What Pacific Academy does

Pacific Academy is a private, non-profit Pentecostal Christian school operating on a 40-acre master-planned campus in Surrey, British Columbia, serving over 1,400 students from Junior Kindergarten through Grade 12 across four divisions (Primary JK-2, Intermediate 3-5, Middle School 6-8, and High School 9-12). It is operated by the Pacific Pentecostal Education and Communication Society, an independent non-profit society, and was founded in 1985 by Vancouver entrepreneur and philanthropist Jim Pattison alongside a group of Christian pastors. The curriculum integrates a Biblical Pentecostal worldview with academic programming; the High School has been an International Baccalaureate (IB) World School since September 2004, with small class sizes of 15-28 students and an average pupil-teacher ratio of 16:1. Distinctive programs include an outreach and mission curriculum spanning seven continents, the Summit Outdoor Leadership school-within-a-school model, fine arts and athletics offerings under the PA Breakers brand, and an international student program with homestay placement.

The school's primary product is recurring K-12 tuition, with monthly tiered pricing by grade level ranging from $828 (Kindergarten-Grade 2) to $1,131 (Grade 12) for the first child, plus sibling discounts, IB surcharges, and one-time placement, damage deposit, and re-enrollment fees. Revenue is supplemented by Junior Kindergarten pricing tiers ($164-$463/month), the PACE Community Education after-school and summer program, international student tuition, and tax-receipted donations supporting the outreach program. The school operates a sales-led go-to-market with a Veracross-powered online application portal, an 11-month forward admissions window, on-campus interviews, and open houses; alumni events and word-of-mouth referrals from the 90% of new families who cite outreach as their enrollment driver serve as the primary demand-generation engine.

From an operating perspective, there are no proprietary technology systems, APIs, or AI capabilities disclosed; the institution relies on standard K-12 administrative tooling (Veracross). The school's competitive moat rests on its four-decade reputation, the integrated outreach-as-curriculum model, faith-based value alignment, and a hard-to-replicate 40-acre Surrey campus supported historically by the Jim Pattison Foundation's land and facility grants. Governance is via a Board and Leadership Team under Head of School Dr. Colleen Drisner, succeeding founding-era Headmaster Ray Sutton (1986-2005).

Name

Pacific Academy

Legal name

Pacific Academy

Website

https://pacificacademy.net

Company type

Private

Founded year

1985

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

101–250 employees

Short description

Pacific Academy is a private non-profit Pentecostal Christian K-12 school in Surrey, BC, serving 1,400+ students across four divisions on a 40-acre campus, offering IB diploma programming, integrated outreach curriculum, and supplementary after-school programs funded primarily through tiered monthly tuition.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Private K-12 Christian Education

NAICS

Elementary and Secondary Schools (6111)

SIC

Services-Educational Services (8200)

akta.pro primary industry

International/Global Curriculum Schools (IB, Cambridge, etc.) (EDAJABAG)

Keywords

• K-12 Christian education
• Private school tuition
• International Baccalaureate program
• After-school community programs
• Student outreach missions

Headquarters

HQ city

Surrey

HQ country

Canada

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Infrastructure, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Others

Revenue model

1. Domestic Student Tuition: Monthly tuition fees charged per student with sibling discounts for families with multiple enrolled children. Tuition is due on the 1st of each month from September through June. Additional fees include placement fees, re-enrollment fees, damage deposits, and optional IB program fees.
2. International Student Program: Tuition-based revenue from international students studying at the school, including those requiring homestay arrangements. Limited seats available for international students in grades 9-12.
3. PACE After-School Programs: Revenue from after-school camps, clubs, and summer programs offered through the PACE (Pacific Academy Community Education) program. Activities include sports, music, visual art, dance, and more.
4. Junior Kindergarten Tuition: Monthly tuition for Junior Kindergarten program with various scheduling options. Activity fees charged per enrollment.
5. Donations and Outreach Support: Tax-receipted donations from families and community members supporting the outreach program. Donors can support specific PA Outreach teams or give general donations.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Pacific Academy is a Jr.K through Grade 12 Pentecostal Christian school delivering faith-integrated education on a 40-acre Surrey, BC campus across four divisions (Primary, Intermediate, Middle, and High School). It sells tuition-based enrollment in core academic programs and bundles the IB Diploma Programme for grades 11-12, an International Student Program with homestay, an embedded Outreach curriculum, PACE after-school and summer programs, Summit outdoor leadership, PA Breakers athletics, and fine arts programming.

Product overview

Pacific Academy is a Jr.K-12 Pentecostal Christian school operating as a single unified institution with four distinct school divisions (Primary, Intermediate, Middle School, and High School) serving over 1,400 students. The school offers a comprehensive educational program that integrates spiritual development with academic excellence, featuring Core Educational Programs (Junior Kindergarten through Grade 12), the IB Diploma Programme as an advanced academic option, an International Program for students from outside Canada, PACE community education for after-school activities, an Outreach Program embedded in the curriculum, Summit Outdoor Leadership program, and Athletics/Fine Arts extracurricular offerings. The institution operates on a 40-acre campus in Surrey, BC.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• PACE: Community Education program offering after-school camps and clubs for youth including sports, music, visual art, dance, and summer programs.
• Summit
• IB Diploma Programme
• PA Breakers

