News

• Workers Put Final Touches on Whale Branch Early College High School

  July 12, 2010

  Crews are waxing floors and finishing landscaping to prepare for this month's official opening of the long-anticipated Whale Branch Early College ... Read More

• Eight GTC High School Students Receive College Degrees

  May 24, 2010

  Eight students will receive Associates Degrees from Greenville Technical College. Read More

• Montessori Gets Middle School

  May 10, 2010

  The Charleston County School Board recently approved the expansion of the Montessori Community School of Charleston to include grades 7 and 8. Read More

• For Students at Risk, Early College Proves a Draw

  April 15, 2010

  Precious Holt rides a bus for an hour-plus ride to Sandhills Community College. When the bus arrives, she checks in with a guidance counselor and ... Read More

• Dual-credit Programs Popular

  April 15, 2010

  Students in high schools across The Times and Democrat Region are opting to enroll in dual-credit programs. Read More

• Whale Branch Early College to Open August 2010

  April 5, 2010

  The Beaufort County School District hopes to finish processing student transfer applications and establish enrollment for Whale Branch Early ... Read More

• Spotlight on Innovative Choice Programs

  March 22, 2010

  The “In Our Schools” television show this month features stories on innovative South Carolina programs including multi-age classrooms, teacher ... Read More

• Single-Gender Classes Can Respond to the Needs of Boys and Girls

  March 18, 2010

  Schools looking for ways to increase student motivation and academic achievement ought to consider offering single-gender classrooms as one highly ... Read More

• SC Educator Joins American Montessori Sociey Board of Directors

  January 26, 2010

  Dr. Ginny Riga, Montessori coordinator in the South Carolina Department of Education’s Office of Public School Choice, has joined the board of ... Read More

• Early College Programs Popular

  December 29, 2009

  South Carolina schools continued their across-the-board improvement on Advanced Placement tests according to a recently released report, but many ... Read More

• Single-Gender Classrooms Help Boys Learn in Comfort

  December 1, 2009

  The first thing you notice in Laura Jackson’s third-grade classroom at Centerville Elementary School is the noticeable lack of giggling. Read More

• Single-Gender Classrooms

  September 3, 2009

  Public schools are offering more choices because educators increasingly have come to believe that a broader instructional menu brings positive ... Read More

• Brashier Middle College opens $8.5 million facility

  August 18, 2009

  Brashier Middle College, a charter high school established in 2006, held a grand opening of the school’s permanent location Thursday at the ... Read More

• SCC offers high school dropouts Gateway to College

  July 19, 2009

  After the sudden death of her mother from an aneurism when she was just 13, school just didn't seem so important anymore to Lindsay Steadman. Read More

• Morningside Middle to pioneer dramatic single-gender program

  May 13, 2009

  Morningside Middle School will be a pioneer among South Carolina public schools next year by going further than any other in creating ... Read More

• Public school choice bill advances

  May 13, 2009

  FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Wednesday, May 13, 2009 / Public school choice bill advances Senate panel gives key endorsement to public school ... Read More

• Middle College Receives $130,000 Grant

  April 28, 2009

  Twenty-seven 21st Century Community Learning Centers Summer Enrichment grants totaling more than $3 million have been awarded to community ... Read More

• Encourage single-gender lesson

  March 28, 2009

  Single-gender education, which had fallen into steep decline in U.S. public schools starting a few decades ago, is making a comeback. Based on the ... Read More

• Rex renews push for public school choice with legislation filed in House, Senate

  March 24, 2009

  Companion bills were filed today in the House and Senate aimed at increasing the number and variety of choices available to students and their ... Read More

• No girls here, no boys there

  March 18, 2009

  Berkeley Middle School sixth-grader Matthew Desmond said he loves learning in a single-gender program so much that he'd recommend to fifth-grade ... Read More

• High School/College Hybrid

  March 18, 2009

  A school that officials are billing as a kind of hybrid between a high school and a community college is set to open in Brooklyn this fall. Read More

• Single gender classrooms

  February 8, 2009

  The practice of separating girls from boys in the classroom was the norm decades ago. Now, it seems to be something of a new trend. Read More

• Four Choice schools named 2009 Palmetto Finest Finalist

  January 15, 2009

  Last fall, schools vying for recognition submitted applications and received an onsite review. The screening process looks at student ... Read More

• Montessori school on School Improvement Council 2009 Honor Roll

  January 14, 2009

  These schools will continue in the running for the council’s annual Dick and Tunky Riley School Improvement Award. Named for the former ... Read More

• Greenville Tech Charter honored

  December 10, 2008

  Greenville Tech Charter High was honored by U.S. News & World Report in the magazine's annual ranking of "America's Best High Schools," according ... Read More

• Public School Choice Webcast: From Research to Practice

  November 10, 2008

  Join the USDE and the National Institute of Educational Options on November 19, 2008 at 3:00 p.m. for a webcast on Public School Choice. Read More

• SC Dropout Prevention Leadership Summit

  November 10, 2008

  The Division of Innovation and Support in the SC Department of Education will sponsor a SC Dropout Prevention Leadership Summit on December 2, ... Read More

