learnfinancewithSouth Carolina
YES. SC requires 0.5 unit of financial literacy for the state high school diploma, IN ADDITION TO the separate 0.5 unit of economics. The requirement is created by STATE BOARD REGULATION 43-234, not by statute.
Class of 2027 (DERIVED from the primary text, which states the requirement begins with the 'freshman class of 2023-24'; SCDE does not name a graduating class). 2023-24 school year (students entering 9th grade in 2023-24 and thereafter); already in effect statewide.
In force — first bound the class of 2027.
- How it may be delivered
- STANDALONE half-credit course (CTE Personal Finance, 5141) or one of several approved CTE substitutes; a 1-unit CATE Personal Finance course awards the 0.5 financial literacy credit. Separately R43-234 V.B.6 requires schools to 'include financial literacy as a part of the instructional program', and the 0.5 economics credit is met by the 'Economics and Personal Finance' social studies course.
- Credit value
- 0.5 unit (Carnegie credit). A 1-unit CATE Personal Finance course also satisfies it, awarding 0.5 credit toward financial literacy.
- Instructional-hour rule
- Not yet verified to a primary source — we publish only what we can cite.
- Below high school
- No separate middle/elementary course or grade checkpoint found. S.C. Code 59-29-430 directs the State Board to incorporate the 59-29-410(B) financial literacy elements into the SC Academic Standards for kindergarten through twelfth grade.
- State-mandated assessment
- NONE. SCDE's assessment listing shows no financial literacy or personal finance statewide test; high school assessments are EOCEP, ACT/SAT/PSAT/PreACT, SC Career Ready Test, SC-Alt and WIDA ACCESS.
- Who may teach it
- Per the SCDE Personal Finance FAQ, eligible certification areas: 4H Business/Marketing; 4B Business/Marketing/Computer Technology; 10+ Math; 23+ Economics; 32 Distributive Education; 35 Family and Consumer Science; 40 Commerce; 44 Accounting and Related Business; 46 Data and Information Processing; 47 Business Education; 48 Accounting and Related Economics. ANY high school certification PLUS additional training or courses approved by OCTESTS (SCDE Office of Career and Technical Education Student Transition Services) also qualifies; professional development is strongly recommended for first-time personal finance instructors.
- State course codes
- 5141 — Personal Finance (0.5 unit) (HIGH confidence) — PRIMARY course satisfying the 0.5 financial literacy credit. · 5131; 5271; 5273; 5277; 5400; 5812 — Advanced Personal Finance (formerly Personal Finance, 1 unit); Banking Services; Business Finance; Securities and Investments; Entrepreneurship; Financial Fitness 1 (HIGH confidence) — SIX substitute courses that also satisfy the requirement per SCDE. Dual-enrollment and locally approved courses must be vetted with the SCDE Personal Finance course rubric.
- Standards framework
- South Carolina Career and Technical Education course standards, 'PERSONAL FINANCE' (course code 5141) - the standards for the 0.5 financial literacy graduation credit. (Distinct framework for the 0.5 economics credit: the 'Economics and Personal Finance' course within the 2019 SC Social Studies College- and Career-Ready Standards.) (DECEMBER 2022 (Personal Finance 5141 standards, posted by SCDE as draft standards). 2019 Social Studies standards: grades 4-12 approved January 8, 2019; K-3 …)
- Funding a district may cite
- SOUTH CAROLINA FINANCIAL LITERACY INITIATIVE, overseen by the South Carolina Financial Literacy Board of Trustees (chaired ex officio by the State Superintendent), with the Office of South Carolina Financial Literacy established within the Department of Education; S.C. Code 59-29-440 through 59-29-570 authorize public/private funds and GRANTS TO TEACHERS AND SCHOOLS (2006 Act No. 382). Current appropriation status unconfirmed.
- State agency contact
- Graduation requirements: Laura McNair, Education Associate, SCDE, 803-734-8111, lmcnair@ed.sc.gov. Social studies/economics: Corey Bedenbaugh, 803-734-4771, cmbedenbaugh@ed.sc.gov. SCDE, 849 Learning Lane, West Columbia, SC 29172.
Facts on this page last verified 2026-08-09; every pack is re-verified on a six-month cadence, and anything we cannot cite is marked rather than guessed.
The district awards the credit — no platform can. Ours is designed to align with the state’s learning standards, and it produces the documentation a district needs to award credit: the course object with its federal course code, a pass determination that shows its arithmetic, an hour ledger that counts only observed instructional minutes, and a verified record of demonstrated mastery for every student.