Central Florida Episcopal Schools Under New Leadership

DELAND, Fla., October 09, 2017 — Paul Garcia, Head of School at St. Barnabas Episcopal School in DeLand, Fla. was recently elected as President of the Central Florida Episcopal Schools Association (CFESA). The association is part of the Episcopal Diocese of Central Florida, whose calling is to share a concern for the well-being of the whole person physically, mentally, and spiritually. This is a two-year position for Garcia.

“To say I am thrilled to be elected to this position is an understatement,” said Garcia. “My goal is to assist all 18 of our schools which are united by our Judeo-Christian principles while encouraging them to serve the needs of students specific to each school’s mission,” he went on to say.
Collectively, the schools make up a widely diverse age group including preschools, K-8 parish day schools, and K-12 and 6-12 prep schools. One of the schools, Holy Trinity in Fruitland Park, has it’s own set of unique challenges, yet is very important to the mission of the association because it is serving and educating special needs students.

“Episcopal schools have been established, however, not solely as communities for Christians, like a parish church, but as ecumenical and diverse ministries of educational and human formation for people of all faiths and backgrounds,” Garcia added. “Our schools are also members of the National Association of Episcopal Schools NAES.”

According to Garcia and the bylaws of the CFESA, his duties as president include convening with all the Heads of School in the diocese to make sure all schools are within compliance, to foster and promote their Episcopal identity, and to further educate the Central Florida community about how our Episcopal schools are developing the academic and moral excellence, cultural, spiritual and faith formation of a diverse range of students.

For more information regarding Episcopal schools in Central Florida, please contact the CFESA, or St. Barnabas Episcopal School.

St. Barnabas Episcopal School is a pre-K thru 8th grade private institution in DeLand, Fla. Its mission is empower each student to achieve academic and moral excellence in a faith-filled environment based on God's Word. For more information, visit https://www.sbesyes.org/.
###