BY KAREN BOSSICK

A group of Wood River Valley residents are trying to raise $4 million by mid-January 2026 to purchase an 11-acre parcel in Hailey to build a Blaine Classical Academy.

The tuition-free public charter school would start out with kindergarten through seventh-grade classes, adding a grade each year through grade 12. It would serve 470 students at full enrollment.

“Yes, we realize that the student population of the Blaine County School District is in decline. But we also know that, after COVID, some families left the school system. Now, not just in our town but across America, we have whole sets of parents and groups that are seeing an opportunity to do something different,” said Pam Johnsen, a retired Human Resources employee who is among those in the Blaine Classical Academy Community Founding Group.

The proposed school is being sponsored by American Classical Schools of Idaho, a 501c-3 non-profit organization that currently has three member schools. They are Treasure Valley Classical Academy in Fruitland, North Idaho Classical Academy in Bonners Ferry and Idaho Novus classical Academy in Boise.

The schools draw their inspiration from the Michigan-based Hillsdale College, which was founded in the mid-1800s and has a network of 50 affiliated classical schools across the country.

The parents who have expressed interest in the academy want a rigorous academic choice for their children, said Johnsen.

The non-sectarian curriculum would introduce students to The Great Books, including the writings of Homer, Plato, Aristotle, Dante, Shakespeare, Milton, Locke and Rousseau.

Students would study the founding documents of the United States, as well as grammar, logic, rhetoric and moral philosophy. And they’d learn Spanish, French and Latin.

They would be exposed to Judeo-Christian values, virtuous living and western heritage. And they would wear uniforms.

“Schooling shouldn’t be a one-size fits all program. There are so many kids in Blaine County who could benefit from a different alternative,” said Johnsen.

The BCA Community Founding Group has property under contract. If it’s able to purchase the land, it would donate it to the American Classical Schools of Idaho, which would build the school through private grants and money from family foundations.

American Classical Schools of Idaho would run the school using free curriculum provided by Hillsdale.

“We cannot start without that land donation,” said Johnsen.

Teachers would be credentialed, Johnsen said. It’s expected they would come from private schools and public schools, from out of state and, perhaps, from within Blaine County.

To learn more, visit https://www.bca-idaho.org/. Or, call 1-703-909-2346