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COLUMBIA 鈥� South Carolina high schools posted their highest graduation rate in a decade, but a quarter of students still aren鈥檛 ready for college or the workforce, according to released Monday.

Generally, South Carolina鈥檚 schools improved , according to the statewide data that gauges how well schools perform based on test scores, classroom surveys and student growth, among other metrics. Education officials applauded a 10-year high in the number of students graduating on time 鈥� meaning they graduated four years after entering ninth grade 鈥� while saying they would continue pushing for programs to improve how well those students were prepared for life after high school.

鈥淲e have to make sure that our diplomas are worth more than the piece of paper that they are written on,鈥� said state Superintendent Ellen Weaver.

Overall, 270 schools rated 鈥渆xcellent鈥� this year, an increase from 232 last year. The bottom tier of 鈥渦nsatisfactory鈥� decreased from 49 to 31, and 鈥渂elow average鈥� schools dropped from 186 to 145.

Any time the number of schools in the lowest tier shrinks, that鈥檚 good news, since it means children across the state are getting a better education, said Patrick Kelly, a lobbyist with the Palmetto State Teachers Association.

鈥淭here鈥檚 encouraging information here,鈥� Kelly said of the report cards.

Officials from the state Department of Education and the independent Education Oversight Committee, which is tasked by state law with grading schools, announced the results at Annie Burnside Elementary School in Columbia, which jumped two tiers this year, from 鈥渁verage鈥� to 鈥渆xcellent.鈥�

At the Richland District One school, 83% of the 306 students live in poverty. The school鈥檚 big rating boost was due to significant student improvement, as shown by their test scores, and results on a survey about the school鈥檚 general environment, according to its report card.

鈥淥ur academic gains are no coincidence,鈥� said Principal Janet Campbell. 鈥淭hey are the result of setting measurable goals, challenging our students to reach them and supporting them along the way.鈥�

Graduation rates and readiness

This year, 87% of high schoolers graduated on time, up from 85% last year. That鈥檚 worth celebrating, Kelly said.

鈥淥ur goal should be for every student in South Carolina who has the ability to earn a high school diploma,鈥� he said.

Three-quarters of students were ready for either college or a career after graduation, a gain of 3 percentage points, . Less than a third were ready for both.

Although the gap between students who are graduating and those who are prepared for what comes next continues to shrink slightly, state officials remain concerned about it, Weaver said.

鈥淎t the end of the day, we want our students, when they leave a South Carolina high school, to know that that diploma that they carry is a diploma of value,鈥� Weaver said. 鈥淭his is a diploma that is going to ensure that they are ready to go onto whatever post-secondary success looks like for them.鈥�

All 11th graders in the state take a test assessing skills commonly needed for jobs, divided into four areas: math, reading, understanding data and 鈥渟oft skills,鈥� which include aspects of a job such as dressing professionally and working well with others. Results are graded from 1 to 5, with higher scores suggesting students are ready to pursue more careers.

Students are considered career-ready if they receive a score of 3 or higher on that test, earn a technical education certificate, complete a state-approved internship or receive a high enough score on the Armed Services Vocational Aptitude Battery to enlist in the military. This year, 73% of students met that benchmark, compared to 70% last year, according to report card data.

College readiness is based on a student鈥檚 score on the ACT or SAT college entrance exam, college credit earned through a dual-enrollment course and/or scores on end-of-course Advanced Placement tests.

One-third of graduating students were college-ready, which is on par with at least the past five years, according to state data. The rate of high school students applying for college also continued to decrease, with 59% reporting filling out applications this year, compared with 61% last year.

A gap between graduation rate and readiness for the next step suggests schools are sometimes passing students without actually imparting the skills they need to succeed in life, Kelly said.

For instance, district policies setting teachers can give makes it easier for students to pass their classes, even if they haven鈥檛 actually done the work, Kelly said. Alternatives for students who fail tests or classes are sometimes easier, meaning a student can catch up without actually learning the same skills as their peers, he said.

鈥淲e鈥檝e put some policies in place that make it harder to evaluate what a student knows and can do,鈥� Kelly said.

Beginning this school year, students can follow a so-called pathway to that build on each other every year, allowing students to learn more advanced skills meant to make it easier to find a job in the field they want to pursue, said , chair of the Education Oversight Committee鈥檚 governing board.

鈥淎t the same time, we recognize that strengthening the system must go hand-in-hand with addressing the barriers that keep students from wholly engaging in school,鈥� said Allen, who鈥檚 also a government relations director for Continental Tire.

Chronic absenteeism and test scores

For example, the number of students who missed at least 10 days of school this year remained a concern, Allen said.

Around 23% of students were chronically absent, essentially the same number as last year. The more days of school a student misses, the less likely they are to perform as expected for their grade level on end-of-year tests, the committee put out last year.

Those tests, in turn, play a role in determining how well a school or a district is performing. Officials and teachers鈥� advocates credited the Palmetto Literacy Project and a change in how early educators for improving English scores, but , with less than half of third- through eighth-graders able to perform on grade level, according to state testing data.

Just over half the state鈥檚 high school students scored at least a C, which is a 70%, on their end-of-course Algebra I exams, often taken freshman year, according to report card data. Nearly 69% passed their English 2 exams, typically taken sophomore year.

While rooting for improvement, teachers鈥� advocates also warned against depending too heavily on a single exam score in deciding how well teachers and students are performing. A single, high-pressure exam at the end of the year is not necessarily the best indicator of school performance, said Dena Crews, president of the South Carolina Education Association.

鈥淚f people are making judgments based on that, they鈥檙e missing a whole lot about schools and districts,鈥� Crews said.

Teacher support

The Department of Education plans to focus on teachers in 2026, Weaver said.

鈥淭he No. 1 thing that we have to do to support student learning is take care of our teachers,鈥� Weaver said.

She is asking legislators to raise the minimum pay for a first-year teacher to $50,000, up from $48,500. Legislators have increased the pay floor in increments for years, with the stated goal of reaching $50,000.

Weaver is also asking for $5 million to continue a that based on how well their students perform on tests. She also wants to start a program that offers extra pay to exceptional teachers who mentor others. The additional responsibility would be another way to earn more money without leaving the classroom to go into school administration, she said.

Supporting teachers is key in improving how well schools are performing, Kelly said. The promising results in this year鈥檚 report cards came after the first since 2019, he added.

鈥淚t should not be a surprise to see school performance improve as teacher vacancies go down,鈥� Kelly said.

is part of States Newsroom, a nonprofit news network supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity. SC Daily Gazette maintains editorial independence. Contact Editor Seanna Adcox for questions: [email protected].

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