By Courtney Ingle
Johnathan Lancaster is the new head of school for First Presbyterian Day School in Jackson. He recently spoke with MCL Contributing Writer Courtney Ingle about coming into the role this year, his history with Jackson’s We Will Go ministry, and his passion for Christian education.
Courtney Ingle: How did you transition from We Will Go to First Pres?
Jonathan Lancaster: That role (We Will Go) focused on elementary students with our partner JPS elementary schools. My wife and I are both from Jackson; we moved back here in 2020 during COVID, which is when I started at We Will Go. (Later) I began to look around (for work), and a friend who’d previously been on the (FPDS) board connected me with the board chair, and that kicked off a multiple-month (interview) process.
It became clear that a lot of the skills from my previous role fit well with running a school. Much of this role is really about how you resource educators. In the nonprofit space, I believed that with the right systems and funding, we could increase our impact. It’s the same in a school setting: Educators and facilities are the inputs, and a high-quality education is the outcome.
CI: Why does Christian education matter to you?
JL: I went to public school through sixth grade, and then when my family moved to Jackson, I went to Veritas, a small Christian school that no longer exists. I had a humanities teacher there who really drove home the point that, as a Christian, we live in the world. A lot of times, Christian education can have a separatist view, a fear of the outside world.
I think Christian education matters because it helps students not pull away from the world, but be equipped to live in it. One of our teachers puts it well: “We’re not trying to have a bubble for children. We’re trying to have an umbrella.”
CI: How are you leading FPDS to adapt to current challenges in education?
JL: We’re an institution that’s existed (for more than 60 years), and there’s real strength in that. We hold true to our mission of planting seeds of Christlikeness in the hearts of children, pursuing academic excellence, and preparing our students for service in God’s kingdom. There are a lot of distractions in our current world, and when you can provide clarity and a deep commitment to who you are and what you’re doing, people are drawn to that … Holding to our mission is what binds us together.
CI: What would you tell a parent about Christian education?
JL: I think the world often looks at religion as a comfort for the weak (and the) aging. But our approach is that faith is something deeper. We’re unique in having a chapel every week and a Bible class every day, and the goal is to help students see that this isn’t just learning about a third-party figure or reading an old book — it’s relevant to their day-to-day lives. … Faith isn’t just a passing comfort; there’s depth there for when life is difficult, as it will be. It’s a very worthy investment — that deep foundation for your child. Every family has to decide what makes sense for them, but that’s why I choose to invest in it.
