The South Carolina Department of Education (SCDE) announces that the 2024–25 Request for Proposals for the National School Lunch Program (NSLP) Equipment Assistance subgrant is now available online. Up to $518,028 in funding is available and the deadline to apply is February 26, 2024.

In keeping with its mission to provide technology technical assistance to districts, the South Carolina Department of Education (SCDE) is offering virtual training on digital accessibility February 13 and 14, 2024, four hours each day. This training is at no cost to districts.

South Carolina Department of Education (SCDE) staff have worked diligently to meet the statutory requirements to launch South Carolina’s new Education Scholarship Trust Fund (ESTF) program for low-income students. Funding for qualified students would begin in the 2024-25 school year, and public school districts are designated under the law as eligible education service providers.

The South Carolina Department of Education (SCDE) is continuing its partnership with Marzano Research and Education Analytics to support the South Carolina Strategy Clearinghouse and Teacher as Researcher Professional Learning to support Clearinghouse use.

As the population of multilingual learners (MLs) continues to grow and strengthen communities in South Carolina, it is essential for educators to enhance their knowledge and be prepared to meet the needs of all students. The South Carolina Department of Education (SCDE) has approved the Ellevation professional learning opportunity for educators to earn the English for Speakers of Other Languages (ESOL) certification endorsement. This professional learning opportunity allows educators to increase their knowledge of MLs while earning their ESOL endorsement.

The South Carolina Department of Education (SCDE) announces that the 2024–25 Request for
Proposals for the 21st Century Community Learning Centers (CCLC) subgrant program is now
available online. $3–$5 million in funding will be distributed on a competitive basis and the deadline to apply is March 18, 2024.

The State Board of Education (SBE) has approved the subject areas that will have instructional materials reviewed and adopted for the 2024 adoption cycle. Instructional Materials Review Panels will be created for these subject areas according to the SBE regulations. Your assistance is needed to establish the pool of candidates from which nominees and alternates for the Review Panels will be selected. Please use the attached Excel spreadsheet to provide your recommendations for outstanding teachers currently teaching in the subject areas listed or district content area specialists. Your recommendations need to be submitted by email to OIMinfo@ed.sc.gov by February 9, 2024.

The Office of Student Support is hosting several school climate and safety trainings. These
trainings are designed to equip participants with tools and best practices that support and
maintain safe school climates.

The South Carolina Department of Education has collaborated with the Data Recognition
Company (DRC) to develop an additional paper testing option on the SCREADY TDA item for
third- and fourth-grade students. This plan would require DRC to transcribe the students' written
paper responses into the online system for the Spring 2024 SC READY administration. All other
items must be administered in a computer-based format per The Education Accountability Act
(EAA).

The SC Department of Education Offices of Educational Technology and Accessibility (OETA) and Special Education Services (OSES) are collaborating on FREE, LIVE virtual training opportunities for school districts during the 2023-24 school year. These Digital Accessibility Training Opportunities (DATO) provide practical information for educators and district administrators as they create and use accessible educational materials.

The Office of Early Learning and Literacy (OELL) invites you to attend the Leaders Making
Readers Literacy Conference on Tuesday, February 13, 2024. This conference is intended for
district and school leaders who work with Summer Reading Camps (SRC), literacy instruction
and interventions, and Multi-Tiered System of Supports (MTSS). Based on district feedback, this event will again be held virtually.

Proviso 1.101 of South Carolina’s 2023-2024 Appropriation Act suspends the reporting requirements for the College Freshman Report.

The South Carolina Department of Education (SCDE) is pleased to release the South Carolina School-Based Behavioral Threat Assessment and Management Guide (2nd Edition). This resource, developed in collaboration with administrators, educators, and other external stakeholders, is intended to provide guidance to schools as they establish or strengthen threat assessment teams and implement threat assessment protocols.

The South Carolina Department of Education (SCDE) has successfully obtained a waiver from certain Every Student Succeeds Act requirements related to its science assessment for the upcoming school year.

The South Carolina Department of Education (SCDE) Office of Student Support will host
PREPaRE (3rd Edition) Core Workshop 1 (WS1) and Core Workshop 2 (WS2) training. The
workshops, led by Dr. Melissa L. Reeves, are designed for those who serve on school threat
assessment teams (including but not limited to school administrators, educators, counselors, school psychologists, safety directors, resource officers, and other staff). These sessions will provide information, strategies, and resources to improve school climate and safety.

The purpose of this memorandum is to update local education agencies (LEAs) regarding the Multilingual Learner Program (MLP) Data Management System (DMS). The South Carolina Department of Education (SCDE) and LEAs have greatly benefited from our partnership with Ellevation Education, a DMS that has significantly improved our ability to manage and support multilingual learner programs (MLPs) throughout South Carolina. However, as the American Rescue Plan-Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief (ARP-ESSER) funding is nearing its end, our state contract with Ellevation Education will subsequently conclude on July 29, 2024.

Special Education Directors or Coordinators (or designated staff) will need to ensure that the
appropriate PowerSchool administrators within the district know which students should be
coded as seeking the South Carolina High School Employability Credential so that they can be coded appropriately by the deadlines detailed below.

For questions about the South Carolina High School Employability Credential, please contact Kim Watkins at kawatkins@ed.sc.gov. For questions regarding Data Entry into PowerSchool, please contact Wendy Stephens at wstephens@ed.sc.gov.

The South Carolina Department of Education’s Office of Educational Technology and
Accessibility (OETA) along with the US Department of Education’s National Digital
Accessibility Team will be offering free live virtual training opportunities for School Districts
January 2024 through May 2024.

If you have any questions or concerns, contact Lydia Hutto via lhutto@ed.sc.gov.