News stories from 2020

RSS Feed

Foundation for Educational Excellence awards 26 grants to local teachers and schools

11/18/2020

Teachers applying this year were very creative - thinking “virtually and outside” the classroom.

clear

Face-to-face instruction five days a week set for January 4, 2021

11/13/2020

Sixty-two percent of Beaufort County School District students currently participate in hybrid instruction, with the remaining 38 percent receiving virtual instruction.

clear

Forensic audit of BCSD's debt service accounts reveals no improper transactions

11/11/2020

The forensic audit was the third special review conducted in addition to the regular independent audits that are conducted each year by outside firms.

clear

One year after countywide referendum vote, school district building projects are on track

11/05/2020

Two of the six largest building projects are either complete or nearing completion, one is under way, and the other three are in the planning stages

clear

The SC Department of Education releases the 2019-20 Report Cards

10/30/2020

The state-issued report cards are required by a federal education law called the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA).

clear

Megan DeWeese named 2020-21 District Teacher of the Year

10/09/2020

Ms. DeWeese, Ed.D., is a first-grade teacher at Okatie Elementary School.

clear

Construction contracts for RSIA, BCHS referendum projects approved

10/08/2020

The two construction firms approved by the Board of Education – JE Dunn for Robert Smalls and M.B. Kahn for Battery Creek – were recommended by a committee consisting of two principals, two members from the district’s Office of Facilities, Planning and Construction and one community member with experience overseeing projects.

clear

District revises meal distribution schedule during hybrid instruction

10/05/2020

All district students – virtual learners as well as those resuming face-to-face instruction – will still be able to get free meals, and family income will not be a factor.

clear

SCOIR and Parchment, two online services, will aid high school students with transcripts and college admissions

09/25/2020

Students can now virtually visit hundreds of colleges, complete their college applications and send their high school transcripts electronically.

clear

River Ridge Academy opens the doors on new classrooms

09/23/2020

All referendum projects and expenditures are being independently monitored by the Citizen-Led Oversight Committee.

clear

Schools set to start face-to-face hybrid model on Oct. 5

09/17/2020

In a hybrid AA/BB model, half of the school’s population who registered for face-to-face instruction will attend school on Monday and Tuesday and the other half will attend on Thursday and Friday.

clear

Five classroom teachers nominated for district Teacher of the Year

09/17/2020

Becoming District Teacher of the Year is a three-step process that began when school-level teachers of the year were selected in April.

clear

CLOC releases third quarterly monitoring report

09/16/2020

CLOC’s third quarterly report, and all of CLOC’s monitoring reports and meeting minutes are archived on the CLOC webpage.

clear

Parker's donates $30,000 to Beaufort County School District

09/16/2020

Parker’s operates 66 convenience stores in Georgia and South Carolina.

clear

Three district seniors are 2021 National Merit Scholarship semifinalists

09/09/2020

More than 1.5 million high school students from about 21,000 American high schools entered the 2021 National Merit Scholarship Program by taking the Preliminary SAT/National Merit Scholarship Qualifying Test.

clear

Face-to-face instruction and therapy services will be provided to certain special education students

09/02/2020

Half-day face-to-face instruction for special education students will commence Sept. 14 in a hybrid model.

clear

Battery Creek High authorized to offer prestigious Cambridge International Program

08/28/2020

Cambridge Assessment International is offered for students ages 11 to 19 and is part of the University of Cambridge in the United Kingdom

clear

SCNSPRA honors district educators with nine awards

08/21/2020

SC/NSPRA is a statewide organization of school district communications professionals who advocate for public education and model and share effective communications practices.

clear

BCSD adopts a full-virtual educational model when school reopens on Sept. 8

08/04/2020

More information on both virtual educational platforms will be provided to parents in a briefing later this week.

clear

Whale Branch Early College High earns 2020 Pacesetter Award

07/24/2020

The 2020 Pacesetter award marks the second SREB recognition for Whale Branch Early College High, which two years ago was honored as the organization’s first Platinum-Level “Ready-Certified” high school.

clear

BCSD releases 2020-21 Reopening Plan

07/17/2020

The plan calls for students, teachers and school staff to wear masks during the school day, and it also details protocols for what will happen if students or school staff become ill.

clear

Revised 2020-2021 school calendar under development

07/16/2020

The revised 2020-21 school calendar would delay the first day of school from August 17 until September 8.

clear

Online registration for the 2020-21 school year is now open

07/13/2020

Details of the district’s reopening plan will be released to parents on Friday, July 17.

clear

The Seal of Biliteracy honors 25 BCSD graduating seniors

07/07/2020

The Seal demonstrates a student's proficiency in both English and at least one additional world language by their graduations.

clear

2019-20 WordMasters Challenge

06/29/2020

The WordMasters Challenge, the nation’s longest-running vocabulary competition for elementary and middle school students, holds three meets each school year for nearly 125,000 students.

clear

Veteran educators fill three principal positions

06/25/2020

The three new principals will serve Lady's Island Middle, Robert Smalls International Academy and Hilton Head Island School for Creative Arts

clear

Summer reading camps; student athlete practices postponed

06/25/2020

According to DHEC, Beaufort County now has a High rating in all three COVID-19 metrics and an overall rating of High.

clear

Book Drop Extravaganza

06/23/2020

Each Monday morning, through August 2, picture books and chapters books will be dropped at specific locations across Beaufort County.

