» Dear Community

Craig D. Haydamack

Board Chair

Russell W. Booker, Ph.D.

Executive Director

The Spartanburg Academic Movement (SAM) salutes the resilience of Spartanburg’s educators, school leaders, families, and students as they have collectively worked to maintain engagement, commitment, and motivation throughout and following the COVID-19 pandemic. This year’s Chapter 6: Resilience celebrates the more than 3,400 Spartanburg County teachers like Wellford Academy of Science and Technology third grade teacher Claire Hill who has shown steadfast resilience in the face of unprecedented change. Claire entered her first year of teaching in the fall of 2020 at the onset of the pandemic. Like all our teachers, she would shift her teaching strategies to reach students in and outside of the classroom using numerous means. As Claire altered her teaching methods and as her students transitioned to new modes of learning, she implemented Continuous Improvement methodologies to assess her students’ progress while creating Plan, Do, Study, Act (PDSA) problem-solving models to determine if students were progressing. As a result, Claire’s students demonstrated tremendous progress in third grade reading proficiency, a measure of future academic and life success. SAM looks forward to building on its Continuous Improvement successes across Spartanburg County schools, and nonprofits through our Wardlaw Institute for Continuous Improvement. SAM has been working for more than a decade to uncover factors that negatively impact a child’s chances for academic success, and we acknowledge the social and emotional impact the pandemic continues to have on our students, families, educators, and communities. Poverty and race have long been linked to high rates of trauma and adverse childhood experiences (ACEs), factors that can reduce a child’s ability to succeed in school. The pandemic further underscored this truth. As a result, SAM launched its Center for Resilient Schools and Communities in early 2021. In recent months, the CRSC has been working to establish and build supports and systems that increase school success, particularly in areas where educational disparities persist. The CRSC centers student and family wellbeing while collaborating and building stronger networks with our education and community partners. It will engage our children and families as active participants in building strong and resilient schools and neighborhoods. We ask you to join the Movement as we build community cohesion and connectedness while advancing our vision of economic mobility anchored in academic achievement… countywide… cradle to career.