A Vision for Excellence
August 14, 2007 : Nancy McGinley certainly has a passion for public education. From her first words, we understood her to be a strong advocate for both teachers and students. Her opening statement: I still wake up every day in awe of the power of public education are the words of an individual who is a product of public education.
Our new Superintendent came to Charleston County School District (CCSD) in 2004 as the Chief Academic Officer and was the person most responsible for driving the work of the Charleston Plan for Excellence. Her appointment in May of 2007 received strong support from the business community, government leaders, and the employees of CCSD, who have come to know her.
Her brief program adeptly outlined her vision for the CCSD. She made an effort to convey to our audience that she was not willing to ask of others what she would not give herself. Because of her leadership, personnel at the District Offices will twice a month be volunteering their time as part of the Leaders as Readers program. In addition, the 60 Second Campaign wisely focuses school personnel on customer service. In this campaign, each and every visitor to the school is greeted and treated in a respectful manner. This initiative reinforces McGinley’s statement regarding the fact that parents are the most influential teachers in a child’s life. School districts need a sustained effort to make parents feel welcome and respected at their child’s school.
Her rallying points such as “Victory is in the Classroom” and “Excellence is our Standard” are exciting to all of us. In her vision, student achievement is the end-goal of everyone at CCSD. From the bus drivers to the cafeteria workers, all are held accountable for student achievement. Within this vision, Dr. McGinley understands that the mindset of the teachers is of utmost importance.
Dr. McGinley strongly believes that if teachers are well taken care of, they will be diligent in educating our children. All teachers in CCSD now have comprehensive Curriculum Guides that took over three years to create. The Curriculum Guides focus on both the State and National Standards and were developed to prepare our students to fare well on State and Exit Exams.
The coming years will see several improvements to the education of children in Charleston County. Three new school choices were announced:
1. Low Country High-Tech High (2010 at Rivers Campus)
2. Math and Science Charter MS/ HS (2008)
3. Advanced Placement Academy at Burke (soon to come)
In addition, CCSD has achieved great milestones. The rate of teacher vacancy is at an all time low, school crime is down 27% for serious incidents, 70% of every dollar spent goes directly to student instruction, and they currently project spending over $400M on new schools over the next several years.
In closing, Dr. McGinley reminded us that, of the 44,000 students that Charleston County serves, over 20,000 children live at (or near) poverty level. This presents an enormous challenge to the school district, the business community, and our area as a whole. We should all be doing our part to help these children receive the education that they deserve.
Submitted by Angie Johnson, Keyway Committee