| Bridges Preparatory School | |
| Address: | 555 Robert Smalls Parkway |
| Region: | South Carolina Lowcountry |
| City: | Beaufort, South Carolina |
| County: | Beaufort County, South Carolina |
| State: | South Carolina |
| Zipcode: | 29907 |
| Country: | United States |
| Type: | Public Charter School |
| Opened: | August 2013[1] |
| Status: | Open |
| District: | South Carolina Public Charter School District |
| Us Nces District Id: | 4503901 |
| School Code: | SC-4701-027 |
| Ceeb: | 419399 |
| Head Of School: | Gary McCullough |
| Principal: | Leon Lee |
| Principal Label: | Principal, K-5 |
| Principal1: | Daniel Tooman |
| Principal Label1: | Principal, Grades 9-12 |
| Principal2: | Jeremiah Young |
| Principal Label2: | Principal, 6-8 |
| Grades: | K–12 |
| Enrollment: | 1064 |
| Enrollment As Of: | 2020-2021 |
| Average Class Size: | 19-21 |
| Hours In Day: | 7 |
| Campuses: | 2 |
| Campus Size: | 18acres |
| Campus Type: | Suburban |
| Student Union Label: | to override the default label --> |
| Colors: | Dark Blue and Green |
| Mascot: | Buccaneer |
| Sports: |
|
| Athletics Conference: | South Carolina High School League |
| Newspaper: | Buccaneer Bulletin |
| Feeder Schools: | Beaufort County School District |
| Affiliations: | --> |
| Gradek: | 66 |
| Grade1: | 69 |
| Grade2: | 65 |
| Grade3: | 69 |
| Grade4: | 68 |
| Grade5: | 69 |
| Grade6: | 68 |
| Grade7: | 65 |
| Grade8: | 46 |
| Grade9: | 35 |
| Grade10: | 44 |
| Grade11: | ~ |
Bridges Preparatory School is a public charter school within the South Carolina Public Charter School District, located in Beaufort, South Carolina, United States. The school serves students from most parts of Beaufort County. It enrolled 700 students in the 2017–18 school year.[2] [3] [4]
According to data released by the South Carolina Department of Education Bridges Preparatory School showed 56 percent of elementary students achieved standards in English/language arts in 2015–16, seventh among 24 South Carolina Public Charter School District members offering elementary instruction. Math standards were met by 53 percent of students, ranking sixth.[5] In 2015–16, the average student-teacher ratio in core subjects was 15.90 students for every 1 teacher.[6]
Bridges Prep competes at the Class A level in the South Carolina High School League. The school fields teams for boys in basketball, cross country, and soccer; and for girls in volleyball, basketball, cross country, softball.
Since Bridges Prep opened, they have used several different campuses for different sections of students.[7]
| School Year | Boundary Street Campus | Green Street Campus | Celedon Club Campus | Port Royal Campus | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2013–14 | 2nd–6th Grades | K–1st Grades | Not Yet Acquired | Not Yet Acquired | |
| 2014–15 | 2nd–7th Grades | K–1st Grades | Not yet acquired | Not Yet Acquired | |
| 2015–16 | 4th–8th Grades | 2nd–3rd Grades | K–1st Grade | Not Yet Acquired | |
| 2016–17 | 2nd–6th Grades | 7th–9th Grade | K–1st Grade | Acquired, not built | |
| 2017–18 | 2nd–7th | 8th–10th Grade | K–1st Grade | Acquire, Not Built | |
| 2018–19 | 3rd–7th Grade | Lease Not Renewed | K–2nd Grade | 8th–11th Grade | |
| 2019-20 | 2nd-8th | - | K-1 | High School/ in January grades 5th through 8th moved into the new campus |
The Boundary Street Campus was the main campus of the school since its beginning in 2013. Located at 1100 Boundary Street in Downtown Beaufort, SC, the building was previously owned by the Boys and Girl's Club of the Lowcountry.[8] The City of Beaufort, SC bought the property from the school in December 2021, intending for it to become a Cybersecurity Education Center in conjuction with the University of South Carolina.[9]
The green Street Campus was the Secondary Campus of the School located at 1001 Hamar Street in Downtown Beaufort SC. The Building is owned by the City of Beaufort and leased to the School until the 2018-19 Fiscal/School Year when the school ceased using the facility.[10] [11] [12] [13] [14] In the 2018-19 School Year, The Campus was reacquired on an emergency temporary basis due to the fact that severe rain caused the new campus to flood, preventing them from paving[15]
The Celadon Campus was located at the Old Celadon Club on Lady's Island, South Carolina.[16] until the school relocated the grades into the newly formed Port Royal Campus
In 2016, Bridges Preparatory School purchased 18acres of land in Beaufort, on which they planned to build a90000sigfig=2NaNsigfig=2 school building for its kindergarten through grade 12 students.[17] In October 2018, students in grades 8 to 11 were moved into "temporary modular classrooms" erected on the new campus property. On January 7, 2020, grades 5th through 8th were moved from the main campus to the new building. The school planned to move all grades by the 2020–2021 school year.[18] By 2024, all grade levels were in the campus, unifying the school into their final campus.