Charleston expands Read to Succeed summer camp; third-grade retention rules and exemptions explained

Charleston County School District leaders outlined plans to expand the state-mandated Read to Succeed summer program and described how the district will apply South Carolina’s retention and good-cause exemption rules.

Under Act 114 as explained to the board, third-grade students who score “does not meet” on the state reading assessment are required to attend summer reading camp; the statute sets program standards and also specifies four good-cause exemptions. "Summer reading camp has to have 96 hours of science-of-reading-aligned literacy instruction," district staff told trustees, and teachers assigned to camp must hold appropriate literacy endorsements.

District presenters said they will invite first- and second-grade students to participate this year in addition to required third graders. The rationale is preventative: staff said intervening earlier can reduce later retention risk. The district plans nine camp sites, two certified teachers per classroom, progress monitoring during camp, and partnerships for child care and transportation. Staff described differentiated curriculum tracks (morphology/fluency, comprehension, structural literacy), small-group instruction (target ratios from 1:4 up to 1:8), and end-of-camp progress monitoring tied to promotion decisions.

The four good-cause exemptions the district listed are: limited-English learners with less than two years of ESOL instruction; students whose IEP requires alternate assessment or indicates a reading goal with intensive resource services; students already retained who are receiving interventions; and students who attend camp and then score “approaches” or higher on the post-camp diagnostic. In addition, schools can submit a superintendent promotion packet or parents can pursue an appeal process on a case-by-case basis.

Logistics: the district said it will provide transportation to and from camp sites, coordinate Kaleidoscope child-care partners where needed, and stagger schedules so first- and second-graders finish earlier in the day. Staff emphasized progress monitoring during camp and follow-up work in August to sustain gains.

What’s next: the district will begin outreach to families of students identified for camp and said registration and route planning are underway. Staff also committed to collecting family- and student-level feedback after camp to refine the program.