Colleton County school board adopts 2025-26 calendar; tables major facilities-use policy and approves multiple school plans and trips

The Colleton County School District Board of Trustees voted on Jan. 28 to adopt the district—s recommended 2025-26 school calendar, approved two schools' continuous improvement plans, cleared six overnight student field trips and accepted professional-staff recommendations following an executive session. The board also accepted a one-word title change to the district organizational chart (policy CCA) and voted to table a lengthy update to the community-use-of-school-facilities policy (policy KF) for additional review.

Superintendent Williams told the board she recommended "draft 1" of the 2025-26 calendar after a staff survey that opened Dec. 17, 2024, and closed Jan. 6, 2025. Williams said the survey received 443 responses: draft 1 received 311 votes, draft 2 received 118, and draft 3 received 14. She recommended draft 1 because it preserves the current pattern of the 2024-25 year (an early August start with several mid-year breaks). "My recommendation is draft 1," Superintendent Williams said during the presentation.

Trustee Sharon Witkin spoke against the full-week Thanksgiving break included in draft 1, saying the long holiday reduced time available for academic review before major assessments and that the early August start placed the district out of sync with neighboring districts. The board discussed attendance effects of a midweek start and whether starting on a Wednesday would affect first-day counts. After discussion, Trustee Erwin moved to accept draft 1; the motion passed by voice vote with the chair noting the motion carried.

Why it matters: the calendar governs school start and end dates, professional development days and major holiday breaks and can affect testing schedules, staff availability and family planning.

Key votes and approvals - Agenda: motion to approve agenda as presented (motion carried, unanimous). - Minutes: approval of December 10 and December 17 minutes (motion carried, unanimous). - Policy CCA (organizational chart): first reading approved to change the title "director of athletics" to "executive director of athletic operations" (policy committee recommendation; motion carried, unanimous). - Policy KF (community use of school facilities): board voted to table first reading of revisions and to continue review (motion to table carried, unanimous). - 2025-26 calendar: board approved superintendent-recommended draft 1 (motion carried; vote declared in favor). - Continuous improvement plans: the board approved the continuous improvement plans for Bells Elementary School and Colleton County Middle School and directed staff to submit them to the state (motion carried, unanimous). The plans include math- and literacy-focused interventions such as a schoolwide "math word of the day," 45 minutes weekly of fluency work, targeted pull-outs for multilingual learners and scheduled data conversations. - Overnight field trips: the board approved six overnight trip requests (details below). - Professional staff actions: after executive session the board accepted professional staff recommendations (listed in the meeting packet) and approved a superintendent hiring recommendation for a named employee pending finding a suitable replacement (motions carried).

Overnight trips approved (summary from packet) - Trip 3834: JAG Career Development Conference, Columbia, S.C., April (24 students, 3 adults). - Trip 3836: JAG National Career Development Conference, April 23-27 (12 students, 2 adults). - Trip 3843: South Carolina FTC Robotics Championship, Columbia, S.C. (16 students, 5 adults). - Trip 3845: Basic Leadership Training, Parris Island, April 30-May 2. - Trip 3850: Spring chorus trip, New York City, March 4-8 (16 students, 15 adults). - Trip 3857: South Carolina FFA Horse Judging, Clemson, March 28-29 (5 students, 2 adults).

Facilities, safety and operations updates Facilities and operations staff reported work on several capital and safety items. Dr. Wright said the new retractable bleachers at Colleton County Middle School are roughly 98% complete; remaining work centers on electrical hookup so the bleachers can retract. Materials for a replacement fire pump at the high school were ordered on Jan. 16, 2025; staff are working with county water officials and a consultant to finalize necessary parts and repairs. Cooling towers at one site remain not fully operational; administration said it is seeking deeper technical analysis and procurement options for repair. Physical education classes were reported to resume in the gym the day after the report.

Board members raised recurring issues about Wi-Fi coverage in the high school gym and other event spaces, noting that electronic ticketing for events can be hampered when cellular or Wi-Fi service is weak. The district—s technology office said it is exploring safe, temporary spectator Wi-Fi access while protecting district infrastructure and noted past cybersecurity incidents as a reason for caution.

Other business and community items The meeting opened with student presentations: Northside Elementary Safety Patrol presented its mission, and a Colleton County High School student sang the national anthem. The board observed School Board Recognition Month following a state proclamation and recognized students and staff across the district for "above and beyond" service. The superintendent highlighted upcoming events including a barbering and nail tech ribbon cutting and career expo at Thunderbolt Career & Technology Center (TCTC) on Feb. 6 and a Family Tech Talk on Jan. 30 focusing on online safety; FFA announced an appreciation breakfast for trustees on Feb. 18.

Discussion vs. decision The board distinguished discussion (calendar options, facility conditions, tech access) from formal decisions (calendar adoption, policy CCA first reading, tabling policy KF, approval of improvement plans and overnight trips, personnel actions). Several trustees asked for additional data or follow-up reports (for example, a request to compare spring-to-winter assessment results and more detailed budget/capital expense reporting).

Ending note Board members said they appreciated staff and community presentations and emphasized follow-up on facilities repairs, Wi-Fi for event operations and financing or procurement steps for capital projects. The board adjourned after taking the items to executive session and returning to approve personnel actions.