• Greenville Tech Charter High School to host Coalition of Essential Schools visit

  November 6, 2008

  Greenville Technical Charter High School is hosting visitors from the Coalition of Essential Schools annual Fall Forum being held Nov. 6-8 in ... Read More

• There's nothing normal about Fuller Normal

  September 14, 2008

  For thousands of families around South Carolina, the words "back to school" are often met with sad faces, heavy sighs, anxiety and even ... Read More

• Hands-on learning

  September 11, 2008

  New Montessori magnet teaches children new ways of discovery Read More

• Montessori teaching method pays off with improved test scores, discipline

  September 10, 2008

  Guinyard Elementary School teacher Wanda Green sits in a circle surrounded by her class of first- and second-grade students to explain the concept ... Read More

• Middle College Student Gets Perfect ACT Score

  August 19, 2008

  GTCHS senior George Johnston was one of three students statewide to receive a 36 on the ACT test. Read More

• Greenville schools gearing up to offer single-gender classes

  August 18, 2008

  Mann Academy, Bryson Middle among 10 in county with programs... Read More

• Education Week confirms S.C. leads in single-gender education

  May 9, 2008

  Education Week notes that single-gender programs are a top priority for State Superintendent of Education Jim Rex and are part of his move to ... Read More

• SC promotes public Montessori programs

  May 4, 2008

  The nation's only statewide coordinator for Montessori public education says expanding the century-old teaching method in South Carolina could ... Read More

• 11 schools to pursue themes

  April 18, 2008

  Grants to help low-performing schools reinvent themselves as magnets. Read More

• School choice | Bill to make legislative debut

  April 8, 2008

  Rex worried first airing late in session will stifle proposal. Read More

• Single-gender classes gain traction

  March 26, 2008

  South Carolina leads nation in offerings. Read More

• Program Design Called Crucial Across Array of School Choices

  March 20, 2008

  While school choice may be one of the most polarizing issues in education today, a new volume of research papers makes the case that innovations ... Read More

• Virtual school to hold open house

  March 19, 2008

  Organizers of South Carolina's first online "charter school" will hold its inaugural get-acquainted session Thursday at the State Museum on ... Read More

• Rex backs school choice

  March 18, 2008

  Speaking at Spartanburg High School Monday evening, State Education Superintendent Jim Rex said South Carolina school districts which voluntarily ... Read More

• Charter school funding problem close to resolution

  March 18, 2008

  Local and state officials put their heads together to create a viable plan... Read More

• State's charter school movement continues to grow

  March 17, 2008

  These innovative schools enhance learning opportunities for students... Read More

• Single-gender school program praised

  March 11, 2008

  Dorchester District 2's Beech Hill Elementary School was recognized Saturday by state Superintendent of Education Jim Rex for its success in ... Read More

• Teachers to visit Columbia for training in single-gender education

  March 5, 2008

  More than 300 teachers from South Carolina and other states will visit Columbia this Saturday for some schooling of their own - a day of intensive ... Read More

• Fourteen planning groups awarded grants to promote development of quality charter schools

  February 28, 2008

  Fourteen organizations from across South Carolina have been awarded $5,000 grants to help them develop quality charter school applications. Read More

• Montessori program gearing up at E.P. Todd Elementary

  February 6, 2008

  School officials are asking parents interested in learning more about the new Montessori preschool at E.P. Todd Elementary School to attend a pair ... Read More

• Lexington-Richland 5 explores magnet school

  February 4, 2008

  After success in Richland 2, officials say program might boost underperforming schools Read More

• Aiken program shows success

  January 31, 2008

  Separate classrooms for boys and girls in Aiken County schools have found success with improved grades and fewer discipline issues, but more ... Read More

• Study shows single-gender classes on the rise

  January 17, 2008

  More than 150 public schools in the state are expected to offer the single-gender option to parents next school year, according to the state ... Read More

• Survey: Students thriving

  January 16, 2008

  Engaged and confident - students in single-gender programs say that's how they feel in their classes... Read More

• Students in single-gender classes say experience 'positive'

  January 15, 2008

  Students in single-gender classes across South Carolina like the atmosphere and say they believe the experience has improved their academic ... Read More

• Retreat's goal: Help black male students

  January 13, 2008

  More single-gender classes, expanded vocational training and career options and increased cultural-awareness training for school employees were ... Read More

• School succeeds by keeping students, parents involved

  December 17, 2007

  Imagine a high school with a graduation rate of 98 percent. Read More

• A middle ground: 'It's high school - evolved'

  December 1, 2007

  Queen McGoogan and six classmates travel more than 30 miles to attend class each day. Read More

• Richland Two: A Choice District

  November 30, 2007

  Richland County School District Two was recently featured in the State Newspaper for its varied Public School Choice district offerings. Read More

• Gender-based education empowers

  November 25, 2007

  Having spent more than 20 years as a college professor and more than 40 years as a flight instructor in both the U.S. Air Force and in general ... Read More

• Single-Gender Initiatives

  September 30, 2007

  South Carolina's efforts with Single-Gender Initiatives are recognized at the national level Read More