South Carolina Regulations

(Last Updated August 18, 2016)

Private Schools

Accreditation, Registration, Licensing, and Approval

  • Accreditation: optional
    • Accreditation is one alternative to satisfy South Carolina’s compulsory school attendance statute. Attendance at a private school satisfies South Carolina’s compulsory school attendance statute if the school is a member school of the South Carolina Independent Schools’ Association, South Carolina Association of Christian Schools, or a similar organization. South Carolina Code of Laws (S.C. Code) §59-65-10(A).
  • Registration: no requirements
  • Licensing: no requirements
  • Approval: optional
    • Approval by the South Carolina Board of Education is one alternative for satisfying South Carolina’s compulsory school attendance statue. Attendance at a nonsectarian private school satisfies South Carolina’s compulsory school attendance statute if the state board of education has approved the school. S.C. Code §59-65-10(A)
    • The South Carolina attorney general has determined that the state board of education has the authority to establish minimum standards for private school approval under the Compulsory School Attendance Act. 1967-68 Attorney General Opinion, No. 2585, p. 291; however, no such standards have been developed thus far.
  • Attendance at parochial, denominational, and church-related schools also satisfies the compulsory attendance requirement. S.C. Code §59-65-10(A).

Teacher Certification

  • No state policy currently exists.

Length of School Year and Days

  • No state policy currently exists.

Curriculum

  • No state policy currently exists.

Recordkeeping and Reports

  • Private schools must report on request to the local superintendent of education the following information: 1) the number of students receiving instruction; 2) the number of students in regular attendance; 3) the number of teachers employed; and 4) such other facts demonstrating the grade and amount of educational work done in the private school. S.C. Code §59-13-130.
  • Any private school failing to file the information within two weeks after the close of the regular session will be subject to a fine of not more than $25. S.C. Code §59-13-130.
  • The clerk of the South Carolina House of Representatives may distribute the legislative manual to private schools without charge. S.C. Code §2-1-130.

Health and Safety Requirements

  • The Department of Health and Environmental Control has the authority to inspect private school lunchrooms and sanitary facilities. 1982 South Carolina Attorney General Opinion 12.
  • Potential private school staff members must be evaluated for tuberculosis prior to being hired. As a prerequisite for employment, an applicant must present a health certificate certifying that he/she does not have tuberculosis in an active stage. S.C. Code §§44-29-150 and 160.
  • No child will be admitted to any public, private, or parochial school, grades kindergarten through 12, or to any child development program under the control of the South Carolina Department of Education without first presenting a valid South Carolina certificate of immunization, unless found exempt. South Carolina Code of Regulations (S.C. Code of Regs.) 61-8.
  • The distribution of a controlled substance within a radius of one-half mile of a private elementary, middle, or secondary school is a criminal offense and punishable by fine and/or imprisonment. S.C. Code §44-53-445.
  • It is illegal for anyone to loiter or enter a private school without permission of the principal or other authority in charge. S.C. Code §16-17-420.

Transportation

  • School buses owned and operated by private schools or under contract for a private school must conform to state laws and regulations of the South Carolina Board of Education. Buses failing to comply with the laws and regulations must be painted a color other than yellow and are not entitled to the privileges and protection of a school bus operating on the highways. S.C. Code §59-67-40.
  • Private school bus drivers must be certified by the South Carolina Board of Education. S.C. Code §59-67-108.

Textbooks

  • No state policy currently exists.

Testing

  • No state policy currently exists.

Special Education

  • Students with handicaps may be placed in private schools that maintain approved special education facilities if the school district cannot provide an appropriate education. S.C. Code §59-33-50.
  • South Carolina school districts place students with handicaps in private schools provided the school accepts children into the program regardless of color, race, sex, or religion. S.C. Code §59-33-50.
  • All private school administrators must report the names of students with a visual handicap to the South Carolina Commission for the Blind. The commission may provide itinerant teachers to assist private school teachers who are responsible for teaching children with a visual handicap. S.C. Code §43-25-60.

Nursing and Health

  • No state policy currently exists.

Technology

  • No state policy currently exists.

Professional Development

  • No state policy currently exists.

Reimbursement for Performing State and Local Functions

  • No state policy currently exists.

Tax Exemption

  • The South Carolina Constitution (S.C. Const.) exempts private schools from property taxes except where profits are applied to private use. S.C. Const. Art. 10, 3.

