During the 2017-2018 school year, we finally moved into our new permanent facility at 804 Mauldin Road and grew our school to 400 students. During that same time, we were named a School of Distinction by the SC Public Charter School District.  

In conjunction with our new partner, EL Education, we believe that when a student is done with school and enters adult life, she will be judged for the rest of her life not by her performance on tests of basic skills, but by the quality of her work and the quality of her character. Therefore, our vision of student achievement now includes dimensions: 1) Mastery of Academic Skills and Content, 2) High-Quality Work, and 3) Character. Our success is measured in these three categories which include, but are not limited to, test scores.

Lots of change! To begin our sixth school year, we became a full EL Education (formerly Expeditionary Learning) partner and added grades K5-4th to our already functioning middle school. We also left the Upstate Circle of Friends campus and relocated to Reedy River Missionary Baptist Church until our new, permanent site was available in April 2016.

During our fifth year of operation, we began a relationship with Expeditionary Learning, aiming to engage a partner with similar motivations and a history of solid outcomes.

Lead moves from the campus of Redemption World Outreach Center to Upstate Circle of Friends to reach maximum grade buildout of fifth through eighth students.

During our second year of operation we saw some of the best growth scores in the state, as measured by the end-of-year state assessment. Students began the climb to achieve "A" status, and Excellent Growth Index, and an Absolute Ranking of Good.

Lead Academy opened its doors in the fall of 2010.

With much excitement, in June 2009, the Planning Committee celebrated the approval of the Lead Academy Public Charter School. As a public charter school, Lead Academy is a nonreligious, nonhome-based, non-profit educational entity. There are no fees or admissions requirements to attend Lead. Any student in the appropriate grade residing in South Carolina may apply for admission.

A final charter school application was submitted to the SC Board of Education as well as the Greenville County School District Board of Trustees.

In 2007, a committee of concerned members began to explore educational alternatives that would best provide all students within Greenville County an excellent education. After considering many options, the committee settled on the idea of petitioning the Greenville County School District for a public charter school to serve Greenville County students in grades 5 through 8. As a result, a charter school Planning Committee was formed. Planning Committee members gathered information to prepare the application by visiting schools across the Southeast, examining other successful models, meeting with members of the Greenville community and researching educational best practices.