Candidate Questionnaire - SouthCarolinaKidsCAN

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Candidate Questionnaire

Congratulations on filing to be a candidate in the upcoming elections. Thank you for your willingness to serve your community and state. By engaging in this process, you have taken the first step in demonstrating your commitment to children in South Carolina and your potential as a leader in education.

Below is the SouthCarolinaKidsCAN Candidate Questionnaire. SouthCarolinaKidsCAN is a non-profit organization that works to advocate for bold education policies South Carolina’s students urgently need. Our goal is to create an education system that is world-class and excellent for all students.

These questions were created to understand the values of your campaign and how you align with the issues on the minds of our parent and student advocates. Completing this survey is a requirement to be considered for an endorsement.

Legislative Candidate Questionnaire

Updates

Contact Information

First Name

Last Name

Phone/Mobile

Party Affiliation

Office you are seeking

District

Campaign Website

South Carolina Schools

1.a. Do you think the State of South Carolina is moving in the right direction with regard to K-12 education?

Yes

Please explain why or why not?

1.b. In what areas do you believe the State of South Carolina must do better with regard to K-12 education?

2. Please indicate which of the following you believe are essential components of meaningful state education policy:

Accountability of schools through an A-F grading scale

Accountability of teachers

Increased pay for teachers

Performance-based pay that rewards quality teachers

Student testing to gauge the progress of students and help determine whether students should advance a grade or if other interventions are needed

Increased funding per pupil

More education options and choice in selecting a school

Higher academic standards

Other

3. Research has shown that access to high-dosage tutoring is one of the most significant interventions for students needing academic support.

Do you support the State of South Carolina allocating funding so that every student can access individualized tutoring services during the school day?

Yes

Unsure

4. Unfortunately, the 2024 NAEP scores showed that American 12th graders had the lowest math achievement scores in the history of the test. States such as Louisiana have pursued math “screeners” (tests to identify student shortcomings), and special tutoring intervention time for math. On the other end, states have adopted a “Guaranteed Access to Advance” so that high achieving students get automatically placed in advanced math courses.

Do you support these steps?

Yes

Unsure

5. Do you consider yourself to be a supporter of educational choice—that the government should give parents as many choices as possible to ensure that their child has access to a high-quality education?

Yes

Unsure

6. What is your view of the impact that school choice programs have on public schools? Choose the statement that best reflects your view:

School choice enables parents to find the school that best fits their child's unique needs, even if it is not within the traditional public-school system. It compels all schools to raise the quality of instruction and be more attentive to parents.

School choice programs harm public schools because students leave, and some funding is sent to public charter and private schools.

School choice programs have no impact on public schools.

7. In 2025, the South Carolina Legislature approved the Education Scholarship Trust Fund Program. It provides up to $7,500 per student for an “education savings account.” Students and their families can use the funds to create a customized, flexible education for their child. Eligible expenses include tutoring, textbooks and tuition. For a full understanding of the law you can visit https://ed.sc.gov/newsroom/strategic-engagement/education-scholarship-trust-fund-program/

Do you support this program?

Yes

Unsure

8. Do you support continuing to expand slots in the Education Scholarship Trust Fund Program and maintaining that all students are eligible?

Yes

Unsure

9. Charter schools are tuition-free, public schools that are managed outside of the usual school district bureaucracy. They generally have more flexibility with hiring, curriculum and teaching methods, but are held strictly accountable for student achievement. In 2024, there were 95 charter schools in South Carolina serving around 50,000 students.

Do you support the continued growth of charter schools?

Yes

Unsure

10. Attendance zones for traditional South Carolina public schools are created by local school boards. Do you believe that students should be required to attend the public school assigned to them by the local school board?

Yes

Unsure

11. Do you think the State of South Carolina should do more to encourage employer driven workforce pathways in K-12 schools?

Yes

Unsure

If you have any additional comments about the issues discussed in this survey please feel free to leave them here:

Checkbox Selection (must select to send the survey)

I understand that SouthCarolinaKidsCAN will use my answers to the questions above as one of several factors in consideration for endorsement of my candidacy. In general, the SouthCarolinaKidsCAN does not release the answers of the survey to the public; however, we reserve the right to do so.

Name

Date

If you have any questions about this survey, please do not hesitate to contact Taylor Hall at taylor.hall@sckidscan.org

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Your donation will help us provide more educational opportunities for the students of South Carolina.

Contributions or gifts to SouthCarolinaKidsCAN are not tax deductible as charitable contributions or as business expenses under IRS Section 162(e).

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