Spotlight One 2018 End-of-Year Brochure

Upgrades to Athletics Facilities Richland One’s stadiums and athletics fields soon will have a new look, thanks to the construction and renovation projects that are underway throughout the district.

Richland County School District One 1616 Richland Street Columbia, SC 29201

Non-Profit Org. US Postage PAID Columbia, SC Permit 611

Spotlight ONE A publication of Richland County School District One

During the 2017-2018 school year, Richland One held groundbreaking ceremonies for the new district stadium on the W.J. Keenan High School campus, as well as Bolden Stadium and Memorial Stadium. The new stadium will serve as the home stadium for Athletics Director Bob Matz and Board Chairwoman Cheryl W.J. Keenan and Eau Claire high schools. Harris (Stadium at W.J. Keenan High School GroundbreakBolden Stadium will be the home stadium ing Ceremony) for C.A. Johnson and Columbia high schools.

Memorial Stadium will be the home stadium for Dreher and A.C. Flora high schools.

Each of the stadiums will include sports turf, seating for 5,000 people, a video scoreboard, new press boxes and new restrooms. The stadium at W.J. Keenan, Memorial Stadium and the stadium at Lower Richland High School (for which a groundbreaking ceremony was held in January 2017) are projected to be ready for the 2018 football season. Bolden Stadium is projected to be ready for the 2019 football season.

Work is nearing completion on the athletics fields at Columbia High, A.C. Flora and Eau Claire. The Dreher project is expected to begin in the fall of 2018.

Mobile App! Bolden Stadium Groundbreaking Ceremony

Stay in touch with what’s happening in Richland One … school and district news, social media feeds, emergency alerts and much more! Download our free Richland One mobile app from the Apple App Store or Google Play.

Facebook

Twitter

InfoPhone

Richland One TV

Our Website

www.facebook.com/richlandone

www.twitter.com/richlandone

231-7512

Spectrum Cable Channel 1303

www.richlandone.org

Spotlight One eNewsletter Sign up on our website!

Notice of Non-Discrimination

Memorial Stadium Groundbreaking Ceremony

Richland County School District One does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, religion, national origin, sex, disability, age or other protected characteristics in its programs and activities.

2017-2018 Year-End Edition

Superintendent’s Message The 2017-2018 school year was another successful school year for Richland One. In this year-end edition of Spotlight ONE, we share with you just a few of our many Points of Pride.

We are proud of the programs and initiatives that we launched to benefit our students, including our tuition-free Virtual School Program for high school students and our firefighter training program in partnership with the Columbia Fire Department.

We also continued to provide additional support and interventions for students where needed, including through our new RESET Program which assists students in grades 3-5 with behavior management strategies.

Among our many “firsts” this year was our first Choice Fair where we showcased the many academic options we offer our students in Richland One. We are also proud of the numerous honors and awards received by our students, staff and schools, including a National Blue Ribbon School, a South Carolina Teacher of the Year finalist and the more than $83 million in scholarships and other financial aid earned by the Class of 2018.

To keep up with all the great things that happen in Richland One through the year, please visit our website (richlandone.org), follow us on Facebook and Twitter, and watch Richland One TV on Spectrum cable channel 1303 or R1TV On Demand on our website.

Have a great summer and we look forward to welcoming our 24,000 students back to school on Monday, August 20, 2018.

Craig Witherspoon, Ed.D. Superintendent

Points of Pride Brockman Elementary School was named a 2017 National Blue Ribbon School by the U.S. Department of Education. The award is one of the nation’s highest and most prestigious awards recognizing academic excellence.

Richland One was awarded a $15 million grant from the U.S. Department of Education’s Magnet Schools Assistance Program to add magnet programs at four schools: Bradley Elementary, Carver-Lyon Elementary, W.G. Sanders Middle and W.J. Keenan High.

Dreher High School received a silver medal in U.S. News & World Report’s 2018 ranking of the best high schools in America. Dreher was ranked 13th among South Carolina high schools.

Hand Middle School teacher and 2017-2018 Richland One Teacher of the Year Robert Louis Harris was named a finalist for 2018-2019 South Carolina Teacher of the Year.

The Lower Richland High School Diamond Battalion Army JROTC Leadership Team qualified to compete in the 2018 U.S. Army JROTC Leadership Bowl Championship in Washington, D.C. Lower Richland’s team was one of only 40 Army JROTC teams across the country to qualify for the national championship. The competition tests students’ academic and leadership skills.

By The Numbers...

12 472 students completed career and technology education (CATE) programs of study...a new district record for CATE Completers!

8%

increase in the district’s Advanced Placement (AP) exam passage rate since 2010

14

state championships won in swimming, basketball and track & field (Richland One is one of only a few SC school districts requiring students to have at least a C average to participate in athletics and other cocurricular activities.)

100% of Richland One schools were recognized by the U.S. Department of Agriculture as being among the healthiest schools in the nation. Schools received monetary awards totaling $58,000.

9

$83.2 MILLION

Richland One students were named 2018 National Merit Scholarship Semifinalists, a prestigious distinction achieved by less than 1 percent of U.S. high school seniors.

15.2% increase in the district’s graduation rate since 2010

schools were named National Healthy Schools by the Alliance for a Healthier Generation and The Clinton Foundation. W.G. Sanders Middle School is the first middle school in South Carolina to receive the National Healthy Schools Silver Award.

in scholarships and other financial aid earned by the Class of 2018!

NEW DISTRICT LOGO

Richland One unveiled its new logo as part of an overall branding initiative designed to distinguish the district and communicate its unique identity and value to the public.

W.G. Sanders Middle School was one of the three South Carolina schools named

by Gov. Henry McMaster and the National Foundation for Governors’ Fitness Councils as the state’s most outstanding schools for demonstrating leadership in getting and keeping their students fit. W.G. Sanders will receive a state-of-the-art fitness center.

Lower Richland High School teacher Dale Jacobs was named the 2018 Outstanding Biology Teacher in South Carolina by the National Association of Biology Teachers.

Richland One students, staff and schools received more than 100 local, regional, state and national honors and awards in the visual and performing arts.

Ayanna Mayes of Heyward Gibbes Middle School was named the 2018 South Carolina School Librarian of the Year by the South Carolina Association of School Librarians.

Carolyn Duff, school nurse at A.C. Moore Elementary School, was named a National Academy of School Nursing Fellow, the highest and most prestigious honor in the profession. Nurse Duff is the first recipient of this award from South Carolina.

Alcorn Middle School’s Knight Riderz Motorsports Engineering Team won first place overall at the TEN80/National STEM League Spring 2018 Atlanta Invitational.

The team also competed in the national finals at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute in New York against teams from as far away as Shanghai, China. The Knight Riderz brought back a second-place award in the Pit Crew Challenge.

Richland One received national honors for excellence in financial accounting and reporting for the 30th consecutive year.

Richland One Superintendent Dr. Craig Witherspoon was named the 2018 Administrator of the Year by the South Carolina Association of Educational Office Professionals (SCAEOP) and the Richland County Association of Educational Office Professionals (RCAEOP).

The Richland One Adult Education program was recognized by the S.C. Department of Education as one of the top five programs among the 54 adult education programs in the state.

For more of our Points of Pride, please go to richlandone.org.