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Board approves Denmark High School turnaround plan after three consecutive below-average ratings
Summary
Trustees approved a continuous improvement/turnaround plan for Denmark High School that sets goals to raise EOC passing rates by a minimum of 8%, lift graduation rates and boost college- and career-readiness; the plan includes an outside consultant, weekly progress reports and regular reviews.
The Bamberg County School District Board of Trustees voted Monday to approve a continuous improvement (turnaround) plan for Denmark High School after the school recorded three consecutive below-average state report-card ratings.
Dr. Simmons told trustees the plan was developed with input from the school-improvement council and the community and noted that the South Carolina Department of Education requires local board approval before submission. "The Continuous Improvement plan has been shared ... they reviewed it ... we did post it on our website for public comment and we received no public comment," Dr. Simmons said.
The plan sets three headline goals for the 202425 school year: increase the percentage of students scoring at or above the passing threshold on each end-of-course (EOC) exam by at least 8 percentage points; raise the graduation rate from 81.6% to 89.7%; and boost college- and career-readiness from 46.9% to 60.9%. Under each goal the plan lists strategies including high-quality instructional materials, weekly progress reports generated from PowerSchool, and targeted supports using an educational consultant.
Trustees questioned monitoring and cost. One trustee asked whether the district's contract with Varsity Tutors would be counted three times if used for multiple strategies; Dr. Simmons said the cost would be a single entry and that the district has engaged an outside consultant for year two of supports. Board members also discussed a 30/60/90-day review cadence and Dr. Simmons committed to sharing periodic progress reports with the board.
A motion to approve the Denmark High School continuous improvement/turnaround plan carried by voice vote with no opposition. The superintendent will submit the approved plan to the South Carolina Department of Education as required.
