Tidewater Academy is a private school

Private school

Private schools, also known as independent schools or nonstate schools, are not administered by local, state or national governments; thus, they retain the right to select their students and are funded in whole or in part by charging their students' tuition, rather than relying on mandatory...

 in Wakefield, Virginia

Wakefield, Virginia

Wakefield is an incorporated town in Sussex County, Virginia, United States. The population was 1,038 at the 2000 census.Wakefield is famous for being the "Peanut Capital of the World" and the location of the famous , as well as the site of Airfield Conference and 4-H Educational Center...

. Established in 1964, the school serves students in preschool through grade 12 and is accredited by the Virginia Association of Independent Schools.

History

In the summer of 1964, ground work was laid to organize a private academy in Wakefield. Successful efforts and plans to keep a high school in town were realized when the first Board of Directors, and administration, faculty and staff for Tidewater Academy were chosen that year. On March 24, 1964, under the provisions of Chapter 2 of Title 13.1 of the Code of Virginia, 1950, Tidewater Academy became incorporated.

As defined in 1964, the goals of Tidewater Academy were to "provide a thorough academic education with emphasis on preparation for college; to build an understanding of local cultural heritage and respect for learning; and to create in each student a sense of responsibility for effective leadership, good moral character, and an appreciation of spiritual values." In the second academic year, a lower school program was added to provide a system of twelve grades.

In the early years, classes were housed wherever space was available. Subsequently, buildings were completed by volunteers at what is now the Upper School Campus on Church Street in Wakefield. In 1977 facilities for students in kindergarten through grade six were provided. Since the completion of the new lower school building, all grades are now
Tidewater Academy is a member school of the Virginia Association of Independent Schools. Tidewater Academy currently employs a total of 38 full and part-time faculty (14 alumni) and staff members.

Athletics

Tidewater Academy fields teams in baseball

Baseball

Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each. The aim is to score runs by hitting a thrown ball with a bat and touching a series of four bases arranged at the corners of a ninety-foot diamond...

, basketball

Basketball

Basketball is a team sport in which two teams of five players try to score points by throwing or "shooting" a ball through the top of a basketball hoop while following a set of rules...

, cheerleading

Cheerleading

Cheerleading is a physical activity, sometimes a competitive sport, based on organized routines, usually ranging from one to three minutes, which contain the components of tumbling, dance, jumps, cheers, and stunting to direct spectators of events to cheer on sports teams at games or to participate...

, football

American football

American football is a sport played between two teams of eleven with the objective of scoring points by advancing the ball into the opposing team's end zone. Known in the United States simply as football, it may also be referred to informally as gridiron football. The ball can be advanced by...

, softball

Softball

Softball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of 10 to 14 players. It is a direct descendant of baseball although there are some key differences: softballs are larger than baseballs, and the pitches are thrown underhand rather than overhand...

, tennis

Tennis

Tennis is a sport usually played between two players or between two teams of two players each . Each player uses a racket that is strung to strike a hollow rubber ball covered with felt over a net into the opponent's court. Tennis is an Olympic sport and is played at all levels of society at all...

, and volleyball

Volleyball

Volleyball is a team sport in which two teams of six players are separated by a net. Each team tries to score points by grounding a ball on the other team's court under organized rules.The complete rules are extensive...

. The Warriors have competed in the Virginia Commonwealth Conference (VCC) since 1987 and are classified in Division III (which comprises the smallest private schools) of the Virginia Independent Schools Athletic Association for state rankings and state tournaments. Prior to the creation of the Virginia Commonwealth Conference by merger of the Virginia Academies Athletic Conference (VAAC) and the Commonwealth Conference, Tidewater was a member of the latter. Though they have only won one State Championship in Softball in 2009 the Warriors are perennially competitive in boy's basketball, having won several conference championships and made a state semifinal appearance in the 2008 postseason before losing to eventual state champion Evangel Christian. The JV boys basketball team finished with a perfect record in 2008, signifying good things to come for Warrior basketball. The Lady Warrior softball team was the #1 seed in the VISAA Division III State Tournament in 2008, but lost in the championship game to softball power Isle of Wight Academy

Isle of Wight Academy

Isle of Wight Academy , founded in 1967 as a segregation academy, is an independent, non-sectarian, co-educational nonprofit day school located in Isle of Wight County, Virginia...

. Warrior teams are rarely in the basement of the VCC standings for any sport, and are widely known as a school whose size belies its competitiveness in conference play and in state tournaments. Athletic Director and boy's basketball coach Walter Westbrook is 39th in wins among active coaches in Virginia with a 263-141 record in 14 seasons at TA.