Service to others is an integral part of the Charlotte Country Day School experience. In fact, one of our key values states that we will "inspire service and leadership within the school and community and prepare students for stewardship, responsible citizenship, and global involvement."
That mission translates to hundreds of service initiatives each year by our students, faculty, and parents. Some projects are schoolwide such as our connection with Hidden Valley Elementary School, for whom parents volunteer to tutor students, Lower School students collect books and write letters, and Middle School students hold an annual Holiday Party and Field Day. Others are ongoing, like our 28-year partnership with Special Olympics as host of the spring games and our partnership with Goodwill Industries of the Southern Piedmont. CCDS piloted the school-based program for Goodwill in 2007 and remains their top school donation site.
Students and faculty are also quick to respond to immediate issues, such as when students organized a collection of blankets for Earthquake victims in India, collected stuffed animals for children who lost parents on 9/11, and collected money to help schools in New Orleans affected by Hurricane Katrina.
Charlotte Country Day is virtually never without one or more service projects in progress, whether through divisions, clubs, classes, or advisories. Service initiatives begin in Lower School, where students learn that their small acts of kindness can make a big difference in the lives of others. In Middle School, students' interpersonal involvement with outreach organizations increases as advisories pair up with seniors to provide pet therapy and underprivileged pre-school children for play therapy. By Upper School, students fully understand that privilege and service go hand in hand.