Taught to mastery
Teachers model each skill, lead the class through it, then check that every child can do it alone. A new step starts only when the last one is firm.
How Direct Instruction worksOur approach
A classical education. A public school. No tuition.
What CCS-America is, in the order parents usually ask: is it good, how does it work, and what will my child become here?
The proof
On the 2025 Classic Learning Test for eighth graders, CCS Leland ranked first and CCS Whiteville ranked third in the nation. They were the only public schools in the top 20.
If CCS-America's three K–8 schools were one district, they would rank 17th of 117 in North Carolina.
Source: CCS-America 2025 Annual Bond Investor Call presentation (Dec 9, 2025) · Read the 2025 school-data presentation online
Year: 2024–25
Scope: Leland, Southport and Whiteville only. CCS Wilmington is not included.
B CCS-America's own published claim or a reputable third party. Not yet re-verified against the original source.
Three laws. One method. Every classroom.
The same written philosophy is trained, observed and coached in all four buildings, so a child who moves from Leland to Southport finds the same school.
A classical curriculum
Children learn to read with phonics, write in cursive, diagram a sentence and study history in the order it happened, with Latin woven through.
See the curriculumCharacter, practiced daily
Each morning, after the Pledge of Allegiance, students recite the school pledge. Teachers notice and name good conduct, specifically and every day.
Read the Three LawsWhat a CCS classroom looks like
Structure and joy belong together. Teachers recognize effort and good conduct so children can take pride in learning, one mastered step at a time.
- Clear, posted rules and consistently high expectations
- Uniforms for students and professional dress for teachers
- Four positive interactions for every correction
- Lessons taught in small steps, practiced to mastery
- The school pledge each morning
What Joshua Goodson values most: a classical curriculum taught alongside “honesty, integrity, and respect.”
Joshua Goodson, CCS Leland parent. From the CCS Leland admissions page.
Keep reading
The classical curriculum
Phonics, cursive, grammar, Latin and history in order.
Direct Instruction
Model, lead, test: how every skill is taught to mastery.
Character and the pledge
The virtues named, taught and practiced every day.
The Three Laws
The whole teaching philosophy in three sentences.
A head start on high school
Up to five high-school credits before ninth grade.
The year-round calendar
Breaks every quarter instead of one long summer.