St. Raphael School

St. Raphael School is a live online Orthodox school. Its own page describes it as a "school within a school" at Scholé Academy, offering integrated liberal arts classes for grades K through 12, courses in the sacred liturgical arts, and a variety of languages. The page says St. Raphael School and Scholé Academy are both divisions of Classical Academic Press.

Last updated: 2026-10-15 · Every Homeschool Editorial Team

At a glance

Method	Classical / online live-class / literature-based (Every Homeschool classification). The St. Raphael page describes classical education in the Orthodox tradition, drawing on the classic good and great books of Western and Eastern European culture
Worldview	Christian-Orthodox. The St. Raphael page calls the school's mission "distinctly Orthodox" and says it welcomes all families who want its faith-centered liberal arts curriculum
Grades	K-12; the page lists lower school (grades K-6), middle school (grades 6-9), and upper school (grades 9-12) courses
Formats	Online live class. The Scholé Academy FAQ says classes run on Zoom with Canvas as the learning management system and that the school does not offer asynchronous courses
Cost tier	Standard (Every Homeschool classification); 2026-27 yearlong course prices appear under Cost honest assessment below
Parent intensity	2 (Every Homeschool rating, 1 to 5). The Scholé Academy FAQ says the school does not replace parents as the administrators of homeschools
ESA-common	Partial (Every Homeschool classification). Scholé Academy's State Funding page lists the Arizona, Arkansas, Florida, and Utah programs named under ESA eligibility notes below (retrieved October 2026)
Accredited	No. The Scholé Academy FAQ says its courses are "not accredited by an external agency", and the handbook says Scholé Academy does not provide official transcripts
Established	The school's page says it has been supporting homeschooling Orthodox families since 2013 and lists Father Porphyrios (Dr. James Taylor) as its founder
Website	scholeacademy.com/st-raphael-school

Our scoreboard (1-5)

Criterion	Score	One-line reason
Academic rigor	4	Our assessment. The St. Raphael page lists Liberal Arts Levels 1 to 8 built on the classic good and great books, and says classes are taught in the "conversational mode" rather than mere lecture
Ease of teaching	4	Our assessment. The St. Raphael page lists its instructors with biographies, and the Scholé Academy FAQ says parents remain the administrators of their homeschools
Content quality	5	Our assessment. The St. Raphael page lists Byzantine chant, iconography, Greek, Russian, Arabic, and catechism courses alongside the Liberal Arts levels
Flexibility	4	Our assessment. The St. Raphael page says upper school courses can be purchased à la carte and lists class periods for each grade band in Eastern Time, though the Scholé Academy FAQ says the school does not offer asynchronous courses
Value for money	3	Our assessment. Yearlong courses list at $360 to $830 (retrieved October 2026), with twice-weekly courses at $710 and three-times-weekly courses at $830; see Cost honest assessment below
Worldview scope	2	The St. Raphael page calls the mission "distinctly Orthodox" and says the school welcomes all families who want its faith-centered curriculum
Visual/design	4	Our assessment of the school's website and course pages. The Scholé Academy FAQ says classes run on Zoom with Canvas as the learning management system
Support resources	4	The St. Raphael page says the school benefits from Classical Academic Press staff resources in web development, promotion, order processing, and customer service, and links a printable planner, a student journal, and a scholarships page for Orthodox clergy and need-based aid

Who the publisher is

The St. Raphael page says the school has been supporting homeschooling Orthodox families since 2013 and lists Father Porphyrios (Dr. James Taylor) as its founder. It says St. Raphael School is part of Scholé Academy as a "school within a school", that St. Raphael students may also take Scholé Academy courses, and that both St. Raphael School and Scholé Academy are divisions of Classical Academic Press. The page also says St. Raphael School benefits from Classical Academic Press staff resources in web development, promotion, order processing, and customer service.

The page describes the school's Spiritual Advisor and Interim Principal as chairman of the Antiochian Archdiocese Department of Homeschooling, which operates St. Emmelia Ministries and Conferences. The Scholé Academy FAQ says Scholé Academy's faith commitment is summarized in the Nicene Creed.

