Northside Christian, a Charlotte basketball power, is closing, citing low enrollment

Northside Christian Academy, a K-12 private school in north Charlotte that opened in 1961, is closing.

On Monday, school officials notified parents via an email that the academy, part of the Northside Christian Church, would be shutting it doors.

The Observer obtained a copy of the email.

“The decision was made over the past several days involving school administration, deacons and culminated with a church meeting this past Sunday,” the email read. “Unfortunately due to, but not limited to, low reenrollment and the viability and sustainability of the ministry, we determined that it was necessary to close.”

One parent who asked not to be identified said she has been dismayed with the school and the way it was operated, saying, “If you’re not going to run a Christian school properly, close the doors.”

Northside was accredited by the Association of Christian Schools International, the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools and the North Carolina Association of Christian Schools. The school was also well-known for its athletics teams, particularly boys’ basketball.

The Knights won three straight N.C. Independent Schools’ 2A state boys’ basketball titles from 2012-14 and won again in 2023. The girls’ basketball team also won a state title in 2023.

The 2013-14 boys’ team is one of the best in Mecklenburg County history. It lost in the national bracket championship game of the Hoodies’ House Christmas tournament in Charlotte against a Montverde, Florida Academy team that was ranked No. 1 in the nation. That Montverde team featured future NBA players Ben Simmons and D’Angelo Russell, and later played in the DICKS’ National high school basketball championship in New York.

Former Northside coach Byron Dinkins, a former star at East Mecklenburg High and the Charlotte 49ers, was recently named one of the top Charlotte high school coaches of the past 40 years.

The Northside parent told The Observer there have been issues with staffing and poor communication between parents and Northside school officials for at least two years. She also said the curriculum had been weakened because of staff shortages.

Also, earlier this year, Northside Christian canceled the final few games of its boys’ and girls’ basketball regular-seasons after a large fight broke out at a rival school.

The parent said some teachers in the school had told parents that only around 60 students had reenrolled for the 2024-25 school year.

Tuition at Northside ranges from $9,850 to $11,650 , according to pricing on the school’s website.

“We made a statement,” the parent said, “that we were not reenrolling. I was already in the process of enrolling my son in another school. Most of the high school kids were not going back.”

The Observer reached out to Northside senior pastor Michael Landrum and school principal Danielle Phillips, but did not immediately get a response. Athletic director Donnell Rhyne confirmed, via text, that the email was real and the school was closing.

“I’m not sad at all,” the parent said. “My son wanted to stay after last year because of the basketball program and because of the coach, but once things started happening this season, in the classroom and with the basketball team, we were like, ‘You will not return.’”