Beyond the Classroom

Located in downtown Charleston, Ashley Hall is within walking distance of numerous historic sites and thriving downtown businesses and nonprofits on the peninsula. However, when the allure of using the Lowcountry as a classroom beckons, the surrounding coastal area is only a hop, skip, and a jump away.

Connection of an Urban Campus

Thanks to its historic urban campus, Ashley Hall is uniquely situated for its students to build meaningful and lasting partnerships within the community. From its younger children supporting the efforts of local nonprofits like Water Mission and the South Carolina Aquarium to older girls leading partnerships to help the causes closest to their hearts, they are gaining enriching experiences and the opportunity to use their efforts to support others. Woven into the curriculum and formalized through the School’s Community Action Initiative, volunteer opportunities support educational, health, and environmental concerns, among many others, and deepen each student’s affinity for Charleston and its people.

Recent partnerships have included the Medical University of South Carolina, the South Carolina Aquarium, the Gibbes Museum of Art, the College of Charleston, the Lowcountry Maritime Society, the American College of the Building Arts, the Ronald McDonald House, among others. In glimpsing the many ways in which they can connect and contribute, Ashley Hall students embrace their role as active citizens.

Exploration through a Lowcountry Classroom

Glittering on the edge of the Atlantic Ocean, the Lowcountry coastal landscape offers an abundance of maritime forests, marshes, beaches, and rivers primed for exploration with purpose. From the Early Education Center to the Upper School, Ashley Hall students take full advantage of Charleston’s maritime connections. Fourth graders find it authentic and invigorating to study ecology on the shoreline at Camp St. Christopher, kindergartners investigate sea turtle nesting sites near the ocean in the spring, and primary students are thrilled at their first sighting of alligators at Cypress Gardens.

Specifically structured to include research experiences in the field, Honors Biology II offers students a chance to study botany and ornithology at the Pitt Street Bridge, Caw Caw Interpretive Center, and Clemson’s Coastal Research and Education Center. Emphasizing conservation, sustainability, and the Lowcountry’s complex ecosystem, each trip provides a hands-on experience that brings Ashley Hall’s curriculum alive in a tangible way.

Beyond the Gates: A School and City Forever Entwined

Stepping beyond the gates of their School, Ashley Hall students are well-prepared to expand their sphere and thus broaden their understanding of the world. Amid blue skies, live oaks, and windswept beaches, conservation adventures leave a lasting impression, and Ashley Hall students truly embrace the wide expanse of the Lowcountry as their classroom.