Chapter 10: Even in The 50^th Education State, It’s Being Done

Some South Carolina educators in the past jokingly gave thanks for Mississippi. Now, our Palmetto state is ranked 50^th within the most recent US News and World Report Best States in terms of our educational efforts (Noble, 2017). Even though South Carolina ranked 45^th overall as a state and 48^th in terms of opportunity, we were at the very bottom in terms of education for the first time. The report examined over ten measures of educational quality that found our state desperately lacking. Still, despite this damning and demoralizing revelation, many educators—young and old—are daring to improve. Seasoned professionals and those who are just entering the ranks are addressing the many negative social, political and economic factors that make our work so challenging. In the northwest corner of South Carolina within an inner city, Martha is preparing future leaders within her 7^th grade social studies classes at Sterling School, a magnet for highly diverse and promising students. A dedicated teacher with a wealth of experience and National Board certification, Martha has learned how to work within a school to see that middle grades social studies students are free to address pressing, current issues related to race, class, gender, and sexuality despite being within what some local citizens refer to as the “buckle” of the Bible belt—Greenville, South Carolina. Sterling Middle is located within this large county’s high-needs school district.