Cape Fear Academy

Private school in Wilmington, North Carolina, United States

Cape Fear Academy

Location

3900 S College Road

Wilmington

North Carolina

28412

United States

Coordinates| 34°10′14″N 77°53′36″W﻿ / ﻿34.170651°N 77.893376°W﻿ / 34.170651; -77.893376
Information
Type| Private
Mottoes|

* "Go Further."
* "Qui Erimus Nunc Fimus"[2] (Latin)
* (What We Shall Be, Now We Are Becoming)

Established| September 11, 1967 (57 years ago) (September 11, 1967)[1]
CEEB code| 344347
Headmaster| Edward M. Ellison[3]
Grades| PK3–12
Gender| Co-ed
Age range| 3 to 18
Enrollment| 720[4]
Student to teacher ratio| 9:1[6]
Language| English
Campus size| 47 acres (19 ha)
Color(s)| Blue and gold

Athletics| NCISAA
Mascot| Captain Fear[5]
Nickname| Hurricanes
Tuition| $16,800–24,350[7]
Website| www.capefearacademy.org

Cape Fear Academy is a private, coeducational PK3-12 school in Wilmington, North Carolina, that was established on September 11, 1967, as a segregation academy.[1][8][9] It was named for Cape Fear Military Academy, an independent school for boys in Wilmington that operated from 1868 until 1916.[10] The present school's first class graduated in 1971.[1]

## History

[edit]

Until 2005, Cape Fear Academy's sports teams were known as The Rebels

The school was founded as a segregation academy in response to the court ordered integration of public schools. In 1967, the civil rights activist Lee Shelton claimed that Ku Klux Klan was raising funds to establish Cape Fear Academy as a private school for white students.[8][11][12][13]

Overt racial discrimination by the school administration eventually faded. The first black student to graduate was in 1984. One other black student had attended, but had left the school without graduating after experiencing bullying and racism.[14]

In 2005, the student body voted to change the school's athletics team name from The Rebels to The Hurricanes.[15][16]

In 2021, Cape Fear Academy was sued by a student who alleged that CFA expelled her after she protested the school's failure to take action after she was sexually assaulted and then harassed by three male students, in violation of Title IX.[17][18][19][20] The school argued that, since it never accepted federal funding, it was not subject to any federal non-discrimination laws.[17][21][22] In June 2022, Judge James C. Dever ruled that since CFA had recently begun to accept loans from the federal Paycheck Protection Program, the school was obliged to comply with federal civil rights laws.[23][24][25]

The lawsuit led to renewed media attention concerning Cape Fear Academy's history of racial and gender discrimination.[16] It was alleged that racial and gender-based discrimination and harassment remained prevalent at the school.[20]

## Facilities

[edit]

There are four Pre-kindergarten class (ages 3.5 to 5), along with Kindergarten through Grade 5, Middle School (grades 6-8) and Upper School classes (grades 9-12).[26][27][28]

The school is situated on a 47-acre (19 ha) campus. Facilities include two classroom buildings, a gymnasium with six classrooms, the Beane Wright Student Center, science laboratories, and multiple athletic fields, including a tennis facility.[29]

In 2022, the school purchased an 11-acre (4.5 ha) plot of land originally owned by Trinity United Methodist Church.[30]

## Accreditation

[edit]

Cape Fear Academy is accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools and also by the Southern Association of Independent Schools. The school is also an active member of the National Association of Independent Schools, the Southern Association of Independent Schools, the North Carolina Association of Independent Schools, the Educational Records Bureau, the Independent School Management Consortium, and the College Entrance Examination Board. Cape Fear Academy offers affordability plans for tuition; a majority of the awards go to students in the Middle and Upper School.[31]

## Student activities

[edit]

Starting in sixth grade, students can play sports; 80% of students in the Upper School participate in at least one sport.[32] Some notable athletics activities in the school are soccer, volleyball, tennis, basketball, and lacrosse.[33] The school houses many clubs like Beta Club, National History Day, YMCA's Youth and Government, and National Honor Society.[34] The school also has a theater program that produces many different genres of plays from Musicals to Dramas. Along with the stage on the campus, the school is the only school high school allowed to perform at Thalian Hall in Wilmington.[35] The Upper School has a student-government association with a branch called the Honor Council that deals with and makes recommendations for disciplinary infractions.[36][37] Students starting in ninth grade are also required to get four "engagement units" per semester. These can range from attending a religious ceremony outside of one's faith, participating in a community service project, attending a city council meeting, etc.[36]

