North Charleston Creative Arts Elementary School, in partnership with parents and community, utilizes the concepts in arts integration to provide a nurturing environment that engages and teaches students to become life-long learners. NCCAE provides all students with the opportunity to participate and excel in the arts and serves as a teaching model within the arts community for educators and supporters of the arts.

NCCAE is a partial magnet that serves a CCSD prescribed zone, and then accepts additional North Charleston students, based on seats available. NCCAE currently serves 572 students in grades CD to Fifth grade. It is a diverse population with a 58% poverty index, currently serving 70% magnet, and 30% zoned students. Students are immersed in the arts throughout their school day. Students in grades 3-5 attend the core arts classes (Visual Arts, Drama, Music and Dance) twice a day. Students in K5-2 attend each core arts class, in addition to media center and computer lab once a week and PE twice a week. Classroom teachers use the arts daily to teach and reinforce skills in all subject areas through units of study based on state standards. Arts specialists reinforce the learning in their classrooms as well as teaching the academic standards. Twice a week, 4th and 5th grade students participate in club opportunities that are in place in order to enhance areas of focus for students in the upper grades. Participation in these clubs is offered to students who are concentrating in content areas where they may be seeking to continue their experiences in the arts, post-NCCAE. Clubs offered include drama, chorus, piano, visual arts, dance, recycling, steel drums and Creative Writing.

NCCAE partners with ECM (Engaging Creative Arts School) in order to provide artist-in-residency opportunities for our students in grades 3-5, as well as provide professional development for our growing staff. NCCAE has established the “Vision Night” concept which highlights the integration of the SC Visual and Performing Arts standards with the SC Academic standards through a headlining performance. “Vision Nights” occur 3 times per year, and offer parents and stakeholders the opportunity to see, first-hand, the concept of integration, as it is demonstrated at NCCAE. Through the ABC Grant, NCCAE will provide residency experiences for students in grades K5-2. NCCAE has received the DAP grant since 2014.