ABC Quality Explained: South Carolina's Child Care Rating System
ABC Quality is South Carolina's quality rating system for child care. Here is what the letter ratings mean, who runs it, the 15/20-hour training rules behind the workforce score, and a training year that supports a higher letter.
Short answer (South Carolina): ABC Quality is South Carolina's statewide quality rating and improvement system (QRIS) for child care and early education, administered by the SC Department of Social Services (SC DSS), Division of Early Care and Education. Participating programs receive a letter rating from A+ down to C based on business practices, intentional teaching aligned to age-based standards, and adult-to-child ratios and group sizes. Staff training is part of the picture: every teacher in a participating program needs 15 clock hours a year (directors 20) recorded in SC Endeavors, plus the free Health and Safety Pre-Service Certificate and hands-on pediatric first aid, CPR and AED.
Last reviewed: September 27, 2026, against scchildcare.org and abcquality.org. Rating bands and training rules are set by SC DSS; check the current ABC Quality manuals before your assessment.
Directors in Columbia, Greenville and Rock Hill ask me the same first question: is ABC Quality the same thing as licensing? No. Licensing is the floor. ABC Quality is the ladder above it, and the training your staff completes each year is one of the rungs you control directly.
Key facts
- What it is: South Carolina's QRIS, voluntary, statewide (SC Child Care Services: ABC Quality).
- Who runs it: SC DSS, Division of Early Care and Education.
- Ratings: A+ and A (score 86–100), B+ and B (71–86), C (50–70); P = pending (ABC Quality rating system).
- Scored on: business practices, intentional teaching practices aligned with age-based standards, adult-to-child ratios and group sizes.
- Staff training: 15 clock hours a year for direct-care staff across at least 3 topic areas, up to 5 carried over; directors 20 hours (5 in program administration, 5 in child growth/ECE/health and safety), up to 10 carried over (SC Child Care Services: Training).
- Also required in ABC Quality programs: hands-on pediatric first aid, CPR and AED from a recognized health professional (not online); the free SC Health and Safety Pre-Service Certificate.
- Where hours live: SC Endeavors, on the Learning Record / DSS Official Transcript.
What is ABC Quality?
ABC Quality is the voluntary system South Carolina uses to define, measure, and improve the quality of early care and education. Instead of a simple "licensed / not licensed" line, it looks at the things research links to better outcomes for children: safe and engaging environments, strong interactions, curriculum, and a qualified, well-trained workforce.
Participating in ABC Quality signals to families that a program is doing more than the licensing minimum — and it gives directors a structured roadmap for getting better each year.
The rating levels, and what each one means
ABC Quality uses letters rather than stars. From the official rating scale:
| Rating | Score | What SC DSS says it means |
|---|---|---|
| A+ / A | 86–100 | Consistently and effectively promotes quality practices; awarded the highest quality standard score |
| B+ / B | 71–86 | Has strategies to increase program quality; awarded a high quality standard score |
| C | 50–70 | Meets health and safety requirements; quality standards exceed licensing requirements |
| P | — | Pending: meets pre-requirements and can accept child care scholarships while the rating is completed |
Three things feed the score: business practices (policies, records, staffing), intentional teaching practices aligned with the state's age-based standards (what assessors see in classrooms), and adult-to-child ratios and group sizes. Staff qualifications and training sit inside the first two: a documented, trained team is a business practice, and what that team does with children is the teaching practice.
How staff training connects to your rating
This is the part that matters for educators: ABC Quality rewards ongoing professional development. The training your staff complete — and record in SC Endeavors — is part of the quality picture a program is measured against. A center where every teacher hits their annual 15 hours (20 for directors) with meaningful, well-documented training is in a much stronger position than one scrambling to prove hours at review time.
