After getting its start with three students in a small house on Chestnut Street, the West End School will soon be instructing 300 co-ed students on its 6-acre campus at 3628 Virginia Ave.
The tuition-free, boys-only private boarding school announced on Friday that it would begin a $10 million fundraising campaign to construct a new building for female students — which the school looks to add to its educational roster as soon as September 2024.
Thus far, the school has raised $6 million + looks to raise the other $4 million by the end of the year to begin construction on the new facility in early 2023.
While the girls’ program will begin as a daytime-only endeavor, the school may add female dorms in the future — the program looks to serve 150 local girls.
In April, Brown-Forman Corp. made a $20 million pledge to the West End School that will be allocated over the next 10 years to help with the school’s operating costs — with $10 million each going toward the boys’ school + introducing the girls’ school.
Founded by Robert and Deborah Blair in 2005, the West End School works with male students from pre-K to eighth grade + currently serves more than 140 students. It offers athletic, music, and enrichment programs for its students in addition to providing on-campus housing for alumni who go on to attend high school, but still want to reside in a structured and safe environment.
In the school’s early days, its class of three students would commute to a former JCPS building for class until the Blairs were able to purchase the facility and renovate one of its wings into a dormitory.
Want to support the school’s mission? Check out its wish list for items you can contribute — including sponsoring a field trip — donate directly, or sign-up to volunteer.