South Carolina

Overview

During the 2022-2023 school year, South Carolina preschool enrolled 26,294 children, an increase of 1,018 from the prior year. State spending totaled $101,741,923 with an additional $809,763 in federal recovery funds to support the program, down $1,127,393 (1%), adjusted for inflation, since last year. State spending per child (including federal recovery funds) equaled $3,900 in 2022-2023, down $202 from 2021-2022, adjusted for inflation. South Carolina met 7 of 10 quality standards benchmarks.

What's New

Based on the continued growth in Child Early Reading Development and Education Program (CERDEP) student enrollment, the state’s General Assembly increased state funding available for CERDEP in 2023-2024 to a minimum rate of $5,100 per student for instructional costs. As of July 2021, any school with a 60% or higher poverty index may request CERDEP funding, previously, only districts meeting the law’s poverty threshold were eligible.

In December 2022, South Carolina was awarded a federal Preschool Development Grant Birth through Five (PDG B–5) planning grant for $3,734,616. As a compliment to the SC ECIDS work, South Carolina is entering the fourth year of a federal data systems grant focused on extending the current K–12 longitudinal data system to include early learning partners.

The South Carolina Department of Education’s Office of Early Learning and Literacy (OELL) partnered with REL Southeast on multiple literacy initiatives over the past few years to create a resource guide and PLC model which was implemented in demonstration sites during 2022-2023. Using federal COVID-19 relief funds, the SCDE partnered with SC First Steps to support transitioning students into pre-K and kindergarten, recruit and retain pre-K teachers, engage parents, and monitor the health of early learners through early identification and referrals.

Background

South Carolina funds two preschool programs: the Education Improvement Act Child Development Program (EIA 4K) and the public/ private CERDEP. Both programs are delivered in public school settings via the South Carolina Department of Education’s Office of Early Learning and Literacy (OELL). CERDEP is co-administered in private preschool settings by South Carolina First Steps (First Steps 4K), the state’s school readiness initiative.

EIA 4K, initiated in 1984, is funded as part of a one-cent sales tax supporting public education projects. Eligibility for EIA 4K is prioritized by law for children eligible for FRPL or Medicaid and allows for consideration of children with documented developmental delays. EIA 4K districts may then set their own eligibility criteria from a state-specified list of risk factors. State funding is allocated to districts by OELL using a formula according to the number of kindergarten students who qualify for FRPL in each district. School districts now provide full-day programs, with the exception of a few continuing to offer half-day programs.

CERDEP, originally called the Child Development Education Pilot Program (CDEPP), was created as a pilot program in 2006 in response to Abbeville County School District, et. al. v. South Carolina, a lawsuit initiated by rural school districts regarding school equity funding, the program was codified in 2014 along with the state’s Read to Succeed legislation (Act 284). 

To monitor quality, OELL conducts visits including an evaluation based on the Early Language and Literacy Classroom Observation (ELLCO) used to provide feedback and support to ensure classrooms are language- and literacy-rich. Some programs receive additional monitoring, which includes a fidelity verification measuring curriculum implementation.

South Carolina Child Early Reading Development and Education Program and EIA/4K

Access

Total state pre-K enrollment	26,294
School districts that offer state program	100%
Income requirement	185% FPL
Minimum hours of operation	CERDEP: 6.5 hours/day; EIA 4K: 4 hours/day, 5 days/week
Operating schedule	School or academic year
Special education enrollment, ages 3 and 4	5,671
Federally funded Head Start enrollment, ages 3 and 4	7,433
State-funded Head Start enrollment, ages 3 and 4	0

Resources

*Pre-K programs may receive additional funds from federal or local sources that are not included in this figure. †Head Start per-child spending includes funding only for 3- and 4-year-olds. ‡K–12 expenditures include capital spending as well as current operating expenditures.