School District celebrates record wave of Academic Excellence
By Stephan Drew, Editor
Dozens of Darlington County School District students were recognized for perfect scores on state assessments at the Board of Education meeting on Monday, Sept. 14, 2026. Board members also honored the district’s top attendance schools and one of their own for advocacy on behalf of adult learners.
The board recognized 10 students for perfect scores on the South Carolina College- and Career-Ready Assessments (SC READY) and 56 perfect scores on Spring 2026 End-of-Course (EOC) exams. The district described both groups as outstanding academic accomplishments.
SC READY is the statewide assessment in English Language Arts, mathematics, science and social studies for students in grades 3–8, as required by the Education Accountability Act. According to the South Carolina Department of Education, a perfect score means a student earned the maximum raw score on that section of the test.
The following students earned perfect scores on one or more sections:
Bay Road Elementary School: Chloe Adams
Brockington Elementary Magnet School: Johnathan Personette
Hartsville Middle School: Jayden Ballard and Iviana Ross
Lamar-Spaulding Elementary School: Gracelen Boan (now at Spaulding Middle School) and Dominic Shirey
North Hartsville Elementary School: Carter Hamilton and Charles Urquhart
Spaulding Middle School: Becky Yang (now at Hartsville High School)
Thornwell School for the Arts: Elijah Garrison
56 Perfect Scores on End-of-Course Exams
The high school honorees drew the largest group. Across four districtwide subject areas, students earned 56 perfect scores on Spring 2026 assessments: 17 in Biology I, 16 in U.S. History, 12 in AP History and 11 in English II.
Mayo High School for Math, Science & Technology accounted for 34 of the 56 perfect scores, more than half the district total. Its students earned 16 in Biology I, eight in U.S. History, six in AP History and four in English II. Claire Riddle earned perfect scores in two subjects, Biology I and English II.
Darlington High School
English II: Alicia Brown, Aiden Odom, Nathan Walters
U.S. History: Christopher Bess, Shamaree Carraway, Jackson High, Aiden Matuse, James Outlaw
Hartsville High School
Biology I: Summer Parrott
English II: Tristen Ford, Kaden Hunt, Raven Schaff
U.S. History: Malasia Foreman, Joshua Kavanagh, Jonathan Williams
Lamar High School
AP History: Corbyn Anderson, Amelia Braddock, Noah Bullard, Jeffrey Eder, Peyton Mendiola, Ryley Nichols
English II: Zy’Mir Wilhite
Mayo High School for Math, Science & Technology
AP History: Abigail Colson, Katherine Koele, Lucie McAlister, Jordan Oelze, Peytyn Parker, Edward Perez
Biology I: Anna Alexander, Charles Brown, Jema Byrd, McLyndon Creamer, Riley Heim, Taleya Jackson, Coltin Kelley, Soham Mohanty, Audrey Perry, Briana Price, Samari Pugh, Claire Riddle, Chance Sheppard, Jacob Vargas, Bailey Wall, Linxuan Xu
English II: Sarah Benton, Shiasia Cribb, Braileigh Poston, Claire Riddle
U.S. History: Cole Berry, Dylan Davis, Taylor Hurley, Jenascia Johnson, Abby Phillips, Ella Smith, Tashron Underwood, Christopher Windham
The district also presented Top Schools Attendance Achievement Awards to the three schools with the highest attendance during the August Every Day Counts/U-Count Day:
• Carolina Elementary School
• Lamar-Spaulding Elementary School
• Hartsville Middle School
The evening also included a recognition for the board itself. The district presented the Friend of Adult Learners Award to Board Member Vickie Carrieri, who was selected by the National Association for the Transformation of Adult Education (NAFTAE) for her support of adult education and adult learners in South Carolina.