Marion County School District launched the 2023-2024 school year for staff with an Opening of Schools Convocation at Amazing Grace Park in Marion on Wednesday, July 26, 2023. Schools displayed their enthusiasm for the new school year by wearing their school shirts, decorating tents, and putting their own creative spin into our roll call chant. Marion High School’s JROTC opened by presenting the colors and Miss Autumn Worley from Mullins High School sang the National Anthem. Elder Bakari Brown, from Red Hill Baptist Church in Brittons Neck, SC, delivered a Moment of Inspiration. Dr. Kandace Bethea introduced the theme for the school year “#MCSDproud” which was portrayed on the shirts central services staff wore to the event. Like any great leader, Dr. Bethea encouraged her team with these words, "one of the nice things about education is that we begin a new journey each year, we get a new start every year. Let's take this year as a time to make our best better! Let's take this year as a time to be PROUD...proud in the fact that we have made an impact, and proud that we have created learning environments that allow our students to be successful and flourish."

Visitors included local elected official and school board members. Aramark and local vendors provided treats such as iced coffees, donuts, muffins, and lemonade to staff before and after the event to enjoy.

The district’s annual Roll Call was led by Dr. Mark Bunch, assistant superintendent, and the winner was announced by Sheriff Brian Wallace. The judges had a difficult job choosing the winner with schools putting their own spin into our district roll call chant. In the end, The Academy of Careers and Technology brought home the win. Marion County School District is looking forward to a year of committing to our district's mission of Educating, Preparing, and Inspiring all students!

Our top priorities for this year will be centered around strengthening our academic core in the areas of Reading and Mathematics. In order to strengthen the core and for optimum learning to take place, there will be intentional planning for and assessing student learning in correlation to our state standards. The Office of Instruction (OOI) aims to support curriculum implementation in core instructional areas, maintain a visible presence in schools and classrooms, and support collaborative planning to build capacity in all educators. OOI is working to support teachers in providing standards-based instruction through the implementation of our curriculum programs. Our new ELA resources—Open Court Reading in Grades K-5 and CommonLit360 in Grades 6-12—utilize the principles of "science of reading" to support research-based instructional practices in all reading classrooms. K-3 ELA teachers will also continue year 2 training in LETRS. Our math focus this year centers around building foundational understanding with an emphasis on students learning with manipulatives in early grades and increasing math confidence through discussions and connection activities in upper grades. OOI is excited to develop and support partnerships between schools in our district in order to provide the best instructional experience for our students.

We are so proud of Johnakin Middle School's Beta Club for their outstanding success at the National Beta Club Competition this past summer in Louisville, Kentucky. Congratulations to the students and faculty for their hard work and dedication in making this achievement possible. #MCSDProud

Congratulations to the Marion County School of Practical Nursing for a 100% pass rate on NCLEX-PN for the class of 2023! We are so proud of the LPN graduates, staff, and clinical sites for preparing these nurses for their future careers.

Congratulations to Marion County Adult Education graduates and workforce students! We are so proud of your hard work and dedication to achieving your goals. We are excited to see what the future holds for each of you.

We are excited to announce that CBSA is officially a National Cognia STEM Certified school! Cognia STEM Certification is awarded to schools who exemplifies a STEM program that meets the 10 Cognia Standards. The standards are rated (1-4) with one being no to little implementation and four being exemplary implementation. A three, as a rating, signifies proficient implementation. Creek Bridge STEM Academy rated three and four on all Cognia STEM Standards making the school an Advanced STEM school.

STEM Friday was a highlight of the Cognia Process. Dr. Barksdale, principal at CBSA shares, "STEM Friday was implemented last school year and has become a staff and student favorite at The Bridge. Students are faced with a problem or challenge that requires them to plan and create a product. The design and engineering process partnered with constant reflection is a vital part of STEM Fridays. We teach students to reevaluate their plan when the creative process poses challenges. STEM happens around the building every day, however there’s something special about ending our week with STEM in all our classrooms at the same time. STEM is not something that we do, at The Bridge, STEM is who we are. It’s in our DNA."

Marion County School District's Proud Award is awarded to an educator or someone working within the school district that has made an impact. Ms. Tasha Davis was awarded the #MCSDProud award for the month of August. We are so proud of her hard work and dedication to making sure our students were registered for the '23-'24 school year.

We had a great time cohosting the chamber’s August Business After Hours with Amazing Grace Park. Special thanks to Chef Ferguson and her students from The Academy of Careers and Technology for catering the event. It was a wonderful evening of networking and fellowship with members of the local community

Academy for Careers and Technology- Mr. Michael Stone

Academy of Early Learning- Mrs. Farrah Owens

Creek Bridge STEM Academy- Dr. Lashay Barksdale

Easterling Primary School- Mrs. Melinda Tavernier

Johnakin Middle School- Mr. John Washington

Marion Intermediate School- Mr. James McCall

Marion High School- Mrs. Rita Lewis- Smith

McCormick Elementary School- Mr. Shawn Perry

Mullins High School- Mr. Kelvin Edwards

North Mullins Primary School- Ms. Kimberly Fogan

Palmetto Middle School- Dr. Rodney McCorkle

The Success Academy- Mrs. Rita Davis

Adult Education- Mrs. Candyce Brooks

*Bolded names indicate new school administrators