Cary Academy celebrates 30 years of the past, present, and possible.
PAST
Looking back, charging ahead
Explore some of the milestones that have shaped who we are and who we will become in the future.
The first 30 years
1994 – CA’s visionary founders Ann and Jim Goodnight and Ginger and John Sall articulate a bold vision: a school for the future that is centered on the whole child–one that fosters academic achievement, champions social and emotional development, leverages technology as an innovative learning tool that would engage and empower students, and inspires engaged citizenship.
1994-1995 – CA’s founders convene a collaborative planning committee, comprised of local education experts, operations manager, and technologists. Together, they embark on an exploratory, in-depth planning process, traveling widely to conferences and peer institutions across the country, soliciting feedback and perspectives.
Late 1995 -The site for CA’s campus—Harrison Road—is selected and leading Raleigh architects, Cherry Huffman Architects, are hired to prepare initial architectural drawings. A new school in the Triangle landscape, it was crucial that the new campus reflect established models of educational accomplishment and an atmosphere of quiet scholarly reflection.
The University of Virginia is selected as a model, with its famous central quadrangle, domed rotunda, brick facades, and Georgian columns. The placement of the library dome opposite the Fitness Center across the quad is purposeful, symbolizing harmony of mind and body and signaling Cary Academy’s commitment to the holistic child.
Behind the traditional, elegant façade, a powerful technology infrastructure is designed, including cutting-edge personal computers, an enhanced campus intranet, and state of the art software. These innovations, coupled with flexible classroom spaces, offer faculty and students alike flexibility to accommodate multiple teaching and learning modalities.
1996-1997 – With campus construction underway, the founders transfer day-to-day responsibility for Cary Academy’s program development to newly hired educational administrators, including Head of School Don Berger, Head of Middle School Marti Jenkins, and CFO Deborah Reichel.
1997 – Cary Academy’s draft mission statement, which endures to this day, is crafted and approved.
August 1997– Two buildings—the Middle School and Upper School—are completed, just in time to welcome students on opening day. Three additional buildings—the Student Center Dining Hall, Sports and Fitness Center, and Administration building follow shortly in the months thereafter.
August 18, 1997– Cary Academy opens it doors for the first time. 244 new Chargers assemble outside the Middle School for our first-ever Handshake Ceremony.
Fall 1997 –Groundbreaking for Berger Hall, Cary Academy’s state-of-the-art performing arts center.
October 1998 – Berger Hall opens to students
1998-1999 – Cary Academy joins the TISAC conference for athletics.
May 2000 – Cary Academy’s first Commencement ceremony, celebrating the Class of 2000.
December 2000 – Our first Homecoming celebration.
2003 – Two new buildings open—the Fine Arts Extension featuring additional visual arts studio space, and the Sports Education Annex with additional basketball courts, sports medicine facilities, and additional classrooms—dramatically expanding the capacity for arts programming and rehearsal spaces.
May 2003 – Our inaugural World Exchange Program travelers set off for learning opportunities in China, Argentina, Germany, and France.
2006 – The Class of 2006 launches the immensely popular X-Factor student athletic booster group.
2013 – After an extensive and highly competitive search, Dr. Michael Ehrhardt is selected as Cary Academy’s new Head of School.
2014 – Construction is completed on a new Field House next to the Stadium field, completing the last element imagined as part of the school’s original master facilities plan.
2015 – CA embarks on an ambitious new Master Facilities Plan, as part of its latest strategic plan. To support this plan, the school embarks on its first-ever Campaign for Cary Academy.
2016 – The school tests some of the open-space concepts embedded in the master facilities plan with two projects in the Upper School and renovates the lower part of Berger Hall to create a Discovery Studio and small maker space.
2016 – The school tests some of the open-space concepts embedded in the master facilities plan with two projects in the Upper School and renovates the lower part of Berger Hall to create a Discovery Studio and small maker space.
2016 – Ground breaks on the new Center for Math and Science, a renovation and expansion of the former Sports Education Annex, featuring renovated Upper School math classrooms, eight state-of-the-art science laboratories, a greenhouse, and a large makerspace with 3D printers, a laser cutter, and a water jet. It also houses an bright and welcoming large-group meeting space and our second gymnasium, the CMS gym.
2018 – The school conducts its first large-scale alumni survey, providing fabulous feedback on the impact Cary Academy has had on the careers and lives of former students. The structured internship program has grown into the Work Experience Program and now provides mini-internship opportunities for nearly 75% of juniors.
2020 – Renovation is completed in the Library, creating a new Charger store and café, a quiet study space, and several new glassed conference and meeting rooms.
2021 – The school year opens with a renovated Upper School that aligns design with concepts tested early in the master facilities project and implemented in the Library renovation – including open and bright hallways and new meeting and collaboration spaces for students and faculty.
2023 – The School begins work on its newest strategic plan, following an ambitious vision:
“Cary Academy will create personalized learning opportunities that are flexible and relevant in an environment that supports student wellbeing. We will cultivate self-directed and bold life-long learners who make meaningful contributions to the world.”
2023 – Cary Academy embarks on an expansive Middle School renovation to align the building with the aesthetic established across campus and provide for middle-school-specific learning and community spaces.
2025 – Cary Academy introduces Charger Promise—free tuition for families earning $100,000 or less, with significant, scaled support extending far beyond that.
2026 – After an extensive search, the Board of Directors appoints Paul Turnbull, Ph.D., President of Mid-Pacific Institute in Honolulu, as Cary Academy’s next Head of School. Paul will begin his tenure on July 1, 2027.
2047 – Cary Academy celebrates its 50th anniversary
PRESENT
Our Community, our mission in practice
For thirty years, Cary Academy has pioneered a bold path in education, guided by our mission as a learning community committed to discovery, innovation, collaboration, and excellence (DICE). These principles have shaped a culture of curiosity, growth, and forward-thinking learning. We invite you to learn more about where CA stands at this moment in its history. Click the squares below to explore the student-guided Viewbook, the community-led Strategic plan, and to learn more about day-to-day campus life through Instagram.
POSSIBLE
Past, Present, Possible.
Welcome to Cary Academy’s 30th Anniversary!
Our theme—Past, Present, Possible—invites the community to reflect on where we began, appreciate where we are today, and imagine what the future might hold in the next thirty years. We look forward to doing this alongside you next year through a series of events and engagement opportunities listed on the enclosed magnet.
While we’ll be actively sharing information with you throughout the year, be sure to check our website as well for event details, ticket purchases, and all the fun ways you and your fellow Chargers can celebrate.
Thank you for being part of our past, celebrating our present, and helping us imagine and shape what’s possible for the future.
-Ali Page, Director of Development