Briarwood Christian School was founded in l964 as a ministry of Briarwood Presbyterian Church. BCS is a coeducational, college preparatory school that enrolls children and youth in four year old kindergarten through high school. The enrollment for the 2011-12 school year is 1,967 students. The Elementary School (North Campus), Kindergarten through the 6th grade, is located in Jefferson County and the Junior High and High School (South Campus) is at 6255 Cahaba Valley Road in Shelby County. Currently, there are approximately 874 Junior High and High School students enrolled.

Briarwood Christian School draws residents from the surrounding communities of Cahaba Heights, Hoover, Mountain Brook, Vestavia, and other areas of Shelby and Jefferson Counties. In addition, Briarwood Christian School enrolls international students. Briarwood admits students from all ethnic, cultural, racial, and religious backgrounds that can benefit from a challenging academic program as well as a variety of curricular and extracurricular programs. BCS enrolls students who have demonstrated average to highly exceptional intellectual ability and offers appropriately paced instruction to accommodate this range of ability in its competitive college preparatory curriculum.
Accreditation

Briarwood Christian School is accredited by AdvancEd/ Southern Association of Colleges and Schools (SACS).
Faculty

Briarwood Christian School employs 122 teaching faculty members, 46% of whom hold advanced degrees, and five hold doctoral degrees.

Admissions
Admission to BCS is competitive. During the 2011/12 admission process, Briarwood received approximately 504 applications for 219 openings. An applicant’s entrance test,
school record, standardized test scores, interviews, and teacher recommendations are all considered in the admission process.

School Calendar
The school operates on a two-semester system, 177 days divided by two terms. Students sit for comprehensive exams at the end of each semester. The school day is divided into seven 50-minute class periods that meet daily. All team sports meet after school.

Curriculum
Briarwood Christian School maintains a curriculum that is college preparatory. Historically, averages of 99% of Briarwood graduates attend four-year colleges or universities. The curriculum in the high school includes Advanced Placement, Honors, College Preparatory, and Academic, and Modified courses. The Academic curriculum is less demanding in that students cover material at a somewhat slower pace. Modified courses are available throughout the twelfth grade and are designed for the capable student who has a clinically diagnosed learning disability.