Development of Charlotte Latin School began in 1967, when a group of
Charlotte citizens led by businessman Frank Thies undertook the planning of an
independent,
college preparatory school that would focus on traditional teaching methods and classical curriculum. The founders believed that the growing Charlotte area needed another school of the caliber of
Charlotte Country Day School, which was at capacity and had a waiting list at the time. The Latin name was chosen as a reference to the
Boston Latin School, a New England school considered one of the best in the country that placed a strong emphasis on a traditional
liberal arts education. In early 1970 the trustees mailed out 2,000 brochures to gauge community interest in the new school. Two buildings were constructed on the new Charlotte Latin campus in the summer of 1970. An advertisement seeking new faculty members yielded 200 applicants for 25 open positions. Charlotte Latin opened for its first school year in the fall of 1970 with 425 students in grades one through nine and Jeremiah Splaine as the first headmaster. Over the ensuing three years, the school added 10th, 11th, and 12th grade classes. By the end of 1975 enrollment had grown to 812 students with 60 faculty and the school was accredited by the
Southern Association of Colleges and Schools. Many independent schools in the Charlotte area experienced rapid growth in the early 1970s as a result of the controversy around
busing in the
Charlotte Mecklenburg School system. While Charlotte Latin had been in the planning stage for several years prior and was not founded in response to
desegregation, journalists at the time found it likely that a portion of its early growth was attributable to parents seeking to avoid
busing in the public school system. One member of a local anti-busing group enrolled his children in the school, stating "I've simply taken my children off the battlefield while I fight the battle." While the student body was primarily white, records indicate Charlotte Latin was desegregated from its inception, with African American students enrolled in the early 1970s. Over his 25-year tenure, the school experienced a period of sustained growth, with enrollment increasing to 1,320 students, the size of the campus increasing from 50 acres to 112 acres, and the addition of several new facilities. In 2000 the school's 30,000-square-foot Science, Art, and Technology Building was opened, followed by the 45,000-square-foot Beck Student Activities Center a year later. The middle school building was named the "Edward J. Fox, Jr. Middle School" upon his retirement in 2001. In 2001, Dr. Fox was succeeded as headmaster by Arch McIntosh, Jr. Under McIntosh's leadership, minority enrollment at Charlotte Latin increased more than four-fold, from 3.4% of the student population in 2000 to 15.6% in 2018. At the end of his 18-year tenure, Charlotte Latin opened the Inlustrate Orbem Building, a 50,000-square-foot facility housing upper school classrooms as well as the admissions, college counseling and development offices. The 100/200 building (formerly classrooms and administrative offices) was repurposed as the "McIntosh Leadership Center" in 2018, shortly before his retirement. In July 2019 Charles D. Baldecchi ("Chuck") became the 5th head of school in Charlotte Latin's history. ==Academics==