District reports preliminary gains from attendance pilot that paid students; equity gap narrowed in elementary schools

Charleston County School District officials told the board on May 19, 2025, that an attendance pilot that provided up to $25 per week per student for perfect attendance produced measurable early gains, particularly in elementary schools and among students in poverty.

Superintendent Huggins and district staff summarized preliminary results from a third‑party analysis of a nine‑week pilot conducted in 10 schools. ‘‘If you look across our system, it would equate to approximately 35,000 additional student days of instruction,’’ the superintendent said, citing the elementary school gains and noting the analysis period was effectively shorter than nine weeks for some measures.

District officials said the pilot paid students $25 per week for full five‑day attendance, for a possible total of $225 per student. The district issued reloadable debit cards that were reloaded after each qualifying week. Staff said transaction reporting allowed the district to see spending categories and, in the aggregate, most funds were used for groceries, bills and transportation; some families accumulated multiple installments before using them to pay utilities.

Officials described the most notable effects as an equity gain. ‘‘Overall, the attendance gap between pupils in poverty and non‑pupils in poverty over the course of the 9‑week pilot nearly disappeared,’’ the superintendent said. Staff added that English‑language learners and Hispanic students showed particularly strong responses in the pilot schools.

A district staffer reported a rough per‑student return‑on‑investment signal at $225 per student for the pilot schools, and said the district will compare attendance improvements with academic indicators such as SC Ready and diagnostic assessments. ‘‘We want to know what works for kids, so we genuinely can make a difference in kids’ lives,’’ the superintendent said.

Trustees asked for additional analysis before any decision to scale the program. Questions included how families spent the funds, whether attendance fell after the incentive stopped, which grade levels showed sustained gains, and how many students a scaled program would reach. District staff said they can track purchases to categories and would return with more complete academic growth data and implementation scenarios.

Board discussion also touched on policy and budget implications. The CFO had earlier told the public there is an earmarked contingency for some policy changes; staff said the district would be deliberate about any broader rollout and target schools where the pilot produced the largest academic and attendance returns.