Our History

With the sincere desire to help the lives of troubled and rebellious boys, the Agape Christian Boarding School (a ministry of Agape Baptist Church), was born. It was founded in April, 1990, by James and Kathy Clemensen. The Clemensen’s had the goal of building an effective and affordable program for teens in crisis. The school first began in the Clemensen’s home. It was just a year and a half after taking in their first boys that their enrollment had grown to 14 students. Their home/school had outgrown its space. By October of 1991, the opportunity arose for the school to move to Othello, Washington, onto a decommissioned Air Force base, where the school quickly grew to 160 students. Early in 1995, Agape Christian Boarding School realized they needed to search for a different, more desirable location to expand. Finally, in April of 1996, the “ideal” location was found, and Agape Christian Boarding School was moved to Stockton, Missouri, where it opened with an enrollment of 40 boys. In only one year, the school’s attendance had grown to 110 boys and the campus began to grow! The Agape campus has drastically grown in the past decade. The school is located on a 200-acre ranch in southwest Missouri near Stockton. The facility has grown to includes: office area, dining hall, shower room with 180 student closets, dormitory that sleeps 180, full size gym, outdoor volleyball court, in ground swimming pool, indoor recreation center, theatre room, outdoor riding arena, baseball field, football & soccer fields, fishing, small lake (canoes, paddleboats, and kayaks), amphitheatre, horse barns, outdoor rodeo arena and rodeo grounds, courtyard, and staff housing for 28 staff families. This has been made possible through donations from caring individuals and annual fundraisers. Truly God has been good to us. With His help, Agape Christian Boarding School plans to continue to grow as we help parents with their troubled teens.

Agape is a safe, effective and affordable program for teens with behavioral issues and academic struggles

“A school with a heart, in the heart of Missouri”

Our Beliefs

1. The Bible: We believe that the Bible is the eternal, infallible, inerrant, verbally inspired Word of God. We believe that it is essential to proper living on the Earth and that it is the only guide to salvation and ultimately, to Heaven.
2. The Deity of the Lord Jesus Christ:
3. His Virgin Birth (Matt. 1 :23; Luke 1 :32, 35)
4. His Sinless Life (Heb. 7:26; I Peter 2:22)
5. His Miracles (Acts 2:22; 10:38)
6. His Substitutionary Work on the Cross (I Cor. 15:3; II Cor. 5:21)
7. His Bodily Resurrection from the Dead (Matt. 28:6; Luke 24:39; I Cor. 15:4)

• The Fall Of Man: Man was created good and upright. For God said, “Let us make man in our image, after our likeness.” Man, by voluntary transgression, fell and thereby incurred not only physical death, but also spiritual death, which is separation from God.?(Gen. 1 :26,27; 2: 17; 3:6; Rom. 5:12-19)
• The Salvation Of Man: Man’s only hope of redemption is through the shed blood of Jesus Christ, the Son of God.
• The Conditions of Salvation: It is received by repentance toward God and faith toward the Lord Jesus. By the washing of regeneration and through the renewing of the Holy Ghost being completely justified by grace through faith, man becomes an heir of God according to the hope of eternal life. (Luke 24:47; John 3:3; Rom. 10:13-15; Eph. 2:8; Titus 2:11,3:5-7)
• The Evidence of Salvation: The inward evidence of salvation is the direct witness of the Spirit (Rom. 8:16). The outward evidence to all men is a life of righteousness and true holiness. (Eph. 4:24; Titus 2:12)

If you are looking for help for your teen or would like more information, please fill in our inquiry form and one of our parent coaches will contact you promptly.