What is Paideia?
Our annual parent Co-Teacher Training Conference is called Paideia after an important New Testament Greek word found in Ephesians 6:4: “Fathers, do not provoke your children to anger, but bring them up in the discipline and instruction of the Lord.” The word discipline is an attempt to translate paideia, a word that is much broader and engaging for both parent and child than simply discipline, it conveys the concept of a child’s total education: intellectual, spiritual, artistic, social. It is essentially the part of upbringing and education that forms the soul of a human being — and it is key to the formation of a culture. More complete definition of Paideia…
Paideia is often seen in its fruit, what is being developed in the person as he/she moves from child to adult. The paideia of Athens was very different from the paideia of Sparta. Thinkers and warriors are developed in two drastically different paideias.
This training conference is designed to help you raise up your children in the paideia and training of the Lord. These few days are the beginning of a great work that we are all engaged in together. It is the highlight of a network of support at Veritas that can help you and your spouse become all that God has designed you to be as the primary discipler and educator of your children. We are excited to labor alongside you. The Paideia Team
Christopher Barnes
Family Ministry Director
Veritas Academy TucsonWho should attend?
Paideia is intended for all parents, both new and returning! Students should stay at home unless participating in the Paideia Day Camp (more info below). Please take note of the teal italicized events as these are mandatory. Your child’s grade level specific training session is also mandatory.
Click the teal double arrows to expand
RICK CROSBY
Keynote Speaker
Rick has been married to the love of his life, Linda, since 1987. He received Christ into his heart when he was 6 yrs old at a summer camp in Saskatchewan, Canada. Yes, he grew up in Canada and has played hockey for over 50 years. He has been a pilot for 30+ years and is still alive despite bush flying early in his career. Rick has owned several businesses and is an avid Star Wars and Star Trek fan. He loves being the Dad of four kids and Papi to three grandkids!
Meet Our Speakers
Nick Dunlap
Mr. Dunlap is entering his 20th year in classical Christian education. He teaches 4th grade, 7th grade and Latin in the School of Rhetoric. Nick enjoys reading the classics, gardening, and listening to music with his family. His wife Betsy is also on staff at Veritas, and all three of his children will be attending Veritas this coming year.
Becca Kopas
Becca and her husband Brice have been married for 23 years. They have three children at Veritas ranging in ages from 9-16 years old, and one in college. This is their family’s 14th year at Veritas. Both Brice and Becca serve on the Veritas Board of Trustees. Becca also serves on the Family Ministries’ Team. She loves to play games, read, cook, and travel with her family. One of her favorite things to do is fellowship with friends and family over a good meal.
Ciara Hull
The Hull family has been part of the Veritas community for eight years. They have a Senior this year. Ciara has been on staff at Veritas for two and a half years serving as the Office Manager and Registrar. She is grateful for the VAT model and knows the long, hard work of parenting, discipling, and homeschool days are worth it.
Christopher Barnes
In addition to seven years working at Veritas, Christopher served for 35 years as an Evangelical Free Church pastor in two very different churches – 26 years in the Chicago suburbs and 9 years in rural Western Missouri. While in Illinois, he co-founded and led a small K-8, five-day school for 12 years. Together with his wife, they were a homeschooling family for 8 years. He has been committed to training and discipling youth and families since 1972.
Kristen Orr
Kristen is a speech-language pathologist by training and has deep interests in language, linguistics, memory, and the neuroscience of learning. She has two students at Veritas in 8th and 11th grade, as well as a freshman at the University of Arizona. This is their twelfth year at Veritas.
Julia Hardeman
Originally from the state of Iowa, Julia moved with her family to live and work on the Navajo Nation in 2005, and then to Tucson in 2008. She has been married for 26 years to Thad; they have 5 children (ages 6-19). For many years she served as a family physician, and is now blessed to be a homemaker, co-teaching parent, and biology teacher in the School of Rhetoric at Veritas Academy. She completed the Colson Fellows Program in 2022, a program focused on Christian worldview formation. She enjoys thinking, writing and talking with parents and students about how they can approach the issues of our day through the lens of Biblical truth, seeking to bring glory to God as we do so.
Rick & Linda Crosby
Rick and Linda Crosby have been married more than 36 years and have four children whom they home
educated for 21 years. They met in British Columbia at university, lived the first ten years of married
bliss in the cold Canadian tundra before relocating to Arizona in 1997 to thaw out. For six years Rick and Linda served on the Arizona homeschool board, as well as being involved in various church ministries. Linda is an author and speaker who loves encouraging others and making them laugh. Rick had been a pilot for 30+ years and has owned several businesses. They take every opportunity to encourage others by sharing how the Lord restored their marriage. Buckle your seatbelts for a weekend with the Crazy Canadians!
Cynthia Heald
Cynthia has been married to Jack since 1960, who by profession is a veterinarian, but who has been on staff with The Navigators since 1978. They have four children; two girls and two boys and have been blessed with twelve grandchildren. She is the author of Becoming a Woman Bible Study series and numerous other books and devotionals. Cynthia speaks frequently for church women’s seminars nationally and internationally. She loves to share the Word of God, be with her husband and family, take bubble baths, have tea parties and eat out!
Jeff Crane
Jeff joined the Veritas staff in 2022 and he loves what he is doing, who he is doing it with, and for Whom he does it! Prior to joining Veritas, Jeff served in ministry for 2 decades, worked in retail management for another decade or so, was a successful entrepreneur for several years, and taught community college classes to incarcerated students. (Don’t try to add that up since some of those activities were concurrent!) He is married to his high school sweetheart, Donna. Jeff has served the Lord in ministry and in the marketplace since 1985.
