Chicago Hope Academy

I am writing this because parents deserve to know what kind of “Christian” high school Chicago Hope Academy really is. As a child of God, I stand firm on my faith I also believe that right is right and wrong is wrong and no matter what entity. This educational establishment is not above reproach and due to their lack of integrity where their actions have been inconsistent and disreputable, leads one to believe that the people leading this school is not suitable for ANY trust or leadership and must be held accountable. What happened to my child — and to our family — was not just disappointing. It was shocking, heartbreaking, and completely at odds with the values this school claims to represent. My child was expelled without a single real explanation. No meeting. No conversation. No attempt to understand what was going on. As parents, we were left standing there, stunned, trying to make sense of a decision that the school refused to justify. For an institution that talks endlessly about integrity and transparency, the silence was deafening. And let me be clear: this wasn’t just a disciplinary issue. My child, like so many teens after COVID, has been carrying real trauma. Anxiety. Emotional exhaustion. The kind of struggles that any school — especially a Christian one — should be prepared to meet with compassion, patience, and support. Instead, they responded with the coldest, most dismissive approach imaginable. The counselor, who should have been a lifeline, was nowhere to be found in any meaningful way. No advocacy. No guidance. No effort to understand the emotional reality of a teenager trying to navigate a world that has been anything but stable. Their role felt symbolic at best, nonexistent at worst. And the disciplinary dean — the person who should model wisdom, empathy, and discernment — acted with a level of rigidity and detachment that was honestly disturbing. There was no trauma informed lens, no attempt at restoration, no recognition that teenagers make mistakes and need adults who can help them grow. Instead, the response was swift, punitive, and utterly devoid of grace. This school had a chance to live out the Christian values it advertises: redemption, forgiveness, compassion, partnership with families. Instead, it chose the path of least effort — remove the “problem,” avoid the conversation, and pretend that’s leadership. It’s not. It’s cowardice dressed up as discipline. It’s easier to expel a hurting teenager than to actually support them. It’s easier to shut parents out than to admit that maybe the school mishandled something. It’s easier to hide behind vague statements than to practice the honesty and accountability they demand from students. There’s a name for this type of action – HYPROCRISY!!! By definition, the practice of professing beliefs, virtues, or feelings that one does not actually hold, often engaging in the same behaviors one criticizes in others.
If you are a parent considering Chicago Hope Academy, especially if your child has any emotional needs, any trauma, any challenges at all — please think twice. A school that cannot extend compassion to a struggling teenager is not a school prepared to guide them. A school that refuses to communicate with parents is not a school that values partnership. And a school that expels a child without explanation is not a school that understands the responsibility it carries.
We expected a community rooted in faith and humanity. What we encountered was a system more interested in protecting itself than supporting the young people entrusted to its care.
This experience was devastating for our family, and no parent should have to go through it.

Chicago Hope Academy has a great vision for the students. But there are two really weak spots. Most schools have P.E. during the day and they get out at about 3:15. Hope requires all students (freahmen-seniors) to attend and it ends at 4:30, never starting on time, so more time is wasted. P.E. doesn't even have a gym, but instead random places, like the chapel or just outside. They want you to buy uniform, but they don't even care that you don't wear it. There isn't even a gym teacher. Most of the time we waste time and we have to be there for an hour and a half. Another weak spot is the lunch program. There is no oven, so all of the food is baked instead. I'm not a picky eater, but not all foods are meant to be baked so some of it comes out really bad. On top of that, it costs $3 dollars for just a small portion because there is not enough (the lunch ladies say). I say all this so that changes could be made to improve the quality of the school.