Read More About Book Drop Extravaganza

clear

CLOC releases second quarterly monitoring report

06/23/2020

The CLOC meets monthly and makes quarterly reports to the Board of Education that are posted to the committee’s website.

clear

Key administrative positions filled at the district office

06/10/2020

Deputy Superintendent/Chief of Schools, Director of Communications and Director of Budget and Procurement are the three positions that have been filled.

clear

2020-21 BCSD academic calendar set

06/10/2020

Three possible weather make-up are included: Nov. 25, Dec. 23 and January 4.

clear

Summer referendum-funded project update

06/08/2020

All operations at several district school campuses will be relocated this summer during referendum-funded renovations.

clear

Free meal distribution will continue through June 30

06/05/2020

Distribution dates will move to three days per week (Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays). Two breakfasts and two lunches per student will be distributed on Mondays and Wednesdays, and three breakfasts and three lunches per student will be distributed on Fridays.

clear

Whale Branch seniors earn diplomas and degrees

06/03/2020

13 students took advantage of a partnership with the Technical College of the Lowcountry that allows Whale Branch students to take college courses – and earn two-year associate’s degrees – while still in high school at no cost to themselves or their parents.

clear

Class of 2020 celebrations begin

05/29/2020

Drive-through celebrations and movie premieres celebrating the graduating Class of 2020 will take place next week across the Beaufort County School District.

clear

2020 Senior Scholars Honored

05/28/2020

Senior Scholars have maintained a cumulative 3.5 grade-point average or higher, are ranked in the top 10 percent of their graduating classes and have earned the equivalent of a 3.5 GPA in all quarters of their high school courses.

clear

Hilton Head Island School for Creative Arts math champions

05/27/2020

The winning team was coached by Sandy Courtney and Christina Schaber.

clear

Additional referendum project architects and constructions firms approved by BOE

05/20/2020

The Citizen-Led Oversight Committee, an independent group of volunteers, is monitoring all referendum building projects, schedules, budgets and expenditures.

clear

2020 BCSD Junior Scholars

05/08/2020

Students were recognized during a Facebook Live ceremony after the annual Junior Scholars Banquet was canceled due to the state-ordered shutdown of all schools.

clear

2020 graduation ceremonies will combine videos and celebrations

05/05/2020

District high schools will schedule specific times for graduating seniors to bring two guests apiece to their schools.

clear

P-card purchased documented, audit finds

05/05/2020

After examining 2,664 purchases between July 1, 2018 and June 30, 2019, Mauldin & Jenkins found no unauthorized purchases and determined that district procurement procedures had been followed.

clear

students doing math problems on a greenboard

Red Cedar Foxes named regional math champs

05/04/2020

Red Cedar’s student team bested 31 other teams in the Region 4 Continental Math League competition.

clear

Surprising teachers and support staff of 2020

2020 District Teachers and Support Staff of the Year

05/04/2020

Last week principals and school staff visited teachers and support staff at home from 6 feet, hosted surprise Zoom meetings, and staged reveals during packet pick-up to make the special announcements.

clear

District's high schools ranked by "U.S. News & World Report"

05/01/2020

U.S. News compiles its annual rankings based on student test scores, on-time graduation rates and how well schools prepare students for college (college Advanced Placement courses).

clear

Teaching Through Television

04/14/2020

Students in grades K-2 have a new way to continue their learning at home.

clear

Project construction at River Ridge Academy

CLOC (Citizen-Led Oversight Committee) releases its first monitoring report

04/08/2020

CLOC meets monthly and plans to make quarterly reports to the Board of Education that will also be posted to the committee’s website.

clear

Start dates for the 2020-21 academic calendar approved

04/08/2020

The Board of Education has approved two possible starting dates for the next school year – August 10 and August 17.

clear

Beaufort County School District assigned Aa1 credit rating

03/26/2020

Beaufort County continues to hold the second-highest rating among South Carolina’s 82 school districts.

clear

Meal Routes/Rutas de Comida

03/20/2020

The revised procedures are designed to maintain safe physical distances between parents, students, food service workers and bus drivers.

clear

N'Kia Campbell selected as interim principal at Lady's Island Middle

03/19/2020

Campbell has spent her entire 22-year education career in Beaufort County, beginning with teaching fourth- and fifth-graders at Shell Point Elementary School.

clear

Governor closes all schools

03/15/2020

Gov. Henry McMaster today ordered all South Carolina schools to close until March 31.

clear

Bluffton High's AWQ winning team accepts the trophy

Bluffton High team is this year's Academic WorldQuest Champions

03/09/2020

Academic WorldQuest is the flagship educational program of the national network of World Affairs Councils and is held annually in more than 40 U.S. cities in 27 states.

clear

2020 Teacher Job Fair

03/05/2020

The event is being held March 7, from 8:30-11:30 a.m. at Bluffton High School.