Academic Magnet High School was established in 1988, and the first class graduated in 1992. The school was originally located as a separate sub-campus of Burke High School in downtown Charleston. It then moved to the Charleston Naval Base, where it stayed until 2010, when it moved to the newly built Bonds Wilson campus on the site of the old Bonds-Wilson High School in North Charleston, South Carolina. Academic Magnet shares this state-of-the-art campus with the Charleston County School of the Arts middle and high schools. The new campus is part of an effort by the Charleston County School District to upgrade its facilities. In December 2018, the school changed its motto from "seriously smart" to "eruditio et honor" due to a movement led by a student council member to represent the school by its core values.
Students
Academic Magnet enrolled over 615 students in the 2013–14 school year. Compared to the average South Carolina high school, it has a higher Asian-American population, and a lower African-American population. The school's SAT scores have been the second-best in the state since 1998, surpassed only by the South Carolina Governor's School for Science and Mathematics. Academic Magnet is composed of students who reside in Charleston County and of students who own property in Charleston County in accordance with S.C. Code Section 59-63-30. The school is part of the Charleston County School District 20. The school is also notorious for their spirit week where students show their spirit in wall decorations and dress up days.
Curriculum
To graduate, students must complete tasks that go beyond the standard credits and classes taken in high school. Students are required to fulfill a 90-hour service requirement, take at least four Advanced Placement courses throughout their high school career, and complete AP Research and AP Seminar, as a replacement to the formerly used senior thesis.
Recognition
In April 2019, U.S. News & World Report recognized Academic Magnet High School as the best high school in the nation. The school was ranked number one among more than 17,000 public high schools. In the May 19, 2008 Newsweekcover story, Academic Magnet High School was ranked 7th among national public high schools based on an index consisting of the quotient of AP exams taken by all students and the quantity and quality of graduating seniors. Most recently, it was recognized by U.S. News & World Report as the 7th best high school in the nation.
Faculty
The principal is Catherine Spencer. She succeeded Judith Peterson as full-time principal. Lucy Pinckney became the school's assistant principal after coming from Military Magnet Academy.
Despite its relatively small size, Academic Magnet fields a wide variety of sports teams, including particularly strong soccer, swimming, and sailing programs on both the men's and women's sides. Recently, the AMHS Raptors have seen athletic success. To date, the school has won 18 SCHSL state championships, including five championships in the 201314 school year alone. The football team achieved its first ever winning record in the 2012 season. In October 2013, the Raptors' men's swim team became the first sports team from AMHS to win back-to-back SCHSL state titles, a feat later outdone by the women's soccer team in 201315. In addition to team success, AMHS has had individual state champions in men's and women's cross country and track, men's and women's swimming, and wrestling, and has sent many student-athletes on to compete at the collegiate level.
Baseball : 201617 National Champions
Basketball
Basketball
Cheerleading
Crew
Crew
Cross country : 2006, 2007, 2008 A State runners-up, 2012 AA State runners-up, 2013 AA State Champions
Cross country
Dance
Football: 2012 first-ever winning record
Golf : 2010 A State Champions
Golf
Lacrosse
Lacrosse
Sailing: 2011, 2013, 2014 State Champions, 2012 State runners-up
Soccer : 2008, 2009, 2010 A State runners-up, 2012, 2014 AA State Champions
Soccer : 2011, 2013, 2014 AA State Champions, 2012 AA State runners-up
Softball
Swimming : 2004, 2010, 2011, 2014, 2015 AAA-AA-A State runners-up, 2012, 2013 AAA-AA-A State Champions
Swimming : 2013 AAA-AA-A State runners-up 2014 AAA-AA-A State runners-up, 2015 AAA-AA-A State Champions 2016 AAA-AA-A State Champions
Tennis : 2016 AA State Champions
Tennis
Track and field
Track and field
Volleyball
Wrestling
State Champion teams:
Cross country : 2013
Cross country : 2014
Golf : 2010
Sailing: 2011, 2013, 2014
Soccer : 2012, 2014, 2015, 2017, 2018
Soccer : 2011, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2017, 2018
Swimming : 2012, 2013
Swimming : 2015, 2016
Tennis : 2016
Clubs
AMHS has over 60 student-run clubs, offering a club for nearly every interest.