Lancaster Mennonite is preparing students for the future

Located in the vibrant core of Lancaster, Pennsylvania, Lancaster Mennonite School (LM) is known for its academic excellence and character development. With a rich history rooted in providing an Anabaptist, Christ-centered education, LM has evolved into a diverse community that nurtures PreK-12th grade students to become creative, innovative learners prepared for college, career, and life.

The school is a learning hub that serves approximately 560 students and families from across the country and around the world who resonate with the core values of the LM community. LM has identified faith integration, fine arts, STEAM (science, technology, engineering, art, and math), world languages, and outdoor education as top priorities for their curriculum.

Caring Environment for the Whole Student

LM’s dedicated teachers equip students to grow and make a positive impact on the world. Restorative practices, including building positive student-teacher relationships, form LM’s programmatic framework. Student-teacher interactions and development of meaningful relationships helps to foster an educational climate that puts students at the center of all they do. With an average student-to-teacher ratio of 11:1, teachers can work to meet the needs of individual students and help them thrive in a safe learning environment.

If you walk the halls of LM, you will find a place of fun, friendship, and mutual respect.

LM Parent, Jenee Bare shared, “Our family has found LM to be a learning community that demonstrates care for the whole person as it cultivates ways of learning about the world and how Jesus teaches us to engage within it.”

Prepared for the Future

With an education from LM, students are prepared academically, socially, and spiritually to thrive in the future path they choose, whether college, career, or voluntary service. This starts in Pre-Kindergarten with play-based learning and continues to high school with hands-on learning opportunities inside and outside the classroom. Students explore their holistic giftings in music, art, athletics, drama, world languages, and more through the school’s expansive course offerings, extracurricular activities, and unique service and mini-course opportunities.

One example of this was the girls varsity soccer team’s mini-course trip to Jamaica last summer. While there, they ran soccer camps with Christian Service International (CSI), played games, painted faces, and made bracelets with the students. They also participated in service projects like painting at the school and community building in the area. They had fun enjoying a little swimming, snorkeling, hiking, and attending church with CSI too. 

“My time in Jamaica was incredible,” shared high school student and girls varsity soccer player, Adelyn King. “I was surrounded by an amazing group of girls, and I learned a lot about myself during the trip. It was eye-opening for me to experience a different culture, and it was an opportunity to get a small glimpse of God working through us and the missionary family we were with.”

Shaping Tomorrow’s Leaders

“I love the chance I have had to teach and interact with the world changers of our future for all these years,” said Duane Evans, LM High School Science Teacher. “Speaking with alumni and hearing of their success in the sciences keeps me motivated every year. From college freshman thriving in their studies in the health sciences to students entering their doctoral programs and receiving their PhDs, it is wonderful to hear how our students are going to use their God-given talents to help others.”

Mr. Evans shared more about LM alumni who are thriving in their post-high school studies and careers—choosing career paths such as nursing, law, filmmaking, social entrepreneurship, social work, school counseling, and international service work—each of them positively impacting the world. 

LM Alumna, Stephanie Miller Lehman, PhD ‘01, works as an Investigator of Mass Spectrometry and Characterization at GSK, applying foundational knowledge from Mr. Evans’ AP Chemistry classes every day. Lehman’s graduate training focused on the application of an analytical instrument called a mass spectrometer to investigate biological questions. In her postdoctoral research, she used the device to better understand how cancer drugs work on a subcellular level, including the emerging science of epigenetics.

“While people have understood the fundamental building blocks of biology for a while, the exact mechanism and communication networks within our cells are still being discovered,” she said. “It is very exciting to push the boundaries of how we understand the world around us.”

Fellow Alumna Kimberly (Nissly) Henderson, JD ‘05, serves as Special Counsel at The Disciplinary Board of the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania, and she looks back fondly on her time at Lancaster Mennonite, remembering teacher Sheri Wenger as a strong influence in her life.

“Mrs. Wenger was a great teacher, really challenging, and prepared me well for college,” Kimberly shared. In her current position, Kimberly has tried to advocate for increased diversity among attorneys and also has a passion for mentoring.

“I especially love mentoring and encouraging law school students of color,” she added.

By forming students to excel not only in their path after high school, but also to do so with integrity and critical thinking, Lancaster Mennonite is shaping students to be the leaders of tomorrow who change the world for the better.

Looking for education options for your upcoming Pre-K through 12th grader? Attend an LM Open House or schedule a visit or private tour to learn more about their academics, student life, and extracurricular options.

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