There is one important celebration that typically kicks off Berkeley County School District’s spring graduation festivities every year: the Project SEARCH graduation.
Project SEARCH is an annual program made possible through a partnership between the district, the county and South Carolina Vocational Rehabilitation. The program prepares young people with special needs for success in employment opportunities.
Throughout this past school year, four high school students worked in various departments at Berkeley County Government and developed skills and training to prepare them for future jobs.
BCSD is excited to recognize the Project SEARCH class of 2025: Ryley Culkin from Cane Bay High, Keke Anderson from Philip Simmons High, Justin Grant from Stratford High and Robert Strickland from Goose Creek High. VIEW PHOTOS.
These students were joined by family members and district and county officials on Thursday morning for a graduation ceremony held at Berkeley County’s Administrative Building in Moncks Corner.
BCSD Superintendent Dr. Anthony Dixon thanked the county and South Carolina Vocational Rehabilitation for the continued partnership, and commended the students for all the hard work they put into their internships.
“You are examples of what it means to make a positive difference in this county,” Dixon said. “You’ve embraced challenges, exceeded expectations and shown us what is possible when we work together.”
Pat Gilliard, Area Supervisor for Vocational Rehabilitation, encouraged the graduates to keep working hard.
“You have turned obstacles into opportunities and barriers into bridges,” she said. “Every step, every small victory, added up to this moment – and what a powerful moment this is.”
See also: Justin Grant was recently recognized in Summerville when the Summerville Mayor’s Committee on Employment of People with Disabilities named him Student of the Year. READ MORE.