Our Story
Established in 2015 on the west side of Atlanta, Peace Preparatory Academy seeks to be a place that educates the whole child, supports the whole family, and provides growth and change opportunities for the whole community in a high quality, Christ-centered learning environment.
People Matter
We are a collective of individuals rooted in the belief that all people were created in the image of God. As such, they have an inherent value and dignity that is far more than transactional in nature. Everything we do looks through a lens that understands the people we serve were not discovered, rather lovingly created by God. We have taken an incarnational approach to ministry with leadership and staff living in the communities served.
Deep listening, lived experience, and cultural and historical context are major drivers in all programmatic design and structural choices. To date we have completed 7 school years of educational programming that includes the school day and after school programming options, and have launched a community development ministry to address housing and economic concerns within the neighborhoods served.
Place Matters
For the last 10 years Peace Preparatory Academy’s Founder and Head of School, Benjamin Wills, has been sharing the story of the community while casting vision for the school. A rich understanding of the neighborhoods served by Peace Prep gives a depth of context to the work. A 12-year resident of English Avenue, Benjamin shares the rich history of the historic westside of Atlanta. Though today English Avenue and Vine City are known as two of the most under-resourced communities in our city, they have been pivotal parts of Atlanta’s rich Civil Rights legacy.
The neighborhoods that were once home to the likes Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and Correta Scott King, as well as Andrew Young and other notable leaders is a short walk from Peace Prep. Other notable landmarks include the English Avenue Elementary School, which was the first school on the west side of town where African American children could attend school all day, and its’ notable pupils include Gladys Knight, Maynord Jackson, and Herman Cain.
Today English Avenue has a property vacancy rate around 60%, over 40% of its residents are well below the federal poverty line, it is known as a food and resource desert.