Matt Poling
Matt Poling has been married to his wife, Allison for 21 years. They have 2 kids, Madelyn and Nathan. Madelyn just graduated from Veritas in ‘22. He was a Director of Information Systems for almost 20 years, and is co-owner of Jigsaw Software Systems, a small software engineering firm. He is the Worship Pastor at Hope Community Church, where he and his wife have been serving for over 8 years.
Mary Beth Schannep
Mary Beth Schannep has been married to her husband, Tim, for 32 years. They have two adult children that are married, a granddaughter, and a grandson coming the end of August. Mary Beth teaches the Loving Moms Class each week that ministers to moms across Tucson. She enjoys morning walks, family dinners, and playing with her granddaughter; however, her passion is to know God and obey His Word.
Sharon Buus
Sharon has been a Veritas mom since the school’s inception 13 years ago. She and her husband Nathanael have three kids, two who are Veritas graduates, and one who is a School of Rhetoric student. She is thankful for the time that Veritas has afforded their family to learn and grow together over the past 13 years, and greatly values her relationships with her teen and adult kids. Sharon has been involved at Veritas in many capacities over the years, but most recently serves in the role of Academic/College Advisor and Theater Director (which she loves)! She is passionate about helping teens discover how their unique gifts can be used to serve others and glorify God.
Dawn Parker
Dawn Parker is starting her 5th year teaching 2nd grade at Veritas as well as coordinating Science Mondays for Kindergarten to 3rd Grade. When not planning and teaching, she loves spending time with family and friends, especially encouraging exploring the wonder of God for her nine grandchildren.
Shelby Wellman
Shelby Wellman is in her 2nd year teaching fifth grade at Veritas and 10th year of teaching overall. In addition to teaching 5th grade, Shelby loves coaching the high school girls basketball team and cheering on all of the Veritas athletes. Spending time with her husband Cory, three kids Blaire (9), Tatum (5) and Cub (4) and their dog Valor, drinking a cup of hot coffee is Shelby’s favorite weekend activity.
Ashley Odom
All Rights Reserved
Ashley is entering her 10th year as an enthusiastic Veritas co-teacher and her 5th year as the Algebra 1 campus teacher. She has an M.Ed. in Teaching and Teacher Education and taught math for eight years at Flowing Wells Junior High School prior to jumping into homeschooling. She and her husband, Scott, are parents to three current Veritas scholars. Ashley loves hiking, reading, and biking new trails all over the southwest with her family.
Meghan Collins
Meghan, mother of 3 Veritas students, all close in age, is not the most organized of moms. The first year all three of her children were in the school of grammar, organization was no longer optional (despite the desire to resist it). She spent the first year homeschooling her three children and adapting systems to help organize her chaos. She enjoys spending time with her family camping and visiting National Parks and coaching the middle school girls’ Veritas soccer team.
Stephanie Adler
Stephanie is a Veritas mom of three, a wife and a worship leader. She is also a licensed counselor with a BS in public health and an MA in counseling. She has a passion for apologetics, studying it for 13 years and teaching apologetics for five after leading worship for an Alisa Childers conference where God ignited her heart to help the church see the lies it’s exposed to. Her private practice is Fireside Counseling.
Christi Christie
Christi is in her ninth-year co-teaching at Veritas and has four kiddos enrolled. She holds degrees in Child Development, Spanish, and Biblical Counseling. You can always find her with a cup of coffee in her hand and books spilling all over her car seats. She is a slow runner and dreadful at keeping fish alive. But she can give a wicked awesome high-five!
Thad Hardeman
Mr. Hardeman is the Veritas Interim Head of School. The 23-24 school year is Mr. Hardeman’s eleventh year at Veritas. He has taught many different math and science courses and recently served as the school’s Director of the School of Rhetoric. Mr. Hardeman enjoys hiking, camping and cycling.
Tim & Stephanie Sheaffer
Tim & Stephanie Sheaffer just wrapped up a decade at Veritas and are the parents of 4 children. Tim has his B.A. in Psychology and his Master’s in Ministry. Stephanie has her B.A. in English and her Master’s in Counseling. Together, they are striving to live their lives for the glory of God by the grace of God.
Dave Collins
This is the 10th year that the Collins Family has been a part of the Veritas community. Dave and Meghan have a daughter in 9th grade, a son in 7th and a daughter in 6th. They both enjoy coaching sports and cheering on their kids. They are so grateful to get to be a part of such a special community that is focused on honoring God and raising up the next generation of world changers for Jesus!
Brian McKinley
Brian McKinley has served Veritas for the past 12 years as the school’s Headmaster and Athletic Director. Brian is a Veritas Master Teacher, covering a wide range of subjects from math to Latin, history to logic. He’s been married to Laurel for over 30 years, and they have two children, Shannon and Austin, both graduates of VAT.
Keynote Speakers – Rick & Linda Crosby
Talk Descriptions
Click the teal double arrows to expand
Paideia Day Camp
- A great day is being planned for all K-6 students while parents are engaged in training!
- Children can be dropped off at Emmanuel Baptist Church, 1825 N Alvernon Way, at 7:30 AM.
- All kindergartners through sixth graders are invited to join us for our third Paideia Day Camp. Those children who attended last year had a great time!
- The days will be full of interactive team building games, House competitions, crafts, songs, and much more.
- This will be a fundraiser for our School of Rhetoric students (juniors and seniors) for their senior trip.
- The cost will be $33 each for the first two children, with a 25% discount for child three and 50% for child four, etc. in order to support the respective senior trips.
- Children will need to bring their own lunch. Further details will be provided upon registration.
Thank you for your support of our School of Rhetoric students!
ALL SOR students are invited to be counselors. Select SOL students can help as volunteers. Contact Mr. Barnes for details.
Please RSVP your students for the Paideia Day Camp on Thursday and Friday, August 3rd & 4th.
Resource Documents