The rules behind those numbers, from SC Child Care Services:
| Role | Annual minimum | Required spread | Carryover |
|---|---|---|---|
| Direct-care staff | 15 clock hours | At least 3 topic areas: child growth and development, curriculum, child guidance, health and safety, nutrition, special needs, professional development, program administration, or other approved areas | Up to 5 hours to the next year |
| Directors | 20 clock hours | 5 hours in program administration; 5 in child growth and development, early childhood education and/or health and safety (not counting pediatric first aid/CPR); the rest from the approved areas | Up to 10 hours, in the category earned |
Two extra requirements apply to ABC Quality programs specifically:
- Pediatric first aid, CPR and AED for all staff, from a recognized health professional, with a hands-on component. It can't be done online. The National Safety Council Southeastern Chapter offers it free to ABC Quality employees.
- The free SC Health and Safety Pre-Service Certificate from SC Endeavors for teachers and administrators.
And one rule that catches programs every year: SC Endeavors won't award licensing credit for a course repeated within five years of the original completion date. Sending the same module to the same teachers annually stops counting after year one.
That is why a clean SC Endeavors transcript matters: it is the evidence behind the training piece of your rating. If you need to get outside training onto that transcript, see our step-by-step guide to the SC Endeavors Individual Training Request.
ABC Quality, SC Endeavors, and SC DSS — how they fit
| System | Role |
|---|---|
| SC DSS | The Department of Social Services, which licenses child care and oversees ABC Quality through its Division of Early Care and Education. |
| ABC Quality | The quality rating and improvement system that scores program quality. |
| SC Endeavors | The workforce registry where staff education and training hours are recorded, and where trainers submit attendance within 10 days of a session. |
In plain terms: SC DSS sets the rules, ABC Quality measures quality, and SC Endeavors holds the training record that quality depends on.
Planning a training year that supports a higher letter
A plan I'd give a South Carolina center aiming to move from B to A:
- January: pull every teacher's DSS Official Transcript from SC Endeavors. Note who carried hours over and who is starting from zero. Training counts in the calendar year it happens, January 1 to December 31.
- February: confirm pediatric first aid, CPR and AED dates and the Health and Safety Pre-Service Certificate for every new hire.
- Spring: a whole-staff training day covering two topic areas (for example child growth and development, and curriculum). If the trainer is registered with SC Endeavors, attendance posts within 10 days; if not, teachers file an individual training request with the certificate.
- Summer: directors take their 5 program-administration hours.
- Fall: a second staff day in a third topic area (child guidance is the one assessors see most in classrooms). Check every teacher is at 15 and every director at 20.
- December: verify the transcript, not the binder. Hours that never posted don't exist for ABC Quality.
Raising your rating starts with better training
Higher ratings are built on substance, not paperwork. Camille's Reggio Emilia-grounded workshops give your team professional development that genuinely changes practice — and produces the documented hours that support your ABC Quality standing. Her sessions cover several of the required topic areas in one day (child growth and development, curriculum, child guidance), and because South Carolina lets you bring outside training onto the record through SC Endeavors, the path is clear: book the day, file the request, verify the transcript. See how it maps to South Carolina requirements on the South Carolina certification page, or plan your team's full year on the annual packs page. For how South Carolina's numbers compare with Georgia's 10 and North Carolina's credential ladder, read the state-by-state comparison.
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Frequently asked questions
- What is ABC Quality in South Carolina?
- ABC Quality is South Carolina's statewide quality rating and improvement system (QRIS) for child care and early education, administered by the SC Department of Social Services, Division of Early Care and Education. Participating programs are rated from A+ to C on business practices, intentional teaching, and ratios and group sizes.
- What do the ABC Quality letters mean?
- A+ and A (score 86 to 100) mean a program consistently and effectively promotes quality practices. B+ and B (71 to 86) mean it has strategies to increase quality and earned a high score. C (50 to 70) means it meets health and safety requirements and its quality standards exceed licensing. P means the rating is pending.
- How does staff training affect an ABC Quality rating?
- Ongoing professional development is part of what ABC Quality measures. Direct-care staff need 15 clock hours a year across at least three topic areas and directors 20, all recorded in SC Endeavors. ABC Quality programs also need hands-on pediatric first aid, CPR and AED and the free SC Health and Safety Pre-Service Certificate.
- How