CCSD’s educator discount program working to support staff and local business

Charleston County School District’s (CCSD) administration held a series of teacher listening sessions last year during which participants shared ways the district could better serve employees. One topic mentioned was the district’s educator discount program and how it could be more beneficial to staff.

The administration responded with a redesigned program focused on increasing visibility and relevancy of discounts for employees. This strategy required transitioning to a local-driven approach to attract area businesses and organizations to participate.

In January, the redesigned platform launched with only a handful of local merchants. However, the look and feel was different, featuring a new internal website that was solely dedicated to communicating discounts and opportunities to staff, who could now easily access the site from the district’s employee portal. As the new program rollout progressed, employees began to take ownership in growing the initiative through internal leads and recommendations.

The program has resonated with the community and grown to include close to 50 local businesses to support the 6,000 employees in the district. In
the last week alone, M. Dumas & Sons, Wild Blue Ropes, Home Team BBQ, and the Charlotte Hornets have come aboard.