Our story…

Refine KC exists because God moved in the hearts of two families. In the summer of 2021, it was clear to Matt & Amy Barnard and Ryan & Amanda Zaring that public education was no longer sufficient for a Christian family.

Children must be equipped and refined in God’s Word to discern worldly agendas.

The founders knew that Kansas City’s Northland needed an option for quality education that was affordable for families and offered personalized learning for each student from a Biblical worldview. They had witnessed the positive impact a community of believers had on their own children and envisioned this concept in the new school. They could see the decline in life skills being taught in schools and yearned to see students being equipped in practical ways.

In obedience to God, they answered the calling to open a new Christian school.

The original idea for the school’s name was Zarephath, a place in the Bible where God refined (1 Kings 17). God began to reveal the people He had been preparing for this calling in January 2022. As the founders prayed over where this school would be located, the congregation of Tower View Baptist Church was also praying over how their building could be used more effectively to further the Kingdom.

God aligned the mission as a partnership began with Tower View in April of 2022.

Staff and families took a leap of faith in joining the school and students ranging from 1st through 11th grade were welcomed to the Refine KC campus for the first time on August 29, 2022.

By the start of year two in the Fall of 2023, Refine KC had more than doubled its student population serving students in Pre-K - 12th grade. As the school year progressed, it was clear that there was a need for a larger space for the growing school. Again, the founders sought local churches who could become facility partners.

The Lord guided Refine KC to Sherwood Bible Church, where the leadership and congregation were eagerly seeking ways to fulfill their mission in their community. In the summer of 2024, Refine KC School made the three-mile move to Sherwood Bible Church resulting in much larger classrooms and enough space for the school to grow in the years to come.