Hammond School was founded as Hammond Academy in 1966 by a group of parents interested in developing a college preparatory school to serve the Columbia area. It opened with an enrollment of 260. Since that time, it has more than tripled to its current enrollment of 980. In 1989, the Board of Trustees changed the name to Hammond School and voted to adopt a global focus to prepare students for the larger world they will be entering as adults.

The global focus begins in the earliest grades and is developed continuously in all subject areas. Each year, the School selects a country to study and gears its programs toward the people and culture of that land. In addition, members of Grade 11 travel to Belize, Central America, for a ten-day visit each spring. The School’s mission is to provide students with the finest college preparatory curriculum, while inculcating in them an understanding of other peoples and cultures.