2007-2011

In 2007 the Cary Academy community came together throughout the year to celebrate the 10th anniversary of the school. To kick things off, the students and employees formed a big 10 on the quad after the handshake ceremony. Then ten colorful horse statues painted by representatives of each then current class year plus the alumni, parents, and employees “stampeded” through campus led by a rearing Charger statue and were installed at various venues. In May, the school community past and present gathered in the Koka Booth Amphitheatre at Regency Park for a grand open-air party which included a concert featuring Cary Academy performers and a video specially made for the occasion by students and teachers. In addition, lampposts across campus celebrated the school’s mission with blue and gold banners all year and for years to come.

The first ten years gave Cary Academy a firm foundation with fresh experiences and new policies and procedures taking root as traditions. Over the coming decade, the school continued many of the activities that we celebrated that year, including Alumni Sports Day, Fun Fest, and The Great Debates. Veterans continued to visit on November 11th to share their experiences with Middle Schoolers, and Philip Shabazz continued to teach poetry for a week every April in the Upper School. Todd Shy amazed the Middle Schoolers one year when he brought Eddie the camel to the 7th grade Y1K festival. 600 Seconds and CAST News flourished as they moved into their own separate studios. And each year, every student continued to be greeted with a firm handshake and a smile by every employee on the first day of school.

With annual activities and procedures—“Seniors First!”—taking hold as traditions, Cary Academy branched out in all directions. Joselyn Todd began the AMTP class, getting Middle School students off campus and giving them first-hand exposure to the daily experiences of medical professionals, with Allison McCoppin taking over the class in 2009. The Upper School launched Discovery Term, a two-week student-driven opportunity to investigate areas outside of the regular curriculum, asking students to partner with teachers to propose courses and develop essential questions, curricula, budgets, and timelines for their investigations. A group of students advised by Robin Edelstein formed the school’s Community Emergency Response Team (CERT), receiving training from and certification to assist local emergency professionals. True to the spirit and mission of the school, a team of Upper School teachers offered several blended learning courses, a list which continues to expand providing opportunities for students to take ownership of the path, place, pace, and time of their learning

Continuing to extend outward, Cary Academy engaged the community at large in its mission. The PTAA, counseling, and college counseling departments began their collaboration to hold a biennial Career Day on campus, allowing Upper Schoolers to discover potential interests in a variety of fields through discussions with professionals. Cary Academy’s Committee on Multiculturalism, Inclusivity, and Diversity (COMID) also inaugurated the Courage Award, given annually during the school’s Martin Luther King, Jr. assembly in recognition of a local citizen’s courageous servant leadership in the greater Triangle community. The school also began an association with the Canadian Tenors that has continued through several concerts benefiting the school in which the Cary Academy Choir was invited to perform with the headliners.

Cary Academy began “bringing home the gold” in many areas, including all music disciplines, math, science, robotics, chess, and athletics. The Chargers became established as an athletic front runner, winning TISAC and State competitions and leading to an intensification of school spirit. Students founded their own booster club, X Factor, which would soon grow into one of the largest on campus.

Also among the largest student organizations on campus in those years were the community service clubs. Community service at Cary Academy grew by leaps and bounds during these years as students initiated and formed committees around annual projects including: Boxes for Troops, Red Cross Blood Drive, Pinwheels for Peace each 9/11, Special Olympics, Backpack Buddies, and Ready Creek ESL Tutoring. As community service leafed out among the student body, it also blossomed in Cary Academy at large with the advent of Family Service Day which would in turn lead to Employee and Alumni Service Days in coming years.