Less than a decade ago, Bluffton had only one elementary school - Michael C. Riley Elementary - with plenty of room for students. Today, there are three elementary schools in the cluster, all over capacity and all with portable classrooms stacked on the property. Add to that the county's largest middle school and a brand new high school that already is at capacity, and the growth bubble comes into focus quite clearly.
Newcomers to Bluffton arrive from as close as Hilton Head Island and Savannah and as far away as overseas. They blend with townsfolk who treasure traditions. Like the mixing of warm water and cold water currents in the Atlantic, this flow of growth creates exciting opportunities for all - including students and staff.
"So much has changed in Bluffton over the years, and it seems like it changes every day now," observed Laura Bush, a Bluffton native and member of the Beaufort County Board of Education. "But despite that change, there's something that stays special about Bluffton. I think that's why people keep coming here, they want to be a part of that something special."
Within the past decade, whole new communities have been carved out of the pine forests. Until about 1996, the Buckwalter area was a dense pine tree farm. Today it still has pine trees, but they mostly stand as landscaping for the thousand homes that surround Bluffton Elementary, McCracken Middle and Bluffton High. Movie theaters, restaurants and other shops have also sprouted around the campus.
The Bluffton Cluster schools serve children from the southern shore of the Broad River all the way to the stoplight at Moss Creek. More specific attendance zone information is available at the school district's website - http://www.beaufort.k12.sc.us/ - along with test scores, demographics and other useful information.
Three elementary schools serve the Bluffton Cluster, with one more under construction and two more predicted for the coming five years. They feed into H.E. McCracken Middle School - with Bluffton Middle expected to open in 2009. At this point, all Bluffton students attend Bluffton High, though that school also is at capacity despite opening just three years ago.
