Charleston Co. School District votes to boost teacher pay raises

The Charleston County School District put off talks on a new calendar in favor of a plan to further increase teacher salaries.

By Caroline Spikes

CHARLESTON, S.C. – The Charleston County School District put off talks on a new calendar in favor of a plan to further increase teacher salaries. The school board decided to advance conversations about its 2025 budget and the selection of one of three academic calendars to later this month. A good part of Monday night’s meeting was dedicated instead to teacher pay raises.

The board made an amendment to reallocate funds from risk pool funding to bump up teacher pay by $8,000 instead of the initially-discussed $7,500. “There is no better way to spend money in this district than to support teachers because supporting teachers means that we get better education for our kids,” board member Ed Kelley said. This teacher pay amendment passed 6-3. It will be reheard as part of the budget talks in a second reading on June 24.

The Charleston County School District is expected to make a decision Monday night about their 2025-2026 academic school year using data gathered from a survey.

The Three Academic Calendar Options:

The district proposed three different options for the calendar year back in May and sent out a public survey for feedback. The survey was available for 10 days for people to take. All three options start the school year on Aug. 12, 2025, and include a winter break from Dec. 22, 2025, to Jan. 5, 2026.

• Option A: Contains a winter break, spring break, federal holidays, and includes a break for election day.
• Option B: Spring break: March 16-20, 2026, Last day of school: June 2, 2026, Extra breaks: Oct. 10-13, 2025, April 3-6, 2026.
• Option C: Spring break: April 6-10, 2026, Last day of school: June 4, 2026, Extra breaks: Oct. 13-15, 2025, Feb. 16-18, 2026.

All three calendar options still have 180 days of school in the entire 2025-2026 school year. The board says the purpose of adding extra breaks would be to minimize student burnout, hoping for academic success.

District’s Perspective on Extra Breaks:

District Chief Academic Officer Michelle Simmons said the district does not have evidence to support that claim.