Products and services

• Junior Kindergarten Junior Kindergarten program serving three- and four-year-olds within the Primary School, helping young children explore the world through God's creation while developing basic values, social skills, literacy, and numeracy. Multiple schedule options are offered with monthly tuition billed separately from K-12 sibling-discount tiers.
• Primary School (Jr.K through Grade 2) Primary School program for children from Junior Kindergarten through Grade 2, providing a foundation in academics, social interaction, fundamental academic principles, and spiritual concepts with dedicated nurturing teachers.
• Intermediate School (Grades 3-5) Intermediate School program for grades 3-5 that shepherds children as they grow academically and spiritually, building solid foundations in literacy, mathematical thinking, social studies, and sciences.
• Middle School (Grades 6-8) Middle School program for grades 6-8 guiding young lives through adolescence with an academic curriculum covering humanities, math, science, French, Bible, outdoor education, computer science, and fine arts.
• High School (Grades 9-12) High School program for grades 9-12 with small class sizes of 15-28 students, an average 16:1 student-teacher ratio, semester-based courses, and extensive outreach opportunities preparing students for university and global citizenship.
• IB Diploma Programme International Baccalaureate Diploma Programme offered to grades 11 and 12 students, providing a rigorous academic curriculum for highly organized students who love learning, emphasizing intercultural understanding and respect. An additional $200/month fee applies on top of grades 9-11 tuition.
• International Student Program Dedicated program serving students from countries outside Canada with educational opportunities in a Christian environment, including homestay accommodations, English language support, and limited seats in grades 9-12.
• PACE (Community Education) After-School and Summer Programs PACE after-school camps, clubs, and summer programs offering activities including sports, music, visual art, and dance for youth on the Pacific Academy campus.
• Outreach Program Service and outreach program integrated into all grades from junior kindergarten through grade 12, including local community service and international mission trips to North, South and Central America, the Middle East, Asia, Africa, the Caribbean, and Europe.
• Summit Outdoor Leadership School-within-a-school outdoor leadership program offered in the first semester that combines traditional coursework with outdoor adventure and outreach trips using experiential and problem/project-based learning approaches.
• PA Breakers Athletics and Sports Programs Athletics program under the PA Breakers brand with teams in basketball, floor hockey, soccer, golf, gymnastics, track and field, tennis, volleyball, and badminton representing Pacific Academy in local leagues and events.
• Fine Arts and Music Programs Comprehensive arts programming including band, orchestra, choir, praise worship electives, visual arts, drama, literature, media, and graphic courses, with annual dramatic and musical productions.

Quantifiable outcome

• Nearly 4,000 students have participated in international outreach teams
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers2 records

Segments6 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Three partnerships are on record, tiered core.

• Founding Board Members (Rev. Allon Hornby, Rev. Bernice Gerard, Rev. Ed Austin, Rev. Ken Birch, Rev. Gordon McDonald, Mrs. Mary Pattison)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 1984Founding board members of the Pacific Pentecostal Education and Communication Society who established the school with Jim Pattison. These pastoral leaders provided spiritual guidance and governance foundation for the school's establishment.
• Bill CouplandcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerRetired businessman with experience building another Christian school in Montreal who led the effort to find and secure Pacific Academy's original seven-acre Brookmere Elementary School site in Coquitlam. His tireless efforts enabled PA to open its doors in 1985.
• International Baccalaureate OrganizationcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPacific Academy became an IB World School in September 2004, authorized to offer the IB Diploma Programme to grades 11-12 students. The school is a proud member of the IB Organization.

Scale indicators10 records

Recent moves10 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Mulgrave School: Independent K-12 school in West Vancouver offering IB programmes from K-12. Directly comparable as a premium-fee, IB-authorized private school serving Greater Vancouver families with similar academic positioning and tuition pricing.
• St. John's School: Independent K-12 school in Vancouver offering IB programmes. Comparable as a long-established Vancouver-area private school competing for the same university-prep, faith-tolerant family segment.
• Vancouver Christian School: Independent Christian K-12 school in the Greater Vancouver area. Most direct peer on faith-based identity, K-12 scope, and tuition-based private operation, though more broadly Protestant rather than specifically Pentecostal.
• Stratford Hall: Independent K-12 IB World School in Vancouver. Comparable on IB authorization, university-prep positioning, and overlapping family demographics in Greater Vancouver.
• York House School: Independent K-12 girls' school in Vancouver with IB Diploma Programme. Comparable on premium tuition, IB authorization, and Greater Vancouver private-school competitive set.
• Meadowridge School: Independent K-12 school in Maple Ridge offering IB programmes. Comparable as a BC private K-12 with similar tuition tier and IB-led university-prep focus.
• Southridge School: Independent K-12 school in Surrey, BC. Highly comparable as a same-city K-12 private school competing directly for families in the Surrey catchment with similar academic and extracurricular offerings.
• Collingwood School: Independent K-12 school in West Vancouver with multiple campuses and a similarly broad programming mix including athletics, arts, and university-prep academics. Comparable on scale, tuition level, and family demographic.

Broad incumbents

• Upper Canada College: Long-established Canadian private K-12 school (Toronto) offering IB. Comparable as a Canadian private K-12 peer on academic programming model, though at much larger scale and broader scope than Pacific Academy.

Emerging players

• Pacific Torah Institute: Faith-based K-12 school in the Vancouver area. Comparable as a smaller-scale, faith-affiliated private school serving a narrower segment, overlapping on community education programming.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/pacific-academy

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Pacific Academy