Public Aid for Private Education

  • Constitutional Provisions: The South Carolina Constitution prohibits public appropriations for the direct benefit of any religious or private education institution. S.C. Const. Art. 11, sec. 4.
  • Programs for financial assistance for attendance at private schools: South Carolina created the Educational Credits for Exceptional Needs through the South Carolina State Budget includes two types of programs. Eligible students are children with disabilities as defined by the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act or by a licensed independent expert. An eligible independent school is defined as a school that (1) does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, or national origin; (2) is located in South Carolina; (3) has an educational curriculum that meets the state diploma standard and administers either state assessment or national achievement tests or both; and (4) is a member of the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools, the South Carolina Association of Christian Schools, or the South Carolina Independent Schools Association. An individual can receive a tax credit either for a donation to a scholarship funding organization that awards scholarships to attend an eligible independent school or for up to $10,000 used for tuition at an eligible independent school per eligible student. South Carolina State Budget Proviso 1.8 and 1.85.

Home Schools

Initial and Renewal Applications

  • To homeschool their child, parents or guardians must receive approval of the instruction from the district board of trustees of the district in which the child resides. S.C. Code §59-65-40 (A).
  • The parent must agree in writing to hold the district, the district’s board of trustees, and the district’s employees harmless for any educational deficiencies of the student sustained as a result of home instruction. S.C. Code §59-65-40 (A). A parent or guardian denied permission by a district board of trustees to begin or continue a program of home instruction may appeal that decision to the South Carolina Board of Education. S.C. Code of Regs. 43-246.
  • In lieu of the requirements of district approval, parents or guardians may teach their children at home if the instruction is conducted under the auspices of the South Carolina Association of Independent Home Schools. S.C. Code §59-65-45.
  • In lieu of the requirements of S.C. Code §59-65-40 or §59-65-45, parents or guardians may also teach their children at home if the instruction is conducted under the auspices of an association for home schools that has no fewer than 50 members and meets the following requirements, as determined by the South Carolina Department of Education through an annual review of the association: a) a parent must hold at least a high school diploma or an equivalent GED certificate; b) the instructional year must be at least 180 days; c) the curriculum must include but not be limited to the basic instructional areas of reading, writing, mathematics, science, and social studies, and in grades seven through 12, composition and literature; and d) education records must be maintained by the parent-teacher. S.C. Code §59-65-47.

Curriculum and Instruction

  • A homeschool parent must hold at least a high school diploma or an equivalent GED certificate. S.C. Code §§59-65-40 (A)(1); 59-65-45; and 59-65-47.
  • The district-approved homeschool instructional day must be at least four and one-half hours, excluding lunch and recesses, and the instructional year must be at least 180 days. S.C. Code §59-65-40 (A)(2).
  • For other types of home schooling, the instructional year must be 180 days. S.C. Code §§59-65-45 and 59-65-47.
  • The curriculum must include, but not be limited to, the basic instructional areas of reading, writing, mathematics, science, and social studies and, in grades seven through 12, composition and literature. S.C. Code §§59-65-40 (A)(3); 59-65-45; and 59-65-47.
  • For a district-approved home school or alternative form of home instruction under S.C. Code §59-65-47, as evidence that a student is receiving regular instruction, the parent must maintain the following records for inspection upon reasonable notice by a representative of the school district: a plan book, a diary, or other written record indicating subjects taught and activities in which the parent and student engage; a portfolio of samples of the student’s work; and a record of evaluations of the student’s academic progress. S.C. Code §§59-65-40 (A)(4) and 59-65-47.
  • The student in a district-approved home school must have access to library facilities. S.C. Code §59-65-40 (A).

Assessment and Diplomas

  • Students in district-approved home schools must participate in the annual statewide testing program and the Basic Skills Assessment Program approved by the South Carolina Board of Education for their appropriate grade level. S.C. Code §59-65-40 (A)(6).
  • If a student in a district-approved homeschooling program scores below the test requirements of the promotion standards prescribed for public school students by the South Carolina Board of Education for one year, the district’s board of trustees must decide whether or not the student must receive appropriate instructional placement in the public school, special services as a handicapped student, or home schooling with an instructional support system at parental expense. S.C. Code § 59-65-40 (D).

Public School Access

  • A homeschooled student who has been taught according to S.C. Code §§59-65-40, 59-65-45, or 59-65-47 for a full year is eligible to participate in interscholastic activities (athletics, music, speech, and other extracurricular activities) of the student’s resident school district if the student meets all of the school district’s eligibility requirements, disregarding those related to attendance, class, and enrollment. The student must notify the superintendent in writing of the intent to participate before the season for the activity starts. S.C. Code §59-63-100.
  • A school district is not allowed to contract out supervision of interscholastic activities to a private entity that prohibits homeschooled students from participating. S.C. Code §59-63-100.

 

Source: U.S. Department of Education, State Regulation of Private and Home Schools, South Carolina