Education Reforms You May Have Missed in the 2023-24 Legislative Session

Education
Blog · June 5, 2024
People wearing backpacks

The 125th South Carolina General Assembly has made quite the impact in our state, from repealing CON to enacting our state’s first education scholarship account (ESA) program. Here at Palmetto Promise, we’ve talked a lot about the ESA bill and the tremendous impact it has for families across the state. More families than ever before

Palmetto Promise Awarded Heritage Foundation’s Innovation Prize

Education
Blog · May 22, 2024

We are proud to share that Palmetto Promise Institute, along with our partners in North and South Carolina, have been awarded the Heritage Foundation’s 2024 Innovation Prize for our work on the Carolinas Academic Leadership Network (CALN). CALN aims to empower school board members throughout the Carolinas by honing their leadership skills in governance, professional development,

Palmetto Promise Presents Corey DeAngelis: The Parent Revolution Book Tour

Education
Blog · May 17, 2024

Come join us for an exciting event with school choice evangelist Corey DeAngelis as he embarks on the nationwide tour for his brand new book, The Parent Revolution.  WHEN: June 14, 2024 at 1pm (doors open at 12:30) WHERE: 1824 Barnwell Street Columbia, SC 29201 BOOK YOUR TICKET TODAY! This is a must-attend event for

Statement of Palmetto Promise Institute on the Education Scholarship Accounts Awarded

Education
Blog · May 15, 2024
Photo of happy family

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE MAY 15, 2024 COLUMBIA — This spring marked the first year of applications for South Carolina’s brand new Education Scholarship Account (ESA) program, the Education Scholarship Trust Fund. In the short two-month application window from January 15 to March 15, the South Carolina Department of Education received an astounding 7,907 applications for

One Step Closer to Education Transparency

Education
Blog · May 7, 2024

After a year of silence on the issue, the South Carolina General Assembly is finally taking steps to reconcile the House and Senate versions of the South Carolina Transparency and Integrity in Education Act (H.3728) and send it to the Governor to be signed into law. Palmetto Promise has advocated for this important legislation that

Recruiting & Retaining South Carolina’s Teachers

Education
Blog · May 6, 2024

In honor of Teacher Appreciation Week, we’d like to draw attention to important legislation aimed at addressing South Carolina’s teacher shortage. South Carolina’s teacher shortage is one of the major problems facing education in our state. At the beginning of the 2023-24 school year, there were roughly 1,600 teacher vacancies statewide, a 9% increase from the previous

New Book Regulation Aims for Age-Appropriateness, not Book Banning

Education
Blog · April 15, 2024
Library with many shelves and books, diminishing perspective and shallow dof

The State Department of Education (SCDE) has threaded the needle amazingly well in their recently passed new regulations for school textbooks and other curriculum materials. This is the regulation that would govern which books and other curriculum materials could be in school libraries and classrooms. Because all regulations must receive the approval of the South