About Us
Our Name
Why we are called “The Ascension Classical Academy”?
As a parish ministry of Christ the King Church, our feast day is Ascension Day, which according to Acts 1:3, occurred forty days after Easter. Christ ascends to God the Father where He presents the blood of His sacrifice made on our behalf, where He continues His ministry of interceding for us, and where He is seated upon His heavenly throne to reign through the Church. So the name “The Ascension” emphasizes that Christ is, even now, reigning in heaven and on earth from His heavenly throne as king over all.
The second reason for our name comes from Colossians 3:1,2. “If ye then be risen with Christ, seek those things which are above, where Christ sitteth on the right hand of God. Set your affection on things above, not on things on the earth.” As believers in Christ and His Kingship, our fundamental loyalties belong to our heavenly citizenship. We need to educate our children into that citizenship. Considering that the majority of children raised in Christian homes leave the church at the same time they leave home, we must acknowledge that the education we are giving our children is severely lacking. As parents, teachers, and Christian communities, we need to train them up in wisdom, knowledge, and virtue, pointing their affections to things above.
The photography on our website is provided by our affiliate schools.
Our Mission
The mission of Ascension Academy is to cultivate in our students a desire for wisdom, a delight in creation, and a devotion to the Creator, that in knowing God and His world, they may serve Him and their fellow man with compassion, virtue, and strength.
Friend, Come Up Higher
Amice, Ascende Superius
“Friend, Come Up Higher.” This is the motto of The Ascension Classical Academy, and it is taken from The Gospel according to St. Luke, chapter 9, verse 10. We followers of Christ, we students, must take up His humility in order to learn of Him and His Creation. Christ continually calls to us to learn more, to grow more, to become more like Him. He calls us to excellence. He calls us to come up higher. This is what we desire, not only for all of our students, but for all of our fellow believers as well.
Our Vision and Your Role
This is Just a Beginning … In time, we will be expanding to serve the full range of grades K-12 adding the facilities and staff to best assist out families in raising the next generation to love God, pursue His Truth, and achieve academic excellence. Of course we must always be sensitive to God’s leading regarding expansion and timing. This is where YOU – the person reading this right now – can make a difference, not only for The Ascension Classical Academy, but for the Kingdom of God in the Five Cities area. We are actively seeking students, teachers, and volunteers – if what you have read here resonates with you, please contact us through the link on this website! To catch a glimpse of what kind of an institution we would like to grow to be, check out the links here for our sister schools and affiliations, where we got many of the photos for our own website. We hope to resemble them in the coming years!
Our Leadership
Rev. Kent Bartel
Headmaster
Fr. Bartel is a Cal Poly graduate and has worked in aerospace engineering for most of his career. For the past 16 years, he worked at Space Exploration Technologies Corporation, where he designed rocket engines and components. His main project at SpaceX has been the Raptor engine, designed to one day take humans to Mars. Prior to joining SpaceX, Fr. Bartel worked as a propulsion design engineer for Rocketdyne, a division of Boeing at the time.
From 2004 – 2008, he was assistant headmaster at St. Andrew’s Academy in Lake Almanor, CA. In November 2022, he became vicar at Christ the King Anglican Church in Grover Beach. Fr. Bartel has a B.S. in Aeronautical Engineering from Cal Poly, an M.S. in Aerospace Engineering from USC, and an M.Div. from Cranmer Theological House, the seminary of the Diocese of Mid-America of the Reformed Episcopal Church.
Mrs. Allison Bartel
Humanities
Mrs. Bartel has a B.A. in Liberal Arts and Culture from New St. Andrew’s College in Moscow, ID, and a Masters in Professional Counseling from Amberton University in Garland, Texas. She has twenty-one years of teaching experience, beginning with St. Andrew’s Academy in Lake Almanor, CA, and later at The St. Timothy School in Dallas, TX. She is also a Licensed Professional Counselor in the state of Texas. Besides part-time teaching and counseling, Mrs. Bartel also tutors students in Latin and English.
Mrs. Evelyn Eslinger
Dean of Students and Lead Grammar School Teacher
Mrs. Eslinger has a B.A. in Political Science with a Minor in Education from the University of California Irvine, and a Masters in Education from the University of California Los Angeles. She is credentialed in the state of California with a multiple subject teaching credential including a bilingual/BCLAD in Spanish, and certifications in GATE, ELD and ECE. She has twenty years of teaching experience in both public and private Christian/classical schools, most recently teaching at Christ Classical and Coastal Christian School here on the Central Coast.
Request More Information
Thank you for your interest in The Ascension Classical Academy. If you are intrigued and wish to explore how we can assist you in your educational needs, please contact us via the Inquiry Form or email [email protected].