Self-education between the
sidewalk and the sanctuary
A diverse community of 9th-12th graders who share the desire, discipline, and understanding to love God with heart, mind, and soul, and love all neighbors as themselves.
About
Narthex:
The narthex was the atrium in an ancient basilica. A narthex has two sets of doors: one leading to the world and the other leading to the sanctuary. The teen years are an entrance and an exit, an opportunity to find oneself in the context of faith, learning, action, and the broader community. With its doors open, a narthex is a place of fresh air and close community. It is the vision that the members of Narthex Community of Learners would find themselves in such an environment, close to the cares and wonders of the world and also close to the prayers of the people and the hearing of God’s Word. Through prayer, Socratic dialogue, making and breaking bread, apprenticeships, and independent study, the learners enable one another to act justly, love mercy, and walk humbly with God.
Learn with us this summer!
Join us in June 2025 for Shakespeare Week with Indianapolis actor, educator, and writer, Kelsey Johnson Lyons.
About Our Community
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Narthex combines Charlotte Mason's ideal of self-education with Socratic seminars. The seminars establish a community where acting justly, loving mercy, and walking humbly is a collaborative activity. Students will be developing the habits of initiative, reflection, and moral imagination through reading great books across time and world cultures, creating portfolios of scientific, mathematical, and artistic accomplishments, and assessing their own learning and contributions to the community of learners.
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The primary mission of Narthex is to provide a tuition-free, accredited high school education to 9th-12th graders in a microschool setting. 14-18 year olds are welcomed as the primary members of the Narthex Community of Learners. First-year members, regardless of age, will be part of the “Novitiate” where they learn the routines of daily life at Narthex, develop strategies for self-education, and explore faith communities and confirm their commitment to a particular church or denomination. Narthex will not be segregated by grade level but will allow students to support one another in mastering the objectives and developing the competencies of the Indiana “Graduation Pathways.” Parents also play an important role in the community and commit to weekly conversations with their young adult learners as they make decisions and pursue their calling. The adults in the community are called “hosts” and welcome the students into dialogue and collaborative discovery. Lastly, there are many ways to participate with our community as partners, whether financially or through networking with our learners to develop opportunities for learning and growth.
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Narthex anticipates operating a fully accredited school, beginning Fall of 2026.
Enrollment interviews will begin around January of 2026.
Opportunities to learn with Narthex will commence in the summer of 2025 with Shakespeare Week.
Please sign up at the bottom of this page for opportunities to learn more about Narthex and support us in opening a space for self-education.
Meet our Founder and Board
Even before we had our first student, Narthex was a community of learners with a richly diverse set of experiences. The vision and history that brought our Founder and board members together is where Narthex began.
