Running an elementary school has been a part of Olivet's mission since the church's establishment. Olivet School is housed within the church building, and enrolls students from junior kindergarten to grade four. A playschool program and a parents-and-tots program are also operated out of the church building.
Olivet School offers a strong academic program, but its educational approach is founded on the belief that ideas have to be joined to affections in order for anyone to learn anything. In other words, we never truly learn anything unless we care about it. The teachers at Olivet strive to create a safe environment in which a love of learning can flourish. Their hope is that their students will come to see the information they learn as a means to living a life of wise and loving service.
Subjects at Olivet are taught in light of the teachings of the New Church. So, for example, a lesson on the growth cycles of plants might lead into a discussion of the ways in which creation testifies to the presence of a wise and gentle God, who makes all things grow in wonderful ways. Students at Olivet School are are also taught stories from the Bible, with the twofold goal of teaching them to recognize God's wise and loving presence within His Word, and teaching them to see how the principles of the Bible are to be applied to life, and not simply stored up as information.
The school is open to all students, whether or not they or their parents are affiliated with Olivet Church. You can read more about Olivet School here.