Parent FAQs

School hours?  8:00am – 3:05pm.  Carpool drop-off begins at 7:30am.

 

Are there uniforms?

Yes, we do require uniforms.  Middle school wears light blue, collared shirts and high school wears navy blue, collared shirts. Everyone wears either khaki shorts, pants, skirts, or skorts. Close-toed shoes are required.  Outerwear must be navy blue.  They can wear a different color jacket/sweater/coat to school, but it must be removed inside of the building.  We have many ‘dress-down’ days each month for children to wear their regular clothes, as well. 

    

Can my child bring their phone to school?

We know this is the age of electronics, so the short answer is yes. They may bring their phone to school, but they are required to put it away and not have it out during the school day.  We utilize the Yondr Pouch system that they place their phones into during the school day. We consider 8:00am - 3:00pm a vital academic focus time and we request that parents help us enforce this policy by letting your child know you support no phone usage during the school day.  

   

Sports programs offered?

Girls/Boys Basketball, Softball, Baseball, Cross Country, Volleyball, Swim Team, Girls/Boys Varsity Soccer. There is interest in starting a tennis team.. If we don’t offer a sport, your child may play for their zoned school team. 

 

Are middle school students able to try out for sports?  

Yes, SC High School League allows 7th & 8th graders to try out for sports. Soccer is the exception and is only available for high school students.  Your 6th and 7th graders can also play on their area recreational or travel teams.   

 

If my child needs an IEP or 504, or is in the process of getting one, can your school handle this?

Yes, our Department of Exceptional Children will be able to start or complete an IEP or 504 Plan for your child. 

  

Can your nurse give medicine to children at school?  

We have a full-time, registered school nurse onsite and they handle medications for children who require them during school hours.We also offer telemedicine appointments on campus for our student body. 

 

What opportunities do you have for advanced academics? 

We have Honors, AP, and Dual Enrollment classes available. Our juniors and seniors are also able to take college classes on the campuses of  Trident Tech or College of Charleston.

 

Is there a strings program/club?  

We have a full band program, but not strings.  We also have a guitar club that meets after school with one of our teachers. 

 

Are bus stops based on where students live?  

Bus stops are based each year around the home addresses for the children on that area route. A central stop for each area makes it convenient for parents to drop off and pick up their child from the morning or afternoon routes.. While we do not offer door-to-door drop off or pickups, we do have our own bus fleet and are able to be flexible based on the addresses of our school community.  

 

Are middle school and high school students kept separate?

High school classes are upstairs & middle school classes are downstairs. High school & middle school are on different bell schedules. The only exceptions are art and band class, but with different bell schedules they are not transitioning at the same time. High School students aren’t allowed to be in middle school hallways unless they have a pass and are going directly to the front office or to band class located on the 1st floor.

Are siblings guaranteed a space? 

We do not guarantee siblings a space, but we do give siblings preference and are moved to the sibling list and offered a seat as soon as one is available.  Helping families remain together at one school is a priority for us.

 

Languages offered-  

Spanish is offered in middle & high school. We have two Spanish teachers, and students are able to add other foreign languages to their schedule in high school through Virtual SC classes on our campus or through dual enrollment at Trident Tech and College of Charleston. We have students taking Japanese, French, and German online. 

 

Percentage of students entering in 6th grade that stay for high school?  

On average it is more than half, and some years have been much higher in our graduating class. We have 35 seniors this year that have been with us every year since 6th grade, and two more that started in 6th grade and had left for one year or less and then returned. This year our percentage is 49% that have started in 6th grade and remained here for all of middle and high school. This does not account for those who first started in 7th or later grades and stayed to graduate here. 

 

Where do your graduates get accepted for colleges/universities?

Our graduates are accepted all over the country, including to the Ivy Leagues. Last year our graduates received over 3 million dollars in scholarships, not including SC State Life, Palmetto Fellows, and Hope Scholarships.  In the last 3 years just a few of the colleges/universities acceptances are: Univ. of SC, Clemson, Auburn, Stanford, MIT, Dartmouth, American Univ., Furman, Howard, Virginia Tech, Georgia Tech, Vanderbilt, NC State, SC State,  University of Florida, and Univ. of Miami. We have a full list of all acceptances available if you would like it to be sent to you.

 

Do you have GT/Honors programs? 

Identified “Gifted & Talented Academic” students are placed in honors track courses, unless the administration or parent feels the student isn’t able to keep up with the rigorous demands of an honors class and requests that the student not be placed in the course. If your child has not been identified previously as GTA they can test here on campus when the state test is given once a year. A teacher, guidance counselor, or parent can recommend a student be tested for GTA.

  

What is the student/teacher ratio per class?  

There is a 20:1 ratio in most classes, but we also have several assistant teachers that float between the middle school classes daily.

 

How many children will be in each class? I thought there were 80 per class but more were accepted in the 6th grade lottery.

• We have around 20 children per classroom, sometimes a few more or a few less
• We have 575 students in the building for 6th – 12th grades.
• We accept more than 80 for 6th grade, because we know some families will be accepted here, but choose to go elsewhere, so we pull more spots to ultimately be at around 80 children for the 6th grade.  

 

How do I know if this is the right school for my child?   

That is a question that only you can answer. We have a long list of why we think CCSMS is great, but you know your child and your family’s situation best. Is our program for everyone? Definitely not, we are a science and math based school and some children are mainly interested in the arts. We know that not all kids want a career in STEM fields and that is totally ok! We do not take it personally when children get accepted here as well as at other School Choice schools and choose to go to another school based on their passion for the arts or other focuses.  This is the beauty of having schools with different academic focuses for students, so they can have the option of pursuing their particular passion. 

 

At CCSMS, we are focused on getting our scholars to be excited, curious, and empowered by math and science classes and ultimately be able to pursue a college degree and career field in STEM to fill the ever growing need for those career fields. Do all of our graduates choose STEM degrees?  Most do, but some of our graduates decide on degrees and career fields outside of STEM, but none of them have ever come back to tell us that it was a negative to have a strong math and science background. Many of our graduates return year after year to visit us and let us know how they are and what they are doing. Again and again we hear about how prepared they felt for college and how well they are doing now.  People say success is a journey and not a destination, we believe that, and are so proud to be a part of the journey for our CCSMS graduates.