## Notable alumni

[edit]

* Patrick Ballantine, state senator and minority leader of the North Carolina Senate[38][39]
* Maddie Hasson, actress on ABC Family's Twisted[38]
* Reginald Shuford, ACLU attorney and first black student to graduate from CFA[14][38][39]

## See also

[edit]

* New Hanover High School
* John T. Hoggard High School
* Emsley A. Laney High School
* New Hanover County Schools

## References

[edit]

1. ^ a b c "2022 - 2023 History of Cape Fear Academy". Google Docs. Retrieved September 14, 2022.
2. ^ "Mission, Philosophy, and Principles". Google Docs. Retrieved September 14, 2022.
3. ^ "Faculty & Staff". Cape Fear Academy. Retrieved September 14, 2022.
4. ^ "Cape Fear Academy Buys 11 Acres On S. College Road For Over $5M". WilmingtonBiz. Retrieved September 14, 2022.
5. ^ Cape Fear Academy (January 26, 2024). "Introducing... Captain Fear!!". Retrieved February 11, 2024 - via YouTube.
6. ^ "Cape Fear Academy". Cape Fear Academy. Retrieved September 14, 2022.
7. ^ "Admission". Cape Fear Academy. Retrieved February 4, 2024.
8. ^ a b Eaton, Hubert Arthur (1984). Every Man Should Try. Bonaparte Press. p. 94\. "[Lee Shelton] declared that the Klan was raising funds to establish a private school, Cape Fear Academy, for white students"
9. ^ Godwin, John L (2000). Black Wilmington and the North Carolina way: portrait of a community in the era of civil rights protest. Lanham, Maryland: University Press of America. p. 206\. ISBN 0761816828. OCLC 43648608. "The reopening of Cape Fear Academy showed the extent to which wealthier white citizens of the locality sought, through private education, to retain the conservativism of the bygone days of the nineteenth century"
10. ^ "Cape Fear Academy's Early History". www.cfhi.net. Retrieved September 14, 2022.
11. ^ "KKK Accused of Interfering with Head Start". Asheville Citizen Times. June 8, 1967. p. 13 - via Newspapers.com. "Lee Shelton ... said klansman are engaged in raising funds for a private school for white pupils in that section to be called Cape Fear Academy"
12. ^ "Klue Klux Klan Responsible for Cut of Funds". Kingsport Times. June 6, 1967. p. 21 - via Newspapers.com. "Lee A Shelton said ... the KKK was so strong in New Hanover county that it is now even raising funds to start an all-white private school to be called Cape Fear Academy"
13. ^ "Klan accused in cut of head start fund". The Atlanta Constitution. June 8, 1967. p. 3 - via Newspapers.com. "[Lee Shelton] said klan influence is strong in New Hanover and that klansmen there are now engaged in raising funds to establish a private school for white students which will be called Cape Fear Academy."
14. ^ a b Shuford, Reggie (May 29, 2017). "My graduation from a "segregation academy"". Reggie Shuford. Retrieved November 3, 2017.
15. ^ Bellamy, Cammie (August 25, 2016). "Cape Fear Academy celebrates 50 years in Wilmington". Wilmington Star-News.
16. ^ a b Hoover, Sydney (April 4, 2022). "Cape Fear Academy's history: Segregationist past to Title IX lawsuit". Archived from the original on April 4, 2022. Retrieved July 10, 2022.
17. ^ a b "Cape Fear Academy says lawsuit claims by former students are not valid". WWAYTV3. December 9, 2021. Retrieved July 10, 2022.
18. ^ "Lawsuit details retaliatory actions against girls at Cape Fear Academy after speaking out about bullying, sexual harassment". Port City Daily. October 8, 2021. Retrieved July 10, 2022.
19. ^ Jane Doe vs Cape Fear Academy Inc E.D.N.C. Case 4:21-CV-00149 Initial Complaint ECF-1
