OUR HISTORY
A JOURNEY MADE POSSIBLE BY HIS GRACE
FOUNDEDFROM A NEED
Grace International School has been serving the families of international Christian workers for over 20 years. Watch the following video to learn about our full origin story and how God has faithfully led us to where we are today.
OUR JOURNEY
1999
OPENING THE DOORS
A few years after Founder Gene Foltz met with a handful of partner organizations to formally start the process of establishing a school for international Christian workers, GIS finally opened its doors to 176 students.
2004
TIME OF GROWTH
God enabled purchase of a former sports facility on nine acres and on Aug. 27, 2004, the new elementary building was dedicated. The school continued to grow over the years to more than 500 full-time students. GIS also began offering educational support as well as long distance education to families serving in remote areas.
2006
THE NEED TO MOVE
A court dispute over the property ownership threatened the continued use of the secondary site. The legal dispute and lack of space to meet the needs of the community confirmed to GIS administrators the imminent need for a larger, purpose-built campus. Over the course of the next several years, the GIS community raised funds for the construction of a new campus. Different campaigns such as Saving Grace, Tiger Trucks, It’s Time to Build, and Bike for Grace raised both awareness and money.
2016
NEXT STEPS
After losing the lawsuit, GIS vacated its campus of 17 years to share a campus with another school. In the meantime, GIS built a new property further south.
2019
HEADING HOME
By God’s provision, GIS moved into its new campus just in time to start the 2019–2020 school year. After many years of navigating hurdles and fundraising efforts, GIS finally has a permanent place to call home.
2020
LOOKING TOWARDS THE FUTURE
On Feb. 7th, 2020, GIS had its Grand Opening Ceremony at its permanent location, celebrating 20 years of what God has done both for and through the school. Dedicated to serving our ever-expanding community, GIS continues to live out its original mission of equipping students to impact the world for Christ and supporting ministries in the region, sharing the good news of the Gospel of Jesus Christ with people all over Asia.