The page says the school's mission is distinctly Orthodox, that it is committed to preserving an environment of Orthodoxy for its students, and that it welcomes inquiries and applications from non-Orthodox students and will offer guidance on whether the program is a good fit. It describes education as "a friend to theosis", the journey of transformation into the life of Christ. In our assessment, that framing is part of the curriculum rather than an optional layer, and non-Orthodox families should read the course descriptions with that in mind.

The core pedagogy

The St. Raphael page says the school's integrated liberal arts classes for grades K through 12 draw on the classic good and great books of both Western and Eastern European culture. Its course lists include Liberal Arts Levels 1 through 8, catechism, Greek, Russian, and Arabic language courses, literature and writing electives, and courses in Byzantine chant, iconography, and other liturgical arts.

The page lists class periods in Eastern Time: eight 60-minute periods for lower school (grades K-6), starting at 8:00 a.m., and seven 75-minute periods for middle and upper school (grades 6-9 and 9-12), starting at 8:00 a.m. Each course page states how often the course meets. For example, Liberal Arts Level 1 meets twice a week for 45 minutes, Liberal Arts Level 4 meets three times a week for 60 minutes, and Byzantine Chant 1 meets once a week for 90 minutes (all retrieved October 2026).

Signature mechanics: (1) Liberal Arts levels. The page lists Liberal Arts Level 1 (Illustrated Classics) through Level 8 (Modern Classics of Christendom, 16th Century and Beyond), and says upper school Liberal Arts courses can be purchased à la carte, with bundle discounts for the matching history and literature pairs. (2) Liturgical arts courses. The page lists Byzantine Chant 1, 2, and 3, a course on learning Byzantine chant by moving from Western to Byzantine notation, Byzantine Chant Fundamentals for Children, Iconography Apprenticeship courses (Year 1, Years 2 and 3 combined, and Years 3 through 6 combined), iconography workshops, and an iconography apprenticeship for adults. (3) Languages. The page lists Greek (conversational and New Testament Greek levels), Russian, and Arabic courses, and says students may also take courses at Scholé Academy. (4) Conversational teaching. The page says classes are taught in the "conversational mode" rather than as mere lecture.

The page lists catechism courses in each grade band: Little Disciples K-2 and Catechism Level 3 for lower school, Catechism Levels 4 and 5 for middle school, and Catechism Levels 6 and 7 for upper school.

What they do exceptionally well

Liturgical arts as academic courses. In our assessment, St. Raphael treats Byzantine chant and iconography as full course sequences. The St. Raphael page lists Byzantine Chant 1 through 3 and iconography apprenticeship courses that span several years.

Integrated Eastern and Western classical tradition. The St. Raphael page says the Liberal Arts program draws on the good and great books of Western and Eastern European culture, and its course lists include Russian Literature A, a poetry course drawn from across the Orthodox world, and a Greek course of New Testament readings in patristics for upper grades. In our assessment, this is a strength for families whose tradition is Eastern.

Scholé Academy and Classical Academic Press support. The St. Raphael page says students may also take Scholé Academy courses and that the school benefits from Classical Academic Press staff resources. In our assessment, that access widens the choices for a family that wants Orthodox courses alongside subjects such as Latin, math, or science, which the Scholé Academy courses page lists.

What they do poorly

Narrow Orthodox fit. The St. Raphael page says the mission is distinctly Orthodox and that the school is committed to preserving an environment of Orthodoxy for its students, while welcoming inquiries and applications from non-Orthodox students. In our assessment, Catholic, Protestant, and secular families will find the Orthodox content central rather than peripheral, and should weigh whether they want that formation for their children.

Per-course tuition and separate materials. Tuition is charged per course, and the 2026-27 yearlong course pages list $360, $430, $710, or $830 (retrieved October 2026; see Cost honest assessment below). The Scholé Academy FAQ says tuition applies to each student, including siblings enrolled in the same class, and that course materials are sold separately. In our assessment, a student who takes several courses that meet two or three times a week will pay a noticeably higher total than one who takes once-a-week courses.

No accreditation and no official transcripts. The Scholé Academy FAQ says the courses are not accredited by an external agency and that parents add the recommended credit amounts to the transcripts they compile as administrators of their homeschools. The Scholé Academy handbook says Scholé Academy does not provide official transcripts. Families expecting an accredited-school diploma or an official transcript from the school should look elsewhere.

