Staff reports
Beaufort County saw a slight improvement on the 2024 S.C. Report Cards for schools released by the S.C. Department of Education (SCDE) and the S.C. Education Oversight Committee (EOC).
The S.C. Report Cards, available at www.screportcards.com, reflect data elements and student performance information from the 2023-24 school year. These state-issued report cards are required by a federal education law called the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA).
All South Carolina public schools receive overall report card ratings based on a 100-point scale. Schools also receive ratings on various indicators such as academic achievement, student progress, college and career readiness, and graduation rate. The ratings follow terms outlined in state law: Excellent, Good, Average, Below Average, and Unsatisfactory.
From 2023 to 2024, the number of Beaufort County schools rated as “Excellent” remained the same at six. The number of “Good” schools increased from 9 to 12. “Average” schools decreased from 16 to 13, a change accounted for in the increase of “Good” schools.
“Below Average” schools increased from one to 3, as the number of Beaufort County schools rated as “Unsatisfactory” dropped from two to zero.
An Excellent rating is defined as school performance that substantially exceeds the criteria to ensure all students meet the Profile of a South Carolina Graduate. District schools at the elementary level that received this rating are Coosa, Okatie, and Pritchardville. At the middle school level Riverview Charter (Grades 6 through 8) received this top rating. Two district high schools earned an excellent rating, Bluffton and May River.
A Good rating is defined as school performance that exceeds the criteria to ensure all students meet the Profile of the South Carolina Graduate. District schools at the elementary level that received this rating are Bluffton, Hilton Head Island, Hilton Head Island School for the Creative Arts, Lady’s Island, Red Cedar, Riverview Charter (grades K-5), and River Ridge Academy (grades K-5). Schools rated as Good at the middle school level were Beaufort, Bluffton, and River Ridge Academy (grades 6-8). Hilton Head Island and Whale Branch high schools were also designated with a Good rating.
Joseph Shanklin Elementary, Whale Branch Elementary, Hilton Head Island School for the Creative Arts, Beaufort Middle School, and Robert Smalls Leadership Academy (K-5) have each increased by two ranking levels over the past two to three years.
Joseph Shanklin Elementary School rose two levels from Unsatisfactory to Average.
“Our improved rating on the school report card is a true team effort from everyone at our school — teachers, staff, students, families, and community members,” Principal Liz Rivera said in a news release. “This week, we will be celebrating together, and we can’t wait to see even more progress as we keep focusing on providing high-quality teaching and learning,” further emphasizing that there’s “more great things to come from Joseph Shanklin Elementary.”
Statewide, 44% of schools earned a rating of Good or Excellent. Here in Beaufort County, 53% of BCSD schools earned a rating of Good or Excellent — an improvement over 44% last year. Eight out of nine Beaufort County School District (BCSD) middle schools improved their rating or held steady. And, for the first time since 2018, no BCSD school has been ranked as unsatisfactory.
“This is a testament to Dr. Rodriguez’s steadfast leadership,” Chief Instructional Services Officer Mary Stratos said. “Progress takes time and our superintendent’s commitment to our educators and students is making it happen.”
BCSD increased its scores and outperformed the state in both English Language Arts and Mathematics. Specifically, 55.6% of 3rd through 8th Graders scored Meets or Exceeds Expectations on SC READY ELA in comparison to 54% at the state level. For mathematics 44.9% of BCSD students scored Meets or Exceeds Expectations in comparison to 42.8% at the state level.
“The progress made is a reflection of our educators, students, administrators, parents, staff, and community members,” Superintendent Frank Rodriguez said. “This progress serves as a catalyst to the work we have ahead of us in reaching our five-year strategic plan goal of 75-75-92 for Math, English Language Arts, and Graduation rate respectively.”
State Superintendent of Education Superintendent Weaver echoed these sentiments, celebrating the successes of S.C. public schools while emphasizing the work ahead.
“As we continue to strive towards at least 75% of students performing at or above grade level, the school report cards allow us to shine a light on the successes of schools across South Carolina,” Weaver said.
BCSD’s report card indicates that 82.8 percent of Beaufort County high school seniors were “College- or Career-Ready.” The graduation rate in the report card is measured by the percentage of students who complete high school “on time” and earn a diploma in four years. BCSD’s graduation rate for the class of 2023 reflects 88.6 percent of students completing “on time,” an increase of 1.4% from 2023, the highest state reported rate in district history.
For more statewide information, please see the SCDE’s Report Card release at https://bit.ly/3zW7QG1.
