Our weekly Top Five feature offers big stories or views from the past week with policy and legislative implications.
Grading policy to shift to 10-point grade scale, The Post and Courier, March 14, 2016
Some 13,000 more students in the state may be eligible for college scholarships when the state shifts from a seven-point grade scale (where an A is a grade of 93 to 100) to a 10-point scale (where an A starts at a grad
e of 90). It will change calculations for grade point averages, which are key in college applications. It will impact athletic eligibility. And more.
DHEC failed to monitor water properly for lead, Greenville News, March 16, 2016
With all of the news about lead pipes in Flint, Mich., this investigation by the Greenville News is provocative. It suggests the Department of Health and Environmental Control has allowed systems found to have higher lead content to remain on the same monitoring schedule.
Beware of “turnaround” school districts, op-ed by P.L. Thomas, The Post and Courier, March 15, 2016
Furman Professor Paul Thomas offers a warning about “turnaround” districts for K-12 schools: “South Carolina has a shameful history regarding vulnerable populations of students being served in our high-poverty, racial minority areas of the state, notably our Corridor of Shame along I-95.” See this version of the story for more links and info.
February smashed all-time global heat record, ABC Australia, March 13, 2016
Here’s a story from Down Under on climate change. Australia’s chief scientist warns the planet is losing the battle against climate change, after new data shows February set a completely unprecedented record for the hottest month since global records began.
Charleston projected to get 20,000 new jobs in next two years, Charleston Regional Business Journal, March 14, 2016
The Charleston region created 9,000 jobs last year and will get twice as many by the end of the next year, according to an area forecast. In the last 25 years, the area has added 200,000 residents and 106,000 net new jobs. Home prices have jumped 238 percent and retail sales tripled to $24 billion.
- Want more stories like these? If you’d like to get these updates in much more depth every business day, we encourage you to subscribe to our sister publication, S.C. Clips. Click here for a two-week test drive.
We Can Do Better, South Carolina!