Our History

In the 1970s, several St. Louis families recognized the need for a distinctly Christian junior and senior high school that integrated faith and learning. Led by Dr. George Knight III, a professor at Covenant Theological Seminary, a school board was formed to establish Westminster Christian Academy in September 1976. The same year, Westminster became a member of the National Union of Christian Schools, which established Westminster as a viable Christian school in the Reformed Christian school tradition.

Early Campuses

Westminster’s first home was in rented classrooms at Missouri Baptist College. After only one year, Westminster transitioned its campus to a small elementary school building in Des Peres, where the school resided until 1982. The building quickly became too small for the growing student body, which had reached 250 students. 

Westminster purchased the Ladue Road campus from West Ladue Middle School, which could hold 600 students. Jim Marsh began his tenure as head of school in 1985. In the early ‘90s, Westminster expanded to include additional classroom space and athletic fields, which allowed the school to enroll as many as 900 students.

By the 2000-01 school year, the transformative renovation had caused classrooms to fill quickly. In 2001, a handful of people started to pray about and discuss what Westminster would do if God opened the door to the purchase of the former West County Technical School property. Two years later, in February 2003, the school purchased the 40-acre campus.

West County Campus

As the Westminster community moved forward with planning committees and town hall meetings, seeking to determine possible uses for the newly purchased campus, attention began to turn to the 30 acres of property, called “Centreat,” that was owned by Central Presbyterian Church and perfectly situated next to the Westminster property. In the summer of 2007, a family offered to gift Westminster the funds to purchase Centreat. This unexpected $7.1 million gift allowed Westminster to plan for a 70-acre unified campus. In 2008, the Ladue Road campus was placed on the market for sale.

By the end of January 2010, the Ladue School District presented an offer and a contract to purchase the Ladue Road campus for $18 million. Through God’s grace and general financial pledges, construction accelerated on the newly purchased campus, which was completed in June 2011, in time for the 2011-12 academic year. The facility accommodates up to 1,200 students.

Looking Ahead

It is our prayer and hope that God will continue to provide the people and resources needed for us to remain a world-class Christian school. We rejoice as we move forward together, amazed and excited by what God is doing and what He will do in the lives of students and families for years to come.