank the Ivywood Classical Academy leadership and staff. Kayla Cruthers and her team are the real heroes today. Every day, they show up for our kids and work continuously to advance Ivywood’s mission. Thank you to our partners at Choice Schools. Kurt Naber, our superintendent, and Robert Holst, our director of finance, especially for working behind the scenes to ensure our finances and operations were in order to finance this project. We appreciate the support of our authorizer, Central Michigan University. CMU’s belief in Ivywood has been prevalent since the school’s inception. We appreciate their continued support. Lastly, thank you to Hillsdale College and their K-12 Office. Their support has been monumental for the growth and development of our program. We thank our team of dedicated builders, planners, architects, and engineers for your hard work, persistence, and commitment to Ivywood Classical Academy. Your expertise and diligence are the foundation upon which this project will be built. Again, thank you to the students, parents, grandparents, family and friends for making this dream a reality. We take great pride in our school, program and partnerships.
Together, we celebrate not just the construction of a building but the realization of a collective vision—one that started on a back porch with friends seven years ago and promises to shape the minds and hearts of children and many future generations to come. Follow along on the project on our website – https://ivywood.stevenswebhosting.com/new-building/
Ivywood Classical Academy is a tuition-free public school academy that will educate students using the virtues-based, content-rich, classical education tradition.
Parents may start dropping students off at 7:50 am. Doors open at 8:00 am, and there are three drop off options:
Option 1: Drop off at 7:50, a staff member will supervise students outside of the building until the door open.
Option 2: Park and walk to the entrance from 8:00 - 8:10. Parents may escort their children to the front or side doors.
Option 3: Utilize the car loop from 7:50 - 8:09
Ivywood utilizes a staggered dismissal. All parents must park and enter through the main entrance. All designated pick-up people must present their ICA identification barcode which will be scanned by an ICA employee prior to gaining entrance to the building. Students are dismissed directly from classrooms.