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Board reviews Act 114 "Read to Succeed" requirements and teacher training
Summary
Chief Academic Officer Miss Stubbs told the board that new state law (Act 114) requires third-graders to demonstrate reading proficiency on SC READY or meet a good‑cause exemption; the district is implementing parent notifications, summer reading camps and LETRS professional development for K–3 teachers.
At the Dec. 10 board meeting, Chief Academic Officer Miss Stubbs briefed the Chesterfield County Board of Education on the state’s Read to Succeed legislation (Act 114) and district steps to implement the requirement for third‑grade reading proficiency.
Miss Stubbs said Act 114 mandates that third‑grade students demonstrate reading proficiency on SC READY by the end of the school year; students who do not meet the benchmark must repeat third grade unless they qualify for a good‑cause exemption. She listed the district’s identified exemptions: participation in summer reading camp, an acceptable score on an alternative assessment (i‑Ready), documented special‑education status, or multilingual learner identification.
Miss Stubbs described an outreach timeline: the district will collect additional data after winter Ready testing in January and teachers will meet individually with parents to review progress and next steps. The chief academic officer also highlighted ongoing professional development: K–3 teachers have completed LETRS (Language Essentials for Teachers of Reading and Spelling) training over two years and 4K staff will complete a one‑year program.
The curriculum report covered assessments and engagement programs as well. Miss Stubbs noted EOC benchmark assessments were administered Nov. 20–26 and that DRC Beacon, a state pilot assessment tool, has been used to support readiness. She also described recent and upcoming student experiences, including a Clemson University visit for interventionists and a NASA Langley Research Center presentation for middle‑school science students.
Board members pressed for details on parent notification and the structure of teacher training. Miss Stubbs said district staff (including Beth Suggs) have been creating timelines for notification and that training is a hybrid of online modules plus virtual facilitator sessions, with a follow‑up teacher workday planned for Jan. 2.
Why this matters: Act 114 affects retention policy for third graders and sets a timetable for parent notification and remediation; the district is pairing the mandate with targeted teacher professional development to support early literacy.