20. ^ a b Hoover, Sydney (December 8, 2021). "More former Cape Fear Academy students speak out on harassment & retaliation". Wilmington Star-News. Archived from the original on December 15, 2021. Retrieved February 20, 2024.
21. ^ Hoover, Sydney (February 17, 2022). "Fight over Cape Fear Academy's Title IX coverage continues as motions to dismiss face judge". Wilmington Star-News. Retrieved July 10, 2022.
22. ^ Jane Doe vs Cape Fear Academy Inc E.D.N.C. Case 4:21-CV-00149 Memorandum in Support of Defendant’s Fed. R. Civ. P. 12(b)(6) Motion to Dismiss Amended Complaint for Failure to State a Claim ECF-23
23. ^ "Court denies Cape Fear Academy's motion to dismiss former students' Title IX, breach of contract claims". WECT. Retrieved July 10, 2022.
24. ^ Hoover, Sydney (June 17, 2022). "Cape Fear Academy sexual harassment lawsuit: Judge upholds Title IX claims". Wilmington Star-News. Retrieved July 10, 2022.
25. ^ "Karanik v. Cape Fear Academy, Inc.", United States District Court, E.D. North Carolina, Southern Division (7:21-CV-169-D), June 17, 2022, retrieved July 10, 2022
26. ^ "Lower School - Ages 3.5 - Grade 5". Cape Fear Academy. Retrieved September 14, 2022.
27. ^ "Middle School at Cape Fear Academy | Wilmington, NC". Cape Fear Academy. Retrieved September 14, 2022.
28. ^ "Upper School at Cape Fear Academy in Wilmington". Cape Fear Academy. Retrieved September 14, 2022.
29. ^ "Cape Fear Academy Campus - Wilmington NC". Cape Fear Academy. Archived from the original on September 14, 2022. Retrieved September 14, 2022.
30. ^ "Cape Fear Academy buys 11 acres on S. College Road for over $5M". WilmingtonBiz. Retrieved September 14, 2022.
31. ^ "Admission & Affordability". Cape Fear Academy. Archived from the original on September 14, 2022. Retrieved September 14, 2022.
32. ^ "Upper School at Cape Fear Academy in Wilmington". Cape Fear Academy. Retrieved September 15, 2022.
33. ^ "Athletics at Cape Fear Academy". Cape Fear Academy. Retrieved September 14, 2022.
34. ^ "CFA Upper School - Student Life". Google Sites. Retrieved September 14, 2022.
35. ^ "Theatre". Cape Fear Academy. Archived from the original on September 14, 2022. Retrieved September 14, 2022.
36. ^ a b "CFA Upper School - Student Activities". Google Sites. Retrieved September 14, 2022.
37. ^ "2022 - 2023 US Handbook". Google Docs. Retrieved September 14, 2022.
38. ^ a b c Roth, Kamerin; Gonzalez, Simon (September 2016). "Half a Century of Academic Excellence". www.wrightsvillebeachmagazine.com. Archived from the original on December 2, 2017. Retrieved December 1, 2017.
39. ^ a b Baumgartner, Frank R.; Epp, Derek A.; Shoub, Kelsey (2018). Suspect Citizens: What 20 Million Traffic Stops Tell Us About Policing and Race. Cambridge University Press. p. 39\. ISBN 9781108688826.

* v
* t
* e

Public and private high schools of New Hanover County, North Carolina

New Hanover County Schools

Public|

* Eugene Ashley
* John T. Hoggard
* Isaac Bear Early College
* Emsley A. Laney
* New Hanover
* Mosley Performance Learning Center
* Wilmington Early College

Private|

* Cape Fear Academy
* The Lyceum Academy
* Wilmington Christian Academy
* Coastal Christian
* St. Mark Catholic School
* St. Mary Catholic School
* Friends School of Wilmington
* Cape Fear Center for Inquiry
* Wilmington Preparatory Academy
* Wilmington Academy of Arts and Sciences

* Public high schools in North Carolina
* Private high schools in North Carolina

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