South Carolina

Overview of Pre-K Program-Half-Day Child Development Program (4K)

Primary goal of 4K program is to improve school readiness for at-risk children through half-day preschool programs.
Eligibility guidelines are determined at the local level but may include state-specified risk factors such as homelessness, low income status, single parents or parents with low educational attainment.
Every school district must have at least one 4K program.
Funded through appropriations of the General Assembly.
Funds are distributed based on the number of kindergarteners in a district who qualify for free- or reduced-price lunch.
The majority of children are served in public-school settings, but districts may partner with private providers or Head Start programs to provide services.
Every public school district must have at least one 4K program.
Program is administered by the State Department of Education.

Open to children who qualify for free- or reduced-price lunch or Medicaid and who reside in one of several specified school districts who were named as plaintiffs in the 2006 court case Abbeville County School District v. State of South Carolina. In this case it was determined that the state of South Carolina was not providing districts with the resources to provide a “minimally adequate education” to the children residing in these districts.
Classes are full day and are provided during the 180 day school year.
Providers include public schools, private settings, for-profit, non-profit, faith based and Head Start programs.
CDEPP is mainly funded through appropriations of the General Assembly. Parent fees may be charged for childcare that occurs before or after the instructional day.
CDEPP/4K Expansion Programs within school districts are overseen by the South Carolina Department of Education. CDEPP/4K Expansion Programs within private, for-profit, non-profit, faith based and Head Start settings are administered by South Carolina First Steps to School Readiness.

1984 South Carolina Education Improvement Act is passed and establishes the state’s first preschool education initiative, creating the Half-Day Child Development Program, commonly referred to as 4K.
1999 South Carolina First Steps to School Readiness is created after it is determined that 1 in 7 children in South Carolina is not ready for first grade.
2006 Child Development Education Pilot Program (CDEPP) created as a result of the Abbeville County School District vs. South Carolina court case, which ruled that South Carolina was not providing children in 36 high poverty districts a “minimally adequate education”. The goal was to expand 4K in both school districts and in non-public preschools. Programs in non-public settings are now overseen by South Carolina First Steps.
2009 4K and CDEEP/4K Expansion serve a total of 24,866 children.
2010 First Steps Board is named South Carolina’s Early Childhood Advisory Council to provide oversight for the state’s early childhood programs.