Dear CCSMS families,  

Faced with the unexpected vacancy of our Principal position in August, the Board opted to maintain the most continuity of operations by having our Assistant Principals operate in a Co-Interim Principal arrangement until a Principal search was initiated and completed. To that end, a search was initiated at the beginning of the calendar year with the goal of hiring a school leader who will help achieve stability for CCSMS, ensure the school remains faithful to its mission, and provide the best possible experiences for our students, staff and families. I believe we have accomplished that goal.  

We are excited to announce our new school leader, Mary Carmichael. Her role will be as Executive Principal and CEO. She will answer to the board and oversee all faculty and staff. Many of you know her due the many hats she currently wears in our Riptide community: a founder of CCSMS, a CCSMS parent, a PTO volunteer, and as the Executive Director of the Public Charter School Alliance of South Carolina.  

We hope you will welcome Mrs. Carmichael. She will be involved in the coming weeks in planning and budgeting for the coming school year and looks forward to meeting you during upcoming events.  Melissa Frasier will serve as her Lead Principal and they are working together to ensure a successful school year.  

A note from Mrs. Carmichael is below.  

Sincerely,

David Wolf
Board Chair
The mission of Charleston Charter School for Math and Science is to educate students for success in college and careers by providing an innovative learning environment that is academically excellent, developmentally responsive and socially equitable.
 





Dear CCSMS Families,  

I am honored to be selected by the CCSMS Board of Directors to lead CCSMS. While I officially start July 1, I am already immersed in the decision making and planning for next school year. I am committed to starting the school year with a renewed commitment to delivering on the mission of the CCSMS:

The mission of the Charleston Charter School for Math and Science is to educate students for success in college and careers by providing an innovative learning environment that is academically excellent, developmentally responsive, and socially equitable.  

Strengthening partnerships to support our scholars will be critical to achieving our mission.  Because the most important partnership is with our scholars’ families:  parents, grandparents, extended family, neighbors, and guardians, there are a few things I need your help with as we move forward together.  To provide opportunities for all scholars to reach their full potential we need to have families engaged in:  
  • Developing what high expectations look like in academics and behavior for your child.
  • Building a shared vocabulary with teachers around your scholar’s growth in areas that are sometimes overlooked with letter grades like persistence, creativity, communication, independence, and leadership.
  • Supporting your scholar’s educational journey by attending CCSMS exhibitions, demonstrations, experiments, and events.
Releasing the untapped potential of CCSMS and our scholars keeps me up at night. The school has so many great things happening each day.  I have been involved with this school from the initial conversations, the first faculty members hired, and the first students enrolling.  We will have high expectations communicated and a common vision of what success looks like for our school and, most importantly, our scholars.  Together we can deliver on the mission of the school.    

The staff is planning several information sessions in the coming weeks for families to learn more about the course offerings at CCSMS and I look forward to meeting many of you there.  Please email me at mcarmichael@charlestonmathscience.org with any questions, ideas, or solutions.  I look forward to hearing from you.

Sincerely,

Mary Carmichael
Executive Principal and CEO
mcarmichael@charlestonmathscience.org