Welcome

Welcome to the Spartanburg Day School website.  We are pleased to share our thriving, inclusive school community with you.  In this, the 50th year of the school’s founding, we are proud of our heritage and excited by the promise of an even brighter future.

In today’s modern world and comprehensive information age, a first-rate education is an essential investment for children of the 21st Century.  Bill Gates speaks eloquently about the 3 R’s of the 21st Century:  Rigor, Relevance, and, Relationships.  Schools of all sizes have the potential to offer a rigorous course load that is relevant to the competitive needs of a global economy.  What sets a Day School apart is its small, intimate size that allows for mentoring and a customized education based on a scale of one.  No child is allowed to fall through the cracks.  Every individual is known and provided with the opportunities to participate and succeed.  Students are encouraged to be generalists rather than specialists, thinkers rather than technicians, and participants rather than spectators.

Our goal quite simply is to bring the world to Spartanburg.  We use our teachers, our technology, and our talents to introduce children to the rapid pace of change and consolidation in a world they will soon inherit.  We employ the International Baccalaureate, Special Studies Program, and internships to make the city, state, nation, and indeed, the world our laboratory.  Student apprenticeships are the norm not the exception.

Three factors determine the depth of the educational experience.  The physical plant and the programs enrich the opportunities children encounter.  But neither of those educational parts can reach their full potential without talented, passionate teachers.  Our faculty lives the mission of the school.  Our teachers touch the future; they are the critical difference as they guide, nurture, lead, and set the example.

As you read this letter of introduction to our community, please know that we have identified $20 million in needs to ensure the Spartanburg Day School’s ability to offer the same innovative, independent, individualized education to the children of the Upstate for the next half century.  We are committed to fulfilling that challenge. Today our school stands on the threshold of opportunity as we prepare children to embrace the challenges that they will face in an ever changing world.

Christopher A. Dorrance
Headmaster