For the longest time, there were few factors that impacted a child’s future more thoroughly than their own ZIP code. Rather than exploring the opportunities that might be waiting for them just the next town over, they were forced to stay where they were planted and hope that there was enough educational nourishment for them to bloom.
Through its Choice Program, our own Beaufort County School District operates a little differently. This learning model essentially empowers kids who live in the county to act as free agents, charting their own educational course at the school of their choosing.
Of course, that also means that our schools now must find unique offerings and value propositions to court these potential students. Thanks to a Magnet Schools Assistance Program (MSAP) grant they’re calling Changemakers, Hilton Head Island schools have opened the door for students across the district to experience the difference of their wildly successful programs.
Steve Schidrich, principal at Hilton Head Island High School, looks over the building plans for the school’s recent expansion.
“We’re investing in the future of Hilton Head Island’s public schools by providing resources and support to build up the programs and make them the absolute best in our district. And that commitment is not only the education that our students are receiving. We’re investing in our teachers and their development and their experience,” said Megan Jarrett, the district’s MSAP project director. “There are a lot of options that our parents have out there. We want them to know that Hilton Head is really committed to building the best educational opportunity for not only parents on Hilton Head, but in any part of our district.”
Essentially, the Changemakers magnet program serves as a boost to the offerings that already set our public schools apart, granting them better funding and more resources as Hilton Head Island High School prepares to open its doors on a brand-new, state-of-the-art school in Fall 2026.
Principal Schidrich visits with students playing chess in the library.
“We are nearing our current building capacity,” said Steve Schidrich, seventh-year principal at HHIHS. “With the new building, we have the opportunity to really open up school choice widespread.”
Granted to just a handful of school districts across the country, the grant that made the Changemakers program possible was the second such grant awarded to Beaufort County School District, hot on the heels of the success of the MedTech7 Program. Offering learning opportunities in the medical and technology fields to K-12 students at seven schools North of the Broad, the Med Tech7 Program set the tone for more opportunities to invest in our schools.
The new wing of the Hilton Head Island High School is scheduled to open in August of 2026.
With Changemakers, the island’s schools have been given crucial funds to create their own magnet program, pioneering new programs and improving on the programs that already set them apart. Educational pathways through Changemakers include dual language immersion in Spanish and Chinese at the elementary level, the STEM-focused Project Lead the Way at all levels, and the Advancement Via Individual Determination (AVID) program at the middle and high schools.
“We’re getting a lot of things off the ground. One thing I’m particularly excited about is the AVID program,” Schidrich said. “We find that sometimes kids who have a lot of promise don’t reach their full potential, and AVID teaches them the skills they need to be successful. … We went to a conference this past summer and met a lot of students who were enrolled in an AVID school in Florida and you could just see the confidence these kids had. They’re learning at a high level, but they’re also learning how to ask questions, take notes, and advocate for themselves.”
Another beneficiary of Changemakers will be the already vaunted International Baccalaureate (IB) program. Long the shiniest jewel in the crown of Hilton Head’s public schools, IB takes an international approach to education.
Steven Schidrich with fellow staff members Cheryl Dopson, School Counselor, and Megan Jarrett, MSAP Project Director.
“We want to be able to develop students who are able to thrive in an ever-changing, globally connected world,” Jarrett said. “The IB continuum at Hilton Head Island – from elementary through high school – helps students grow into thoughtful, well-rounded learners who understand how their education connects to the world. In the high school’s Diploma Programme, they take on a rigorous curriculum that positions them as competitive applicants to the colleges they’re aiming for, Ivy Leagues included.”
“I can honestly say there is no better program to prepare your kid for college than IB,” Schidrich said. “These kids are learning to adapt, they’re learning to collaborate, and they’re learning to manage their time, so when they get into college, they’ve already been operating at that level for the last two years.”
Having spent 27 years in Beaufort County schools as a teacher and administrator, Schidrich has built strong ties to the community, and that fuels his excitement for the Changemakers program. But the biggest perspective he brings to the discussion is that of a father. Having put his daughter through BCSD schools, he knows the choice that now lies before parents.
“You have so much choice here. Even within the IB diploma program there are science, math, or art focuses. But whichever one you pick, you come out of IB better prepared,” he said.
That choice is valuable, especially for parents. And as they begin to eye their options for BCSD Choice this month, the Changemakers program has made enrollment in the island’s public schools more valuable than ever for them and their children.
To learn more, visit beaufortschools.net/families/school-choiceprograms/changemakers.
