During the 2025–26 school year, South Lake Elementary continued to cultivate a culture grounded in leadership, positive relationships, and collaboration among students, staff, families, and community partners. This intentional focus supported the school's vision of fostering a caring community where students flourish as communicators, collaborators, creators and critical thinkers. Through meaningful partnerships, a safe and inclusive learning environment and a commitment to student-centered practices, South Lake Elementary strengthened a school culture where students and staff learned from and supported one another while encouraging academic risk-taking, personal growth and student success.
The Lexington One Graduate Profile was intentionally embedded into daily instruction and school-wide experiences, providing a common framework for developing the knowledge, skills and habits essential for future success. Throughout the year, teachers integrated the profile attributes into academic instruction, classroom discussions and student interactions, emphasizing knowledgeable and creative thinking, effective communication and collaboration, independent learning, future readiness, personal and social responsibility, kindness and resilience.
Each month, students explored a designated Graduate Profile trait through classroom lessons, discussions, modeling and recognition activities. These experiences helped students make meaningful connections between the profile attributes and their academic learning, relationships, decision-making and leadership opportunities. Within each classroom, students assumed leadership roles through classroom jobs that promoted responsibility, accountability, collaboration and service to others. These authentic leadership experiences provided opportunities for students to practice initiative, communication, teamwork and problem-solving while making meaningful contributions to their classroom communities. Students learned that leadership is demonstrated through everyday actions that positively influence the learning environment and support the success of others.
South Lake Elementary also reinforced these leadership attributes through its Positive Behavior Support System. Students who consistently demonstrated the expectations of "Be Safe, Be Responsible and Be Respectful" were recognized through a school-wide ticket system that celebrated positive character, responsible decision-making and behaviors aligned with both the Positive Behavior Support framework and the Lexington One Graduate Profile. This intentional recognition strengthened positive relationships, reinforced student leadership, and contributed to a safe, respectful, and supportive school culture.
South Lake Elementary's instructional program remained grounded in the implementation of high-quality, research-based instructional practices designed to improve student achievement. In literacy, the school's literacy coach collaborated with grade-level teams to implement a backward design approach to curriculum planning and support the effective use of student data to guide differentiated small-group instruction. To strengthen foundational literacy instruction, kindergarten through third-grade teachers and special area teachers participated in the state's Language Essentials for Teachers of Reading and Spelling (LETRS) professional learning, establishing a shared understanding of the science of reading and a common instructional language across the school. Teachers also implemented Heggerty Phonemic Awareness and UFLI Foundations to provide systematic, explicit instruction in foundational literacy skills. Ongoing professional learning communities (PLCs), facilitated by the literacy coach, focused on strengthening instructional practices through collaborative planning, vocabulary development, reading comprehension, small-group instruction and the analysis of student work to inform instructional decisions.
In mathematics, South Lake Elementary prioritized the implementation of the South Carolina College- and Career-Ready Mathematics Standards across kindergarten through fifth grade. The school's mathematics coach provided targeted professional learning on effective intervention strategies, facilitated collaborative data analysis and supported teachers through the planning, pacing, and implementation of the newly adopted mathematics curriculum. Teachers consistently incorporated fluency and number sense routines into daily instruction while using item analysis to identify instructional strengths and opportunities for growth at both the classroom and grade levels. Additionally, fourth- and fifth-grade teachers completed OGAP Fraction Foundations training, strengthening their instructional practices and deepening students' conceptual understanding of fractions and mathematical reasoning.
Student progress was continuously monitored through the school's Multi-Tiered System of Supports (MTSS) framework. Grade-level teams, interventionists, instructional coaches, administrators and support staff met regularly to analyze multiple sources of student data, monitor progress toward grade-level standards, and evaluate the effectiveness of core instruction and targeted interventions. These collaborative data meetings informed instructional adjustments, intervention placement and the delivery of tiered academic and behavioral supports to ensure that each student received timely, individualized assistance.
Ongoing progress monitoring within intervention groups enabled educators to evaluate student growth, determine mastery of essential skills and make data-informed instructional decisions. Through the consistent implementation of evidence-based interventions and collaborative problem-solving, South Lake Elementary ensured that instructional practices remained responsive to student needs while providing every learner with the support necessary to achieve academic and behavioral success.
In its capacity as a Title I school, South Lake Elementary maintained a commitment to providing equitable access to essential resources for all learners. Title I federal funding was strategically leveraged to support academic achievement through professional learning opportunities for staff, the expansion of high-quality instructional materials, and family engagement. To facilitate a successful transition into the academic year, every student received necessary school supplies, while classrooms were outfitted with supplementary resources designed to enhance student-centered instructional practices.
The school also prioritized the extension of literacy development into the home environment by hosting a Title I-sponsored book fair, where each student selected three high-interest books to expand their personal libraries and encourage summer reading. Furthermore, the school's Title I family liaison acted as an essential bridge between home and school, effectively connecting families with community resources, enhancing communication channels and fostering collaborative partnerships that directly supported student growth and success.
As South Lake Elementary looks to the future, the school remains committed to continuous improvement and to providing a supportive, engaging learning environment where every student is empowered to thrive, reach their full potential and achieve lasting success.
Jennifer Stanley, Principal
Kayla Brown, SIC Chair
