“We pray that through their study of science, your students will stand in awe, will be moved to praise, and that this study of God’s world will have shape their biblical worldview. This approach to science is not too lofty for our students. We will certainly learn many facts, use the scientific method, write lab reports, and make calculations. But we will ultimately recognize that science is about discovering the mind of God.”

These words, shared by Mrs. Winsor Vanderhill at parent orientation this year, represent the vision of our entire Science Department across all three campuses.

The ways in which all of our students learn to approach science prepares them for a variety of careers, both in the world of STEM and beyond. But most importantly, our students stand in a long line of Christians who have taken seriously the study of the natural world through the discipline of science, and have benefited in mind, body, and soul from doing so. For those of us who grew up without a classical Christian education, this approach to science is new, exciting, and impressive. 

We can assure you that those who are tasked with helping lead our science faculty are just as impressive as the courses they teach! Keep reading to discover more about our two Science Department chairs. 

Mrs. Bridget Schober

Chair of the CDA Science Department, has been teaching at CDA since 2010. She and husband Rudy have two daughters, Anneke (FM class of 2021) and Greta (FM class of 2024).

Bridget was staying home with her young children and tutoring high school math and science when families she knew suggested that she apply at Coram Deo Academy.

“I was originally as attracted by the part-time teaching schedule that worked well with young children and a husband that travelled for work, along with the Christian environment and high academics. Unsurprisingly, God’s plan was there all along. I knew very little about classical Christian education but I quickly found that it was the education I craved as a student. I am honored to teach my students and be a part of their lives. I have such respect for my colleagues and am grateful for how teaching here has developed me and grown my own faith.”

Ten years past graduation, what do you hope your students remember most about their science education?

I love this question. I really do hope that their science education has taught our students to see the world in a different way. I hope that they are curious, lifelong learners and that they know enough factual information to be good consumers of scientific information. I hope that they can see God’s creativity, plan, and order in the world around them and are amazed at the complexity involved in the simplest organism. With questions about physics, I do try to “ruin” all sports and driving for them so that they can’t help but think about forces and acceleration when they see a ball flying like a projectile or take a turn in a car. 

Mrs. Winsor Vanderhill

Assistant Chair of the Science Department, is in her sixteenth year of teaching at CDA. She and husband Phil were high school sweethearts and have been married for almost seventeen years. The Lord has blessed them with seven children between the ages of two and thirteen, including identical twin two-year-old boys! As a family they love to spend time in the majestic Rocky mountains of Colorado or the peaceful Blueridge mountains of North Carolina.

“I had the privilege of attending classical Christian schools for my own elementary and secondary education. The conviction toward Christian education didn’t stop there. I desired a biblical worldview in my college years as well. My professors at Geneva College shaped the way I view the world. Through technical studies in anatomy and physiology, microbiology, and embryology, they taught me the deep complexity of creation and pointed me to the One who made it all. I am still in touch with my advisor and reach out to him periodically on worldview and technical questions. As it is at CDA, my college experience was a biblically based, whole person, well-rounded education. When I first started teaching at CDA, the Dallas campus was in its second year. What a privilege to watch the growth of our sweet school!”

So what has kept Winsor and her family at CDA all these years? Two words: curriculum and community. Every year Winsor has grown to love the curriculum more deeply as both a parent and a teacher. But her love for CDA goes beyond the curriculum. “As much as the curriculum is shaping my students and my own children, the community is shaping us, too. The families who chose this type of education are uniquely like-minded. They are wise and fun and deep and one of God’s great gifts to me.”

We asked both of our Science Department Chairs to answer a question we often pose to our faculty throughout the school year.

Ten years past graduation, what do you hope your students remember most about their science education?

I could give you a list of fascinating facts in biology that I couldn’t imagine anyone forgetting. Things about adenosine triphosphate, photosynthesis, and the mitochondria. But more than this list of things that a science teacher finds fascinating, my hope is that the students would remember our emphasis on the Creator. Everything we study points to the One who made it. We can learn His character through His creation and understand His care through the way He sustains it. Through the power of His Word, He spoke matter and the laws that govern it into being. Every science class the students encounter at CDA is a different aspect of His general revelation. I pray that my students will be lifelong learners and ten years from now will not stop marveling and worshiping the One who made it all.