CCSD leaders vote to expand Carolina Park Elementary

MT. PLEASANT, S.C. (WCBD) – The Charleston County School board voted on Monday to partially expand Carolina Park Elementary school.

“It’s a win for north Mt. Pleasant not just Carolina Park,” said Jonathan Mars, a Carolina Park parent who has been at the forefront of the large group of parents advocating for an expansion over a rezone. “Carolina Park Elementary was actually built with an expansion in mind so a lot of it is already set up and we’ve already paid the tax.”

This comes months after a plan was being discussed for what would have been the second rezone of the school in the five years it has been open. Instead, the school board reconsidered.

“What drove the change was the fact that late this summer early fall, Superintendent Kennedy has really put a strong emphasis on early education and the board has supported that and we were challenged with taking a look a where space was available,” said Jeff Borowy, the Chief Operating Officer for the Charleston County School District (CCSD).

According to the district, Laurel Hill Primary School will be used to expand early childhood opportunities in Mt. Pleasant. Because of that, CCSD staff is not recommending a rezoning of students from Carolina Park Elementary School to Laurel Hill Primary and Charles Pinckney Elementary to the District 2 Constituent Board.

The proposed expansion is six permanent classrooms with a building capacity of 132 students.

The $6.9 million project is being funded by taxpayers using money from a sales tax referendum.

Throughout the summer and beginning of the school year, parents, including Mars, have been actively speaking out against a rezone and are excited for the prospect of expanding the school.

“It means my kids get to go to school with their friends which is a huge win and we can continue the lifestyle we chose when we decided to move to Carolina Park which is exercise, rideour bikes to school, walk to school, and not have to sit through a couple of neighborhoods worth of traffic,” said Mars.

The six new classrooms are expected to be available for the 2024-2025 school year.