Who it fits / who it doesn't

• Pick St. Raphael School if: your family is Orthodox Christian and wants live online courses in Orthodox liturgical arts and catechism, with Liberal Arts levels drawn from Western and Eastern European books; you are comfortable with per-course tuition and assembling a schedule from the course lists; you value the Classical Academic Press staff resources the school describes; the iconography, Byzantine chant, and Greek, Russian, and Arabic offerings are actively interesting to your student.

• Skip St. Raphael School if: your family is not Orthodox and you do not want a distinctly Orthodox formation; you need an accredited diploma or an official transcript from the school; you need a self-paced option, since the Scholé Academy FAQ says it does not offer asynchronous courses; you want an Orthodox online option with lower listed tuition for twice-weekly core courses (see St. Athanasius Academy under Cost honest assessment); your student does not engage well with discussion-based, primary-text-reading instruction; you want a full physical-school experience with athletics and in-person peers.

Cost honest assessment

The 2026-27 yearlong course pages for students list prices of $360, $430, $710, and $830, and on the pages we read the price follows how often a course meets (all prices retrieved October 2026). Once-weekly courses list at $360, for example Catechism Level 5: God's Presence in His Saints and Byzantine Chant Fundamentals for Children, or at $430, for example Byzantine Chant 1 and Iconography Apprenticeship Year 1. Twice-weekly courses list at $710, for example Liberal Arts Level 1: Illustrated Classics and New Testament Greek Level 1, Middle Grades. Liberal Arts Levels 3 through 5 meet three times a week and list at $830, for example Liberal Arts Level 5: American Classics.

As arithmetic on those listed prices, a student in grades 8 and 9 who takes Liberal Arts Level 5 ($830), Catechism Level 5 ($360), and Byzantine Chant 1 ($430) would pay $1,620 in tuition for the year. Adding New Testament Greek Level 1, Middle Grades ($710) and Iconography Apprenticeship Year 1 ($430) brings a five-course schedule to $2,760. The Scholé Academy FAQ says tuition applies to each student, including siblings enrolled in the same class, and that course materials are sold separately.

St. Athanasius Academy lists $473 per course for non-clergy students in core courses that meet two days a week, and $352 per course for enrichment electives that meet one day a week (retrieved October 2026). In our assessment, St. Raphael's listed tuition is higher for twice-weekly courses ($710 against $473) and close for once-weekly courses ($360 or $430 against $352). The courses differ in content, length, and instructors, so this compares listed tuition only. For a family choosing between the two, the pricing question is whether the specific courses it wants, such as Byzantine chant, iconography, or a Liberal Arts level, justify the difference in listed tuition.

ESA eligibility notes

Scholé Academy's State Funding page lists the Arizona Empowerment Scholarship Account, the Arkansas Education Freedom Account, Florida Step Up for Students, and the Utah Fits All Scholarship Program, and lists the West Virginia Hope Scholarship as on hold (retrieved October 2026). The page says the school cannot guarantee the timing for approval, or whether it will be approved, for other programs it is asked to explore. St. Raphael School is part of Scholé Academy, and families should confirm with their state program administrator that a specific St. Raphael course is an eligible expense before registering.

Alternatives

• St. Athanasius Academy, in our assessment, a family would choose St. Athanasius over St. Raphael when it wants an academy that describes itself as a ministry of the Antiochian Orthodox Christian Archdiocese of North America and lower listed tuition for twice-weekly core courses ($473 against $710 for St. Raphael examples such as Liberal Arts Level 1, retrieved October 2026).
• Memoria Academy, in our assessment, a family would choose Memoria over St. Raphael when it wants classical Christian live-online instruction without the specifically Orthodox formation. Memoria's home page calls it an online Classical Christian school with a live audio/video format for grades 3-12.
• Veritas Scholars Academy, in our assessment, a family would choose Veritas over St. Raphael when it wants a live online classical Christian school with an accredited diploma program, rather than Orthodox-specific formation. The Veritas page calls Veritas Scholars Academy a fully online, accredited classical Christian school.