Act 284, Read to Succeed
Act 284, Read to Succeed, was ratified and signed into legislation by Governor Nikki Haley on June 11, 2014. Read to Succeed is South Carolina’s comprehensive reading reform policy intended to increase reading proficiency from Prekindergarten through high school. South Carolina is one of 11 states with similar policy but the only state which addresses all students in preschool through high school.
Components of the Legislation
- State, District, and School Reading Plans
- Summer Reading Camps
- 4K and 5K Assessments
- School-Based Reading Coaches
- Pre-Service Teacher Preparation Programs
- Literacy Endorsements (In-Service Professionals)
- Parent/Family and School/Community Partnerships
Reading Plans
- 2016 Plans Implemented Now
- School Literacy Leadership Teams remain active
- Reading Plan Refinement Group
- New template for 2017-18 plans
Third-Grade Retention
- 2017-18 school year
- Current second grade students
- Third Grade Retention Guidance document released
- Good cause exemptions
Good Cause Exemptions
- Students with limited English proficiency and less than two years of instruction in English as a Second Language program
- Students with disabilities whose Individual Education Plan indicates the use of alternative assessments or reading interventions and students with disabilities whose Individual Education Plan or Section 504 Plan reflects that the student has received intensive remediation in reading for more than two years but still does not substantially demonstrate reading proficiency
- Students who demonstrate third-grade reading proficiency on an alternative assessment
- Students who have received two years of reading intervention and were previously retained
- Students who through a reading portfolio document, demonstrate mastery of the state standards in reading equal to at least a level above the lowest achievement level on the state reading assessment
- Students who successfully participate in a summer reading camp at the conclusion of the third grade year and demonstrate through either a reading portfolio or through a norm-referenced, alternative assessment, that the student’s mastery of the state standards in reading is equal to at least a level above the lowest level on the state reading assessment.
Summer Reading Camps
- Third grade students must be invited
- Students in any other grades can be included
- Library Media Centers are a crucial component of SRC success and should be open and staffed.
Read to Succeed (R2S) Endorsement
Educators holding certification in the area of Library Media Specialist are required to complete the R2S Content Area Reading and Writing course in order to add-on the R2S Literacy Requirement Endorsement. Please note that the educator does not have to complete a course specifically tailored or developed for Library Media Specialists. More information is available on our R2S Educator Certification page.
