As of 2025, Christ School offers 27 Advanced Placement classes, 33 Honours classes, and six Advanced Studies classes – which are college-level courses not offered by AP – including four Math classes beyond Calculus.
The secret to success in an all-boys school
Good grades and great college applications matter to every young student, but they are by no means the only measure of success. Think of a place where aspirations are nurtured, and students are encouraged to explore their full potential. A place where every child becomes an educated individual of good character, prepared for both scholastic achievement in college and productive citizenship in adult society.
That’s what awaits at Christ School, a private college preparatory day and boarding school for boys in grades eight to 12. Rated as the top private school in Asheville by an aggregate media website, Stacker, the school upholds its long and prestigious history of producing educated young men of good character. Here, scores of boys become better in all their passions and pursuits. They are known for who they are today and all they can be tomorrow.
students
300+
are international students
10%
graduates attend their top college choice
80%
“There are a lot of smart people at Christ School, so you’ll likely never be the smartest in the room. Learn from all of these incredible minds. Stay teachable. Stay motivated.”
Since 1900, Christ School has been committed to fostering the growth of boys academically, emotionally, socially, and spiritually. Here, students are free to pursue a wide range of interests and activities without worrying about social pressure, and even explore creative outlets in art, music, and foreign languages. They actively engage in classroom discussions and forge lasting friendships with their peers that continue throughout their lives.
Well-rounded growth
– Leighton Blount ‘24
“These offerings broaden their interests, improve their social skills, encourage creativity, and foment critical thinking skills. Our faculty is dedicated to ensuring that every student becomes the best version of himself in and out of the classroom.”
Essential to the Christ School experience is an expert team of warm-hearted teachers, coaches, and dorm parents. They serve as positive role models, dedicated to enriching the lives of the young men under their care.
Just as impressive are the facilities available. Each student has access to a full suite of well-equipped and well-designed academic, athletic, spiritual, and residential facilities on the 500-acre campus.
There are seven miles of trails, a lake, and a century-old chapel, along with the recently-opened Patrick Beaver Centre, which has snack bars, gaming tables, a classic video game arcade, a state-of-the-art sound system and more.
A home where every goal is encouraged
– Olga Mahoney, Christ School history teacher
Each offers seemingly countless ways for students to engage with the environment, host house-centred activities, and compete in intramural sports teams — sometimes all at once. Boys can choose from various athletic and creative offerings, developing emotionally as well as physically. As they practise and perform, they learn self-discipline, develop confidence, and feel belonged.
More unique opportunities exist, too, such as the Robert Morgan '36 Aviation Programme, which gives boys the chance to explore a high school flight programme guided by a former Navy pilot, one of only three in the US.
The four pillars to develop the whole boy
Headmaster David Page Harris – affectionately known to students as Mr. Dave – is credited with many innovations in his 42-year tenure at Christ School, such as the genesis of the Four Pillars. Combined, these pillars spur boys to strive for top grades, become leaders both inside and outside the classroom, embark on their own spiritual journey, and get involved in the care and maintenance of the campus.
Every year, new Senior Leaders in the dorms and other vital areas of the school community are chosen to represent Christ Church and its ideals. The chosen boys then lead others through the Honour Council and end their year by presenting a Senior Speech, often an amalgamation of everything they have learned during their time at the school.
Above all, Christ School emphasises its Episcopal identity. Services are held three times a week in St. Joseph’s Chapel, the emotional and symbolic heart of the campus, with special sessions for celebrations such as Easter and Christmas.
Work, and the dignity that comes with it, is one of the core principles of a Christ School education. In its earlier years, Christ School was a working farm, and alumni can recount tales of shovelling heavy coal into furnaces during cold seasons. Today, the work is different, but it still builds character all the same – on-campus labour, such as cleaning, moving, painting, demolition, and more, is key to the Christ School experience.
Christ School graduates leave with the confidence, ambition, and ability to shape their own futures. But they also find success in ways they hardly envisioned when they first arrived.
Take the Class of 2025, for example. These talented young men earned over US$4.8 million in scholarships and achieved a 100% acceptance rate. Four of them are moving on to Ivy League schools – Brown, Columbia, and Pennsylvania – and 10 more have been accepted into “New Ivies” as designated by Forbes – Georgia Tech, Purdue, UNC-Chapel Hill, Virginia, and West Point.
Where Christ School takes its graduates
Head of School Dr. Sean Jenkins thanked them for leaving Christ School better than they found it and encouraged the seniors to “live boldly and do good wherever and everywhere you can.” Such is the outcome of a Christ School education.
“My experience with Christ School has been really good for me, and it’s been a really big difference. The community here is one that I think is unmatched – I think every person here has something that they’re truly passionate about, student-wise and faculty-wise.”
Xander Ring
Collier Lilly
“It hasn’t been an easy journey, but I wouldn’t have done it with anyone else. These gentlemen in green blazers seated over there have been through it with each other. Through the highs and lows, I can’t imagine a better class to weather the storms and celebrate the victories with.”
Jun Yeob Lee
“As an international student, I remember the list of schools I considered was different from my classmates. Although the colleges I was targeting weren’t typical, Christ School’s advisors were great, and they suggested the style of college that would fit me, and I loved their suggestions.”
Hear from the students
“My experience with Christ School has been really good for me, and it’s been a really big difference. The community here is one that I think is unmatched – I think every person here has something that they’re truly passionate about, student-wise and faculty-wise.”
Xander Ring
Collier Lilly
“It hasn’t been an easy journey, but I wouldn’t have done it with anyone else. These gentlemen in green blazers seated over there have been through it with each other. Through the highs and lows, I can’t imagine a better class to weather the storms and celebrate the victories with.”
Hear from the students