Richland One is helping all students develop the world-class skills of the Profile of the South Carolina Graduate through a rigorous curriculum, high-quality instruction, personalized learning experiences and unique enrichment opportunities designed to prepare our students for college and careers.
In the 2023-2024 school year, we continued to see the power that being focused on our mission and being consistent in our work have in producing amazing outcomes for our students and for our district overall. The support and engagement of our parents and our community partners continue to be essential to our success. Our Points of Pride for 2023-2024 reflect the numerous accomplishments made by students, staff, schools and departments throughout the district.
With funding from a five-year $14.9 million Magnet Schools Assistance Program (MSAP) grant from the U.S. Department of Education, we launched three new BLAST (Building Lasting Aerospace and STEM Trajectories) magnet programs at Watkins-Nance Elementary, W.A. Perry Middle and Columbia High schools.
Our Class of 2024 graduates earned over $69 million in scholarships. The class included five National Merit Scholarship finalists. Also, 181 seniors were honored as Richland One Academic All-Stars in recognition of their outstanding academic achievements. To qualify as Academic All-Stars, students must have at least a 3.5 GPA, rank in the top 10 percent of their high school’s senior class and have no grade lower than a C for any subject taken for high school credit. The Class of 2024 also included 138 Honor Graduates.
In Richland One, we work to provide our students with as many competitive advantages as possible. One way we do that is through our dual enrollment programs and partnerships with higher education institutions. During the 2023-2024 school year, 21 Richland One students earned certificates or associate degrees through our dual enrollment program with Midlands Technical College.
Also in 2023-2024, 528 Richland One students completed career and technical education (CTE) programs of study, with many earning state and nationally recognized certifications. A record-high 87 Richland One students earned the South Carolina Seal of Biliteracy by meeting proficiency requirements in English and at least one other world language. Fifty-two elementary and middle school students had perfect scores in math, science or both subject areas on the spring 2023 SC READY state assessments.
In the 2024 Superintendent’s Book Club Challenge, our elementary and middle school students far exceeded the challenge goal to read for at least 1.5 million minutes between February 12 and March 28 by reading for 6,010,907 minutes.
This year, 246 eighth-grade students were recognized as Richland One Junior Academic All-Stars. Also, 242 students representing all of our elementary, middle and high schools and special programs were recognized at the district level as Richland One Rising Stars for their improvement in academics, attendance, discipline, overcoming obstacles and other areas.
Also in 2023-2024, our visual and performing arts students and programs earned 313 honors and awards. Richland One students also continued to excel in athletics, with a team state championship win in boys golf and five individual state championship wins in track and field.
Individual student honors and awards in 2023-2024 included the SC Work-Based Learning Student of Year. Individual staff honors and awards included the SCASBSE Assistant Principal of the Year; SCABSE Superintendent of the Year; MEBA CTE School Counselor of the Year; and the district’s first DAISY Award recipients (school nurses).
The district also received several prestigious honors and awards, including Partnership District Award from the National Network of Partnership Schools at Johns Hopkins University, as well as national and international awards for excellence in financial reporting and accounting for the 36th consecutive year. Also, 48 of our schools were named among America’s Healthiest Schools – more award recipients than any other district in the state.
We anticipate even greater outcomes as we begin implementing our new Strategic Plan in the 2024-2025 school year. By continuing to work together as one team and keeping our students at the core of all we do, there is no limit to what we can accomplish in Richland One. #TeamOne #OneTeam
Craig Witherspoon, Ed.D.
Richland One Superintendent
