To be eligible for Summer SAIL, you must meet the following criteria:

Recognized as fully identified as academically gifted and talented (per South Carolina identification policy) at the time of registration

Currently being served in CCSD through gifted programming (students who have opted out of service are not eligible)

Currently enrolled as a student in Grade 2, 3, or 4 (2024-2025 school year); will be promoted to Grades 3, 4, or 5 for the 2025-2026 school year

Please refer to this website for updates to enrollment changes. 

The cost is $550.00. Bus transportation is available for an additional $100.00. At this time, Summer SAIL is fully funded through tuition.

Before registration is opened, a Summer SAIL announcement regarding registration will be posted on the  CCSD Gifted and Talented website. A district-wide automated phone call will be made to the families of all identified students before registration opens. Parents should be sure they understand eligibility for Summer SAIL (see first FAQ). Parents will complete the registration form; registrations will be processed in the order received based on time stamp. Parents will be notified of their child's placement on the enrolled Summer SAIL list once we have confirmed their eligibility. This confirmation email will include the directions for payment to secure your spot. We will begin placing enrolled students in Expeditions when their tuition is fully paid. Early payment gives your child a better chance of getting into the Expeditions they have requested. An additional email will confirm payment and Expedition placement. 

1. Complete Summer SAIL Registration Form

2. Summer SAIL Email: eligibility confirmation, enrollment status / waitlist notification, payment directions given to those who are eligible and enrolled

3. Summer SAIL Email: payment confirmation, expedition placements shared with those who have paid in full

4. Summer SAIL Email: intent to participate are sent to those who have not paid

5. Payment Deadline - after this date, we will begin to honor the waitlisted registrants in the order they were received. 

6. Waitlist updates are sent and shared on the home page of this site

The Google Registration form will send a copy of the responses when successfully submitted. Parents/Guardians will be contacted via email with a confirmation of a spot for their explorer - this can take up to a week to process. Additional payment information and Expedition choice assignments will be emailed as soon as possible.

If a spot is not available at the time of registration, parents/guardians will receive an email regarding waitlist placement within a week of registering. We will update the website and registration form to indicate the program is full and moved to a waitlist. 

Preferred Method of Payment is RevTrak

Payment Options

Credit Card via RevTrak online or check/money order

Partial Payments are allowed through RevTrak

OR

Send check or money order to:

CCSD Gifted & Talented, 721 Wappoo Rd., Charleston, SC  29407

Final Payments are due April 25, 2025, to secure your child's spot.

Your child's Summer SAIL spot is not official until payment is received in full. We will send a follow-up email to notify you of receipt of payment. Because our program is fully funded by tuition, any spots left unpaid after the payment deadline will be offered to the next waitlisted student. 

We would like students to attend the full program. If they need to miss days, it is permitted, but the cost of the program does not change. Since Summer SAIL is fully funded by tuition, we are not able to offer prorated amounts. Please consider only taking a spot if your child can participate the whole time. 

We will not be able to honor special requests for peering with friends or requesting certain teachers, etc. We want students to be able to interact with many students (and teachers) to broaden the exposure and perspectives for deep conversation for learning! They will be in two different Expeditions over the course of the program as well as other Explorations each week with different groups of students. Students will also be able to interact with the entire group upon arrival, lunch, and recess. 

It’s exciting to have the opportunity to attend both summer experiences. We advise students and parents to have honest conversations about how they prefer to spend their free time during the summer. You should also consider the true natural gifts and talents of your child and the degree to which they are exposed to enrichment for those talents. If you have a child who is very talented in math/quantitative reasoning and dance, but attends dance class during the week and goes to competitions on weekends, then we would encourage more academic exposure. But if you have a child who is a very talented reader and a visual artist, but rarely has the opportunity to engage with their artistic talents in a formal setting, then we would encourage more artistic exposure. Traditionally, gifted education is about allowing a child time to take a deeper dive into what they are most naturally interested in and passionate about. Talk with them about they prefer and feel most strongly about.

We understand that bus routes and times for Summer SAIL are important for you to plan accordingly for June. We are working to coordinate this with the Transportation Department. When applications are filled out we asked parents to list the stop they would like to use. We are using this data when creating the bus routes. Official bus routes are provided approximately one week prior to the start of our program. 

Historically, we have been able to offer a stop at each requested school around the district. If for any reason the requested school was not added to the route, a school within an approximate mile was used instead. 

While we cannot make any guarantees about which stops will be named at this time, we can confirm that careful consideration is being made to ensure each student who wants to participate in the program will have access to bus transportation if needed. 

Please know that when routes are confirmed, buses run on a 10 minute window on either side of the published time for each stop. This means the bus may arrive 10 minutes before or after. Please plan to be at the bus stop at least 10 minutes prior to the listed time. 

We do our best to make bus transportation a smooth experience, but we are dependent on the capabilities and technology provided by our contracted companies. 

Your child can wear comfortable, casual clothing that is school appropriate. Shorts and t-shirts are fine. We recommend close-toed shoes (like sneakers/tennis shoes) for safety purposes and comfort. Many Expeditions will involve art supplies and hands on learning. Students will have the opportunity to get messy, interact with animals, play outside at recess, conduct experiments, etc. Please dress accordingly. 

Your child will have at least 30 minutes of recess a day. Some classes will spend more time outside as part of their curriculum.

We expect that all students act in a respectful manner, as they would at school. Students will be dismissed from Summer SAIL and tuition forfeited if necessary and aligned to the Summer SAIL Progressive Discipline Plan (PDP). Click here for a copy of Summer SAIL 2025 PDP.

Your child will have an opportunity to see their friends at breakfast, lunch and recess. We encourage all of our students to reach out and get to know their classmates.

If your child will need to be picked up early, email summersail@charleston.k12.sc.us to notify the administration with the student name, class, and time of pickup. Signage will be posted at the school with the number to call to let staff know you arrive and they will walk your child(ren) out to you. Please have your ID ready for early pick up. 

In the event of an emergency, please call the Summer SAIL (843-402-7878).

You do not need to purchase any materials. All materials needed are included in the price of the program. 

Yes, you can send your child with their own lunch and snack. Breakfast and lunch will be provided at no cost to all program participants daily.