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Signage outside Heritage Christian Academy on Wednesday, Feb. 18, 2026, in\u00a0Haslet, Texas.<\/p>\n
El\u00edas Valverde II\/Staff Photographer<\/p>\n
Haslet’s Heritage Christian Academy<\/a> announced its closure<\/a> in an email to parents, just weeks before the start of the 2026-27 school year.<\/p>\n The school, associated with Heritage Baptist Church, effectively closed its doors Monday, according to an email obtained Tuesday by\u00a0The Dallas Morning News.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cPlease know that no one wanted this outcome,\u201d the school\u2019s board wrote in the email. \u201cWe will be communicating with those impacted and will do our best to provide guidance and support in the weeks ahead.\u201d<\/p>\n Article continues below this ad<\/p>\n The academy, located about 20 miles north of Fort Worth<\/a>,\u00a0was accredited by the American Association of Christian Schools, or AACS. Jeff Walton, executive director of AACS, said in a statement Tuesday\u00a0they have not received direct communication from the academy\u2019s leadership, though the AACS regional director informed them the school had closed.<\/p>\n The group\u2019s accreditation commission began an investigation<\/a> into the academy in February, and as of June 23, Walton said the school was under probationary accreditation status.<\/p>\n \u201cAt our last communication with school leadership, they were still working conscientiously to meet the expectations for continued probationary status, but apparently the headwinds and loss of parent confidence were too much,\u201d Walton said Tuesday.\u00a0<\/p>\n Walton said a closed school is no longer accredited at any level, and if the school chooses to re-establish, it would have to start the process from the beginning. Online records with the Texas Private School Accreditation Commission say the academy enrolled just over 200 students.\u00a0<\/p>\n The closure follows a months-long look into church leadership after pastor Eric Crawford’s 31-year-old son, Caleb Crawford, was outed as a registered sex offender while working there.\u00a0<\/p>\n Article continues below this ad<\/p>\n Eric Crawford was \u201ctemporarily relieved\u201d<\/a> of ministry duties on Feb. 19 after Caleb Crawford was fired<\/a>.\u00a0The pastor later stepped down from his position, and church members\u00a0voted on June 28 not to reinstate him<\/a>.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n