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Fort Mill board reviews strategic plan year‑4 update; discussion centers on PLCs, teacher turnover, absenteeism and draft 2026–27 calendar
Summary
District staff presented a year‑4 update to the district’s five‑year strategic plan, outlining four goal areas and citing declines in teacher turnover alongside continued work on PLCs, grading consistency, chronic absenteeism, and a draft two‑year‑out calendar for 2026–27. Staff said the district will return with materials for approval at a future meeting.
District staff presented a year‑four update on the Fort Mill School District’s five‑year strategic plan, described needs‑assessment sources and the plan template, and fielded detailed questions from trustees about teacher turnover, professional learning communities (PLCs), grading consistency, and chronic absenteeism.
Renee summarized the needs assessment process—data sources included Cognia accreditation feedback, achievement metrics, attendance and teacher retention data, climate surveys and focus groups—and explained the plan template that links goal areas to strategies, action steps, monitoring and evaluation. Dr. Wakesness (district leader) outlined four goal areas: leadership capacity, teaching and learning, resource capacity and personalized learning, noting the district is in year 4 of 5 and will submit a new plan in 2027 as it readies for a Cognia accreditation visit.
Board members pressed on concrete outcomes and supports. One trustee asked about a reported drop in turnover, and district staff said multiple factors contributed: partnerships with higher‑education institutions (Winthrop), recruitment funds, and expanded professional development and certification supports. The presentation cited a drop in the district’s teacher turnover rate and attributed retention gains in part to focused principal leadership, additional funding sources (Title II, rural recruitment funds), and local initiatives to create teacher pipelines.
Trustees also explored PLC implementation. Staff said PLC work began in elementary settings years ago, became a district focus more recently, and that principals and PLC specialists are attending meetings; staff estimated PLC buy‑in across K–12 could be roughly 70–85% depending on level, with highest adoption at elementary and middle schools and some remaining pushback at high schools.
On grading consistency, staff described recent implementation of common grading practices at the high‑school semester level and ongoing review with principals and a district grading committee to refine policy for middle and high school.
The board reviewed a draft two‑year‑out 2026–27 calendar presented by Mr. Burke (teacher start July 27; students Aug. 3). Burke noted the even‑year requirement to observe Election Day, the district’s goal of balanced semesters and protecting June/July, and tradeoffs for teacher workdays and breaks. The calendar was presented for information and will return to the board for recommendation and vote.
Staff said chronic absenteeism is being addressed through added social‑work resources, tracking student participation in extracurriculars to identify disconnected students, and focused outreach; administrators indicated mental health and transportation/parental barriers are among the causes. No formal board action was taken on these operational items during the meeting; staff said they will bring the strategic plan back for approval at a future meeting after trustees review updated materials.
