initially, crestwood gained reputation as a public funded 'private high school,' a sales pitch used to draw a higher tax base to the area. for the first few years, the faculty and student body of the school remained almost entirely white. students came from affluent new subdivisions such as martin's landing and huntcliff. with under 1,000 students, crestwood was designated a georgia 'b' class school and competed mostly with private institutions such as marist, pace academy, and lovett school.