Christian school has new administrator

Buzzy Castognay (right) with outgoing administrator Dan Cole. photo by Jim Cornelius Some 111 students at Sonrise Christian School will attend classes at the private Sisters K-7 academy under the guidance of a new administrator.

Buzzy Castognay of Phoenix, Arizona is taking the reins from Dan Cole, who has led the fast-growing school for the past three years.

Cole is taking a position with a new school developing a campus in Bakersfield, California.

Castognay learned of the Sonrise position through mutual friends of his family and Cole's and, like many who travel to the area to check it out, he "love(s) the look of the area."

The 37-year-old administrator has been a school administrator before and was serving as an executive pastor in Phoenix.

He and his wife Sheree, 11-year-old daughter Kelsee and seven-year-old son Kyle are excited about the move and already feel welcomed.

"When I came and interviewed people were overwhelmingly kind and nice," Castognay said.

The new administrator doesn't plan on making major changes to the course Cole set.

The school is growing and that growth is expected to continue. Castognay's approach is summed up simply: "good course; stay on it."

Cole described the school's philosophy as emphasizing a solid academic curriculum based on Christian principles and Biblical teaching -- an effort to understand the world in the context of the deity's design.

The outgoing administrator said that evidence of "intelligent design" abounds in the natural world around Sisters -- in the complex and intricate workings of nature.

"God's revealed himself in what you see around us, as well," he said.

"We would say that the 'intelligent design' is the God of the Bible."

As for Castognay, he sees his mission as being very straightforward:

"My heart is really just to help (people) build a good Christian family that, in the educational realm, is successful."