Blog Posts

This article was first published on palmettopromise.org “South Carolina’s educational funding scheme is a fractured formula denying students…constitutionally required opportunity.” – South Carolina Supreme Court PROBLEM 1: South Carolina’s overall academic performance is poor…and falling below Mississippi. South Carolina is at—or near—the bottom of every major national ranking of education outcomes. In 2017-18, 2/3rds… Read More

This article was first published on palmettopromise.org Download this report.  Earlier this month, the online opinion journal EducationNext rolled out the results of its annual poll on issues in American education. We always anticipate this nonpartisan survey because it provides a window into the minds of the general public… Read More

This article was first published on palmettopromise.org Dropping test scores for students with disabilities cast another shadow on South Carolina’s education system. The National Assessment of Education Progress (NAEP), otherwise known as The Nation’s Report Card, reveals that education outcomes for South Carolina’s special needs students have worsened considerably… Read More

This article was first published on palmettopromise.org This week, I was honored to be invited to speak to the Downtown Aiken Rotary, one of the oldest and largest clubs in the state. Education was front and center. My mission: to pack this massive (and massively important) issue into a… Read More

This article was first published on palmettopromise.org South Carolina continues to sink below our southeastern neighbors in education outcomes. On almost every indicator, data shows that South Carolina is behind the curve. In light of that, Palmetto Promise has done some digging to look at how… Read More

This article was first published on palmettopromise.org When it comes to fixing the problems in our state’s worst performing school districts, nearly everyone thinks that bold action at the state level is needed. But, in the face of immense local pressure to stand down, will the state act? There were signs of… Read More

This article was first published on palmettopromise.org With over 70 sources of money, South Carolina’s system for funding our public schools is one of the most complicated in the country! That’s why this illustration is so powerful—total spending on programs is significant and administrative expenses are growing. But dollars tied to the needs of… Read More

This article was first published on palmettopromise.org The 2019 South Carolina legislative session saw a strong focus on K-12 education. New education spending topped $290 million. While many important needs were met, most notably the teacher pay increase, there is still work to be done in order to unlock… Read More

This article was first published on palmettopromise.org Dr. Francis McMann. Graduate of the famed University of Chicago school of economics. John Wayne movie aficionado. And the public high school teacher whose AP U.S. History and Economics classes shaped my life and put me on the path to doing the… Read More

This article was first published on palmettopromise.org When the South Carolina Senate debated the state budget last week, a key fiscal issue occupied a fair amount of time in the deliberative body: the adequacy of K-12 education funding. Senator Mike Fanning (D-Fairfield) declared that education in South Carolina is… Read More