CASC Follow-Up Procedures for R2S Literacy Teacher or R2S Requirement Endorsement:

Read to Succeed (R2S) Endorsement Requirements

Preparation in Reading Instruction for SC Educators

To support the literacy needs of students, Act 114 of the 2023-24 legislative session amends South Carolina’s Read to Succeed Act (2014) to focus primarily on reading for students in kindergarten through grade 5 and to require that reading instruction, interventions, resources, programs, and other reading services are based on evidence-based practices aligned to the science of reading, structured literacy, and foundational literacy skills (Act 114, Section 59-155-140 (A)(2). As amended, the R2S Act establishes requirements for the preparation and ongoing professional development, certification, and endorsement requirements of educators whose work, directly or indirectly, provides literacy instruction, supports, and interventions to students.

Act 114 2024 Elimination of the R2S Endorsement Requirements
for Some Certification Areas

Classroom Teaching Fields Requiring a Read to Succeed Endorsement

Current Options for Earning the R2S Literacy Teacher Endorsement

Educators required to earn the R2S Literacy Teacher endorsements have the following options for doing so:

• Option 1: Successful completion of four college courses or equivalent professional development approved by the South Carolina Department of Education (SCDE). These courses include the following:

• Foundations of Reading

• Instructional Practices

• Assessment of Reading

• Content Area Reading and Writing

• Option 2: Completing Lexia Language Essentials for Teachers of Reading and Spelling (LETRS).

• Educators may earn the R2S Literacy Teacher endorsement by successfully completing Volume 1 and Volume 2 of LETRS and demonstrating 80% mastery or higher on the post-test for each volume.

• Each LETRS volume includes 4 units of instruction. Teachers are eligible for 120 renewal credits for Volume 1, which meets requirements for the R2S Foundations of Reading and Assessment of Reading courses. Teachers are eligible for 120 renewal credits for Volume 2, which meets the R2S requirements for Content Area Reading and Writing and Instructional Practices. Credits must be earned in the validity period of an educator’s certificate to be used for renewal purposes.

• Note: Educators who complete LETRS for Early Childhood Educators, which consists of four units, and score 80% mastery or higher on the post-test may earn 60 renewal credits and meet requirements for the R2S Instructional Practices course.

• To request the endorsement, an educator must submit a request through My SC Educator Portal and submit one of the following types of documentation:

• SCDE LETRS Certificates of Completion or

• Lexia LETRS transcript (not the LETRS Certificate(s) of Mastery).

• For additional information on LETRS, educators should contact their employing school district or the SCDE Office of Early Learning and Literacy.

• Option 3: Adding the Literacy Teacher certification field.

• An educator who adds the certification field of Literacy Teacher will also be issued the R2S Literacy Teacher endorsement.

• Eligible educators may add the Literacy Teacher certification field by completing the required coursework and submitting a passing score on the approved subject area assessment. Information on required courses is available in the Add-on Guidelines.

• Eligible educators who have advanced to a Professional certificate have the option to add Literacy Teacher certification by submitting a passing score on the approved subject area assessment. Information on the required exam for adding Literacy Teacher is available on the Certification Assessments webpage.

• Option 4: Earning a graduate degree in reading or literacy.

• An educator who has earned a graduate degree in reading or literacy may add the R2S Literacy Teacher endorsement without completing additional course work or professional development. The educator may submit a request to add the endorsement through My SC Educator Portal and must request an official transcript from the college or university.

Timeline for Earning the R2S Literacy Teacher Endorsement

Beginning with certificates renewing in 2015, educators who must earn the R2S Literacy Teacher endorsement have two renewal cycles (i.e., ten years) to do so.

After completing all requirements, the educator should submit a request through My SC Educator Portal to add the R2S Literacy Teacher endorsement and then upload the related professional development certificates or request an official transcript from the college or university.

Administrative Certification Fields and Roles Requiring a Read to Succeed Endorsement

Pursuant to Act 114, a literacy endorsement will remain a renewal requirement for administrators whose responsibilities, either directly or indirectly, substantially relate to reading and literacy instruction, support, or interventions.

Current Options for Earning the R2S Literacy Endorsement for Administrators

Administrators required to earn a literacy endorsement for renewal have the option of earning the one-course R2S Literacy Requirement or the four-course R2S Literacy Teacher endorsement.

• Option 1: The R2S Literacy Requirement may be earned through successful completion of one course in content area reading and writing or the equivalent professional development approved by the SCDE. Beginning with certificates renewing in 2015, educators needing the R2S Requirement must earn the endorsement for their next renewal.

• Option 2: The R2S Literacy Teacher endorsement may be earned through one of the four options detailed earlier on this webpage; however, the SCDE strongly encourages all administrators employed in elementary schools to complete LETRS training. If an elementary school administrator is enrolled in LETRS during 2023-24, the administrator is eligible to renew without the R2S Content Area Reading and Writing course (i.e., R2S Requirement) so long as all other renewal requirements are met. Upon completion of LETRS, the administrator must submit the required documentation to the SCDE Office of Educator Services through My SC Educator Portal.

R2S Coursework and Professional Development Offerings

Educators employed in South Carolina public schools should consult their districts about available opportunities. The following list includes additional options.

• Approved R2S Endorsement Coursework and Professional Development
  A list of all pre-approved Read to Succeed coursework options

• VirtualSC Professional Development

• ETV LEARN (SCETV)

CASC Follow-Up Procedures for R2S Literacy Teacher or
R2S Requirement Endorsement

1. Remember to send your R2S course completion certificates (individual class certificates) to Robbie Anderson (randerson@erskinecharters.org), our district contact. 

2. If you are in K-3 and you have completed LETRS training for both Years 1 & 2, this will equal your Read to Succeed 4 required classes.   If you are on LETRS Year 2 then you can pay for a transcript for 12 college credit hours. If you are finishing LETRS Year 1 then look toward the future for this to increase your salary based on our new salary scale. 

3. You will send your R2S course completion certificates with the Request for Change/Action Form or if you took college coursework, submit an Official Transcript to SCDE in order for them to add the R2S endorsement to your teaching certificate and it will automatically be updated in SC Lead.  There are many options here at SCDE.  If you are getting endorsed (all 4 classes) wait until all 4 are completed to send them to SCDE.

4. Update this form: R2S Google Form

5. You do NOT have to send a copy of your updated teaching certificate to Melissa Wallace, but you need to send it to Stride.

6. K12 does require updated teaching certificates to be uploaded to their database, but they do NOT need your individual R2S course completion certificates from your classes.  

1.  We are required to keep a database for teachers of record and certifications for OLS and D2L courses for K12 compliance, so we need you to update a copy of your certificate to the teacher credential database.  

2. Here is the login page, and you will use your TVS teacher credentials for access (continue to follow instructions starting on page 3 of the TCT Teacher User Guide or TCT Non-Teaching Certification for Staff).

3. When you upload your certificate, make sure to review the “approve your courses” area and select “No” for anything you are not the teacher for. Add the endorsements even if you are not currently teaching in that area.

To have your educator certification file evaluated for R2S endorsement requirements or to update your certificate based on the new classes you have taken that equal the 4 classes for Literacy Teacher or the one class for your Literacy Requirement:

Submit the Request for Change/Action Form to the Office of Educator Services.

Submit the appropriate documentation of completed coursework

College Coursework: submit an Official Transcript. There are many options here at SCDE.

Professional development: submit an SCDE Renewal Form or SCDE-issued R2S certificate of completion.  Please contact the course provider if verification has not been received.

For questions regarding which classes are needed to add a Read to Succeed endorsement to certification, please contact the: Educator Services Office at (803) 896-0325.

Office of Educator Services
8301 Parklane Rd.
Columbia, SC 29223
Phone: 803-896-0325
Email: certification@ed.sc.gov
Call Center hours have been expanded to: 

Monday, Wednesday, and Friday 12:30 PM - 4:30 PM Tuesday and Thursday 9:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. (excluding state holidays)