The South Carolina Department of Education (SCDE) and State Board of Education would like to recognize all 2025 district retirees. In recognition of the retirees’ years of service, the SCDE will mail a letter of appreciation and certificate to each retiree.

Course codes for three high school math courses (4113 Algebra 3, 4116 Foundations in Algebra, and 4141 Probability and Statistics) will be deactivated at the end of the 2024-25 school year as of June 30. However, the South Carolina Department of Education (SCDE) is allowing districts to offer credit recovery for these three deactivated math courses during the fall semester of the 2025-26 academic year.

Section 59-1-425(A) of The Educator Assistance Act (EAA), H. 3196, establishes requirements for the ten professional development and staff workdays included in the 190-day school year annually.

The 2025-26 SC READY Mathematics and Algebra 1 EOCEP assessments will undergo important changes to align with the fully implemented 2025 South Carolina College and Career Ready (CCR) Mathematics Standards and to meet the requirements in the Education Accountability Act (EAA).

Concern has been raised that the fiscal year reference in Proviso 1.79 was inadvertently not updated to the upcoming fiscal year. The SCDE has verified that the intent of the legislature was to update the fiscal year for Proviso 1.79 to apply for the 2025-2026 fiscal year. As such, districts should interpret Proviso 1.79 to apply to the upcoming fiscal year.

Beginning in the 2024–2025 school year, Act 114 (Section 59-155-160) requires retention of third-grade students who score Does Not Meet Expectations on the SC READY Reading assessment.

Effective July 1, 2025, the Educator Assistance Act amends the existing Retired Educator certificate into a credential without the need to earn renewal credits, enabling retired South Carolina educators to return to certified full- or part-time roles.

With the Governor’s veto message for H.4025, the General Appropriations Bill for FY 2025-26, the following items will receive funding, and the following provisos, that were updated or added, will go into effect July 1, 2025.

Over the last few months, the State Board of Education has issued rulings concerning materials pursuant to Regulation 43-170. This memorandum contains notice that the State Board has issued orders concerning an additional sixteen materials.

All South Carolina school districts must comply with the updated Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) published April 24th, 2024. These standards apply to all digital content created by teachers, provided by vendors, or published for public consumption (websites, social media posts, and mobile apps).

In accordance with S.C. Code Ann. § 59-63-1350, districts that operate alternative school programs must submit a plan to the South Carolina Department of Education. Each district’s plan, which will remain in effect for three years, must include a mission statement; the policy for the basis of enrollment in the program; the location of the alternative school program; and a description of how the program will focus on the educational and behavioral needs of students.

The South Carolina Department of Education (SCDE) announces that the 2025–26 Request for Proposals for the Innovation Grant is now available online. Approximately $9,000,000 in funding will be awarded on a competitive basis; the deadline to apply is June 30, 2025.