Porter-Gaud School

Porter-Gaud School
Address
Map
300 Albemarle Rd

Charleston, South Carolina
29407

United States
Coordinates32°46′27″N 79°57′51″W / 32.77417°N 79.96417°W / 32.77417; -79.96417
Information
TypePrivate
MottoFides, Honor, Scientia (Faith, Honor, Knowledge)
Established1867 (157 years ago) (1867)
HeadmasterDuBose Egleston
Faculty120
GradesK2–12
Number of students1,004
Campus88 acres (360,000 m2)
Color(s)Garnet and gray
  
MascotCyclone
RivalBishop England High School
YearbookPolygon
Endowment$12.5m
AffiliationEpiscopal Church
Websitewww.portergaud.edu

The Porter-Gaud School is an independent coeducational college preparatory day school in Charleston, in the U.S. state of South Carolina. Porter-Gaud has an enrollment of about 1000 students, comprising an elementary school, middle school, and high school, and is located on the banks of the Ashley River. The school has historic ties to the Episcopal Church.

Porter-Gaud was formed in July 1964 from the merger of three schools: The Porter Military Academy (founded 1867), the Gaud School for Boys (founded 1908), and the Watt School (founded 1931). The legal name of the institution remains The Porter Academy.

Sexual misconduct scandal[edit]

In October 2000, following teacher Eddie Fischer's incarceration, a separate court determined that former Principal James Bishop Alexander and Headmaster Berkeley Grimball knew of the ongoing abuse by Fischer.[1] The jury deemed both negligent in stopping the abuse. Neither Principal Alexander nor Headmaster Grimball were ultimately convicted, as each died prior to the court concluding.[1] However, the court awarded the plaintiffs $105 million.[2]

The scandal was the subject of a 2018 documentary, What Haunts Us. The film suggests the suicides of six graduates of the 1979 class were due to the mental impact of being sexually abused by Fischer.[1] The colluding culture of the school with board members ignoring persistent pleas to be heard by one victim, who wrote to all the board members who never responded or discussed it, revealed that these young victims were trapped within a culture where the surface of respectability had to be maintained at all costs.[1] Porter-Gaud school did make a public apology but not to the victims themselves.[3]

Notable alumni[edit]

Notable faculty[edit]

The second gates of Porter Military Academy (now at the new campus)
  • Hervey Allen – author from Pennsylvania; works include: Anthony Adverse, Israfel, Action at Aquila, and The Forest and the Fort
  • DuBose Heyward – author best known for his 1924 novel Porgy; co-author of the non-musical play adapted from the novel, which became the foundation of George Gershwin's opera Porgy and Bess
  • Benjamin Hutto – music director and choirmaster at the school during the 70s through the 90s, during which time the Porter-Gaud Choir recorded several albums
  • Wyndham Meredith Manning – member of the South Carolina House of Representatives

See also[edit]

References[edit]

  1. ^ a b c d "Spotlight on abuse: Episcopal lay employee Eddie Fischer". AnglicanWatch.com. Retrieved April 2, 2022.
  2. ^ Fine, Lisa (November 8, 2000). "Jury Awards $105 Million In Teacher-Student Abuse Case - Education Week". Education Week. Retrieved July 7, 2020.
  3. ^ Parker, Adam. "Eddie Fischer's sex abuse at Charleston's Porter-Gaud school subject of new documentary". Post and Courier. Retrieved July 7, 2020.
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