The latest SC READY assessment data available shows a clear pattern of improvement for the Edgefield County School District, with students demonstrating impressive growth in both English Language Arts (ELA) and Math.

Johnston, SC – The Edgefield County School District (ECSD) is recognized as a statewide leader in student growth in math and shows tremendous gains according to SC Ready assessment data (assessments taken in 2024-25) released today by the South Carolina Department of Education. SC Ready is administered to public school students in 3rd-8th grades.

Significant Gains in English Language Arts (ELA)

In ELA, ECSD’s “Meets and Exceeds” scores increased from 50.7% in 2024 to 58.5% in 2025, a 7.8 percentage point increase. This is a testament to the hard work of students, teachers, and staff, and it represents a greater year-over-year increase than the state’s gain of 6.1 percentage points.

While ECSD is just below the state (58.5% vs. 60.2%) in terms of students in the “Meets and Exceeds” categories, the school district also has 1.6% fewer students in the “Does Not Meet Category” than the state.

Exceptional Progress in Math

Even more remarkable are the gains in Math. According to state assessment data, ECSD’s “Meets and Exceeds” scores increased by 8.5 percentage points, making Edgefield the second highest district in the state in terms of growth. This is more than five times the state’s growth of 1.6 percentage points during the same period. The data shows while the state improved its “Exceeds” numbers, ECSD excelled in elevating a significant number of students into the “Meets” category. This highlights a district-wide effort to ensure more students are grasping foundational concepts and moving toward proficiency.

This strong growth is a direct result of the dedicated efforts within the school district and serves as a promising indicator of future success for all Edgefield students.

“Our teachers have been through a lot the last couple of years with new standards being adopted and having to learn new instructional materials,” stated ECSD Superintendent Dr. Kevin O’Gorman. “They’ve really stepped up to the plate and adapted to these changes to meet the needs of their students. This new data shows that very single school in our district had gains in both subjects. I couldn’t be prouder of the growth we’ve seen, and I can’t wait to see what they do next.”

The school district will highlight school-specific SC READY academic gains in a separate release.

Meanwhile, across the state students continue to make real progress toward the state’s ambitious goal of having at least 75% of students performing at or above grade level by 2030, according to the state’s assessment of the SC READY results.

Thanks to the dedication of South Carolina’s educators — now equipped with powerful tools through clear and consistent training and high-quality instructional materials — student achievement continues to climb, with momentum building in classrooms across the state.

Key Statewide Takeaways:

• More South Carolina students than ever are reading on grade level. This year:

o 61.7% of 3rd graders statewide are at or above grade level

o 63.5% of 4th graders statewide are at or above grade level

o 62.5% of 5th graders statewide are at or above grade level

• Every student can achieve:

o Students living in poverty saw gains in ELA scores statewide across all grade levels

o Students with disabilities saw gains in proficiency and significant decreases in ‘Does Not Meet’ scores across all grades

o Gains strongest in 3rd grade, as expected given the strong alignment of focus and supports around early literacy.

• Teachers are better equipped with the tools they need:

o Alignment of standards, professional development, high quality instructional materials, and clear, rigorous assessments makes a measurable impact on student achievement and understanding, especially in ELA.

o The same strategy boosting reading achievement — clear and coherent standards, aligned assessments, high quality professional development paired with high quality instructional materials, and instructional coaching — is now being deployed through the Palmetto Math Project to make every SC student a “math kid.”

National Context: NAEP 2024

The most recent NAEP (Nation’s Report Card) results, released in January 2025, showed troubling national trends – reading scores declined again, and math recovery remained flat.

Yet South Carolina stood out as one of the nation’s leading states for growth, a rare bright spot in an otherwise challenging national picture. In fact, when the Urban Institute adjusted all state’s scores to account for poverty, South Carolina’s performance ranked 8th in the nation.

This national context underscores that South Carolina’s progress is not only real but nationally recognized—clear evidence that the state’s reforms are making an impact where many others are still struggling.

“These results are a powerful reflection of what’s possible when dedicated educators, focused and supportive leadership, and engaged families come together with a shared mission. South Carolina recently distinguished itself on The Nation’s Report Card as one of the few states where students both maintained and moved forward. With these new SC Ready results, we have confirmed that this nationally recognized ‘Southern Surge’ is now truly South Carolina’s Surge,” said State Superintendent Ellen Weaver.

She added, “Reading is the foundation of all other learning, so I’m especially encouraged by the strong gains in early literacy. This is clear evidence that when we align our efforts from the Statehouse to the schoolhouse, we move the needle for kids. But we aren’t content to stop here. We are accelerating this work in both reading and math with urgency and purpose, because our students won’t get a second shot at their education and every one of them deserves the opportunity to reach their full God-given potential.”

• Content Standards: Recently revised standards are more coherent and ensure students in grades K-4 develop foundational skills and content knowledge.

• LETRS Training: All K–3 teachers (over 20,000) are currently completing or have finished LETRS training, a high-quality professional development course aligned to the Science of Reading.

• Read to Succeed: The 2024–25 school year marks the first full school year with the updated Read to Succeed Act in place, ensuring the implementation of proven strategies that improve literacy outcomes.

• Expanded Summer Reading Camps: Now serving all third-grade students scoring in the Does Not Meet category on SC READY. Districts will be required to offer summer reading camps to first graders (following the 2025-26 school year) and second graders (following 2026-27 school year) who have not demonstrated grade-level reading proficiency.

• Palmetto Math Project: Launched in pilot schools in Spring 2025 to support math achievement through targeted interventions and teacher training. This program will continue to expand to reach more schools and students.