Our History

Horizons at Carolina Day School (CDS) is part of a national network, Horizons National, that started in 1964 at New Canaan Country School (NCCS) in Connecticut. Horizons was created to leverage private school resources over the summer to benefit communities facing educational inequities. In 1995, Horizons National was founded to build on the success of the NCCS program.

Horizons at Carolina Day School’s founding board co-chairs, Swati Patel and Himanshu Karvir, learned about the Horizons program in 2015. They were highly involved with education issues in the Asheville community, recognizing the urgent need to find innovative ways to address the stark achievement and opportunity gaps that held back so many children from underserved communities in the area from reaching their potential. Recognizing the need for a Horizons program in Asheville, a partnership was established with Carolina Day School in 2015. The program opened its doors to its first cohort of students in 2018.

Since launching in Asheville, Horizons at CDS has grown steadily. Our inaugural cohort of 15 rising first graders now comprises our oldest students, who began eighth grade in August 2025. As part of a network of 71 Horizons programs nationwide—and growing—our program has provided enriching educational opportunities to Asheville students for eight years.