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Learning
Without Limits.
Innovating
For Excellence.
Embracing
Diversity,
Inspiring
Empathy.
Hero
Prepared
For Life.
Ready to start a life-changing journey? Let’s begin!
See Yourself at DA
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Inspiring Moral, Happy, Productive Students since 1933
Distinctly
Durham Academy
- A community committed to inclusion.
- Future-focused skills for relevant, real-world problems.
- Creative students motivated by joy, curiosity, challenge and choice.
- Innovative educators who inspire a lifelong love of learning.
- Inventive learning environments that fuel creativity and collaboration.
- A school invested in creating a more sustainable future.
A community committed to inclusion.
Future-focused skills for relevant, real-world problems.
Creative students motivated by joy, curiosity, challenge and choice.
Innovative educators who inspire a lifelong love of learning.
Inventive learning environments that fuel creativity and collaboration.
A school invested in creating a more sustainable future.
The DA Story
For more than three decades, Fernandas “Mac” McDonald has been an indispensable member of Durham Academy’s facilities team. His place in the hearts of DA students and faculty — who never turn down the chance to wave and say hello when they see him around campus — is unquestioned. On a recent morning, videographer Jesse Paddock accompanied McDonald on his rounds to see why McDonald is universally beloved on Ridge Road.
By the Numbers
1933
1,252
Students enrolled in grades Pre-k through 12
49%
Percentage of students who self-identify as people of color
$4.8M
Total tuition assistance awarded to families in 2024–2025
69%
Percentage of teaching faculty who hold advanced degrees
57
DA graduates currently playing their sport in college
44
Varsity conference championships in the last 5 years
12
Consecutive top-20 finishes at the National Speech & Debate Tournament (2013–2024), the longest active win streak in the nation
4
Divisions: Preschool, Lower School, Middle School & Upper School
3
State-of-the-art engineering, robotics and fabrication labs
3
Performing arts venues for student productions and special events
43
Total number of interscholastic athletics teams for 2024–2025