Tue Aug 26 12:10:00 UTC 2025: **FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE**

**Horry County Schools Launches “Rise with Reading” Initiative to Boost Student Literacy**

**MYRTLE BEACH, SC -** The Horry County School Board met on Monday to discuss and advance the “Rise with Reading” initiative, a comprehensive program designed to significantly improve student literacy rates across the district. The ambitious goal: to have 95% of Horry County students reading at or above grade level by the year 2030.

Currently, approximately 75% of students within the district meet this benchmark, leaving a significant gap that the “Rise with Reading” initiative aims to close.

Spearheaded by new Superintendent Clifford Jones, the initiative emphasizes the critical role of parental involvement in student success. “A lot of parents would like to go home and provide some additional instruction or resources for their students, but they don’t know exactly what’s being taught inside the classroom,” explained Lisa Bourcier, Director of Communications for the Horry County School District. “Being able to provide those additional parental resources for parents to just give some additional support for our students is very helpful.”

To facilitate greater parental engagement, the school board discussed creating a dedicated online portal where parents can access customized reports detailing their children’s individual learning needs and progress. This tailored information will empower parents to better understand and support the curriculum their children are learning in the classroom.

Further bolstering the initiative, the board explored potential collaborations with the Horry County Library system to provide accessible and readily available reading resources for both students and parents.

The “Rise with Reading” initiative underscores Horry County Schools’ commitment to providing all students with the literacy skills necessary for future success. The district will be providing more details as the initiative continues to develop.

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