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South Carolina charter leaders cite rapid enrollment growth and seek sustainable, equitable funding
Summary
Leaders from the South Carolina Public Charter School District and the Charter Institute at Erskine told a legislative subcommittee that charter enrollment is rising quickly, leaving more than 6,000 families on waitlists and creating urgent needs around funding, transportation and facilities.
Chris Neely, superintendent of the South Carolina Public Charter School District, told a legislative subcommittee that the district expects to serve more than 30,000 students next year and is urging lawmakers to adopt sustainable, equitable funding to close a roughly $8,000 per‑student gap with traditional public schools.
Neely said the district’s growth has more than doubled since 2020, when enrollment was about 15,544, and that a wait list of more than 6,000 families is seeking seats in charter schools. “We have a wait list of more than 6,000 families looking to get into a public charter school district,” Neely said. He estimated the district could approach about 40,000 students by 2030.
Why it matters: rapid enrollment shifts change budget formulas and raise questions about transportation and facilities. Neely urged support for a transportation pilot and lauded a recent state decision that allows charter schools to buy fuel through the state, calling it “a big win for students.” He also highlighted Superintendent Weaver’s proposed $120,000,000 infrastructure bank as a potential tool for helping charter and rural schools secure and renovate buildings.
The district provided financial figures and projections to the committee. Neely said the 45‑day membership (ADM) report showed 21,850 students and projected ADM of roughly 30,147 next year; he verbally cited a projected weight‑per‑unit statistic described in the presentation. He also showed a scenario of how budget cuts could affect students: a 1% reduction, per the district’s slide, would leave 841 students without funding; 2% would affect over 1,600; 3% would affect over 2,500.
Committee members pressed Neely on capacity and staff oversight as the district grows. When asked about average teacher pay, Neely said the district’s average teacher salary is about $57,000 compared with a statewide average near $61,000, and noted that very few charter schools can afford to participate in the state retirement system. That limitation, he said, can discourage mobility between traditional and charter districts and affects recruitment.
Neely described a framework the district uses to oversee schools, including a district-specific FOA index that evaluates finances, operations and academics. He said the board has closed five poorly performing schools in six years and that the district’s board has voted to accept 14 transfer schools from the Limestone Charter Association under the state’s closure protocol. He offered to provide the committee the FOA index and related material.
Neely also described the district’s fiscal position and facilities strategy: the district purchased a large former church on Barnwell Street in Columbia five years ago for about $1,400,000, carries no debt on that property and is using surplus funds to invest in staff and schools. “We have no debt. Our district has no debt. 0 debt,” Neely said.
What comes next: the subcommittee scheduled a one‑hour follow-up meeting after session on Tuesday and asked both presenters to return to answer additional questions.
Sources: Testimony from Chris Neely to a legislative subcommittee (transcript).
