Aug. 12, 2026
Photos and information supplied by Brevard Academy
The first day at any new place can provide opportunities for both nervousness and celebration.
At Brevard Academy on Wednesday morning, the K-8 public charter school located in Pisgah Forest started its 2026-27 academic year off with an abundance of sunshine and smiles for the children, parents, and educators returning for another year of classes or those there for the very first time.
Students arrived to find school mascot Brutus the Bulldog ready to greet them among staff members lining the halls to wish every student a positive return to the classroom or their very first day of public education.
Mixed in among the excitement were several recent Brevard Academy graduates who will begin high school in the coming weeks who also returned to campus Wednesday to welcome everyone back to school.
Returning students and staff may have noticed a campus that has undergone some changes in recent months.
The public charter school begins the year with a completely new playground and upgrades to the previous one as construction moves quickly on Brevard Academy’s new arts and STEM building, which is scheduled to be completed before the end of this new school year to provide additional space for hands-on learning, creativity, science, technology, engineering, mathematics as well as more creative and performance-driven endeavors.
School Director Ted Duncan had previously announced that this year’s schoolwide theme is “One percent better,” meaning that throughout the year students and staff will be challenged to focus on consistent growth and recognize that meaningful progress is often built through small improvements made every day.
That goal is within reach as the charter school is starting the school year with 100-percent of its full-time positions filled, including new employees such as new hire middle school math teacher Dr. Randall Johnson.
If the former and current Bulldogs who showed up on the very first morning of this school year are any indication, Brevard Academy will continue to be a place students will warmly call home long after the final bell of this school year rings in June.