School districts in South Carolina are losing a large and growing amount of local revenue for school operations from the property tax exemption for primary residence homes and corporate tax abatements such as FILOTs. In combination, the net operations loss for all school districts in South Carolina is nearing $1.5 billion per year and growing.
The percentage of Hispanic or Latino students in our public schools is steadily increasing. In the last five years the percentage in South Carolina rose from 10% to 14%. This presents both challenges and opportunities for our schools.
The percentage of teaching positions not filled at the start of the 2024-25 school year dropped from the previous year but is still twice as high as ten years earlier. The teacher turnover rate continues to inch higher, and the percentage of teachers teaching out of field is twice as high at high poverty schools than at low poverty schools.