Kimberly Rauschenbach gave an invocation.

Heather Bass led the Pledge of Allegiance.

Heather Bass read the mission and vision statements. 

The Development Committee met on March 26, 2026. Dr. Ivey provided the executive director’s report. 

Committee liaison LaQuanya Chambers presented the Family and Engagement update that included: Reviewing of March updates for family and community engagement, including enrollment status at 911, parent volunteer hours (6 HOURS- 77% (FEB) 1O HOURS- 48%), FY27 kindergarten fully enrolled with 151 new scholars, and scholar attendance data (96.5 ADA). Key discussions centered around the College Career and Military Ready Roadmap, with concerns raised about ensuring adequate exposure to all career clusters, particularly engineering and skilled trades and other non-traditional paths that may not have been currently chosen as  top scholar career choice at this stage in the process. 

The committee discussed plans for a capstone presentation to showcase scholars' experiences with the roadmap and addressed the need to bridge gaps in career cluster exposure. 

Significant updates were shared regarding a $2 million YASS Grant Award, with $1.5 million in the form of an interest-free loan and $500,000 as a grant, marking the first-ever full build-out proposal funding for the school.

The meeting focused on updates and planning for the PATH project and career readiness initiatives. Dr. Ivey shared his recent PATH visit at Prisma as a successful example of partnership with a kindergarten class that contributed to the creation of a play center for pediatric patients at Prisma. The group discussed partner assignments for next year, with all 37 current partners confirming participation and expressing interest in specific grade levels, particularly banks wanting to focus on 6th grade cybersecurity education. 

Heather Bass agreed to schedule a workshop in April or May to finalize partner assignments and address career forecasting needs. 

Dr. Ivey covered updates on the executive leadership search, with 42 candidates  applying to date.

Plans are confirmed for an upcoming coordinated visit with CCTC visit Horry Georgetown Technical College on May 18 to explore early college high school possibilities.

Documents for final review of the Test Security Policy and Procedures and homework guidance policy were included in the meeting packet.  

Succession Planning Documentation for Review: Executive Leadership and Sustainability Planning and Dr. Ivey’s Legacy Plan were included in the meeting packet for review. 

Dr. Ivey will align with Ms. Bass and Ms. Rauschenbach on PATH partner assignments for FY27 to be given out to teachers before they leave for summer break. 

Ms. Bass will schedule a meeting in April or May with PATH partners. 

Priority focus will be on refining stop 3 of the roadmap to bridge the gap to ensure 5th grade scholars are exposed to the top 4 career clusters in Sumter along with the scholar's top career cluster from the career assessment. Ms. Chambers will ensure this is prioritized with the collective leadership roadmap committee and will flush out the details of the capstone presentation to conclude the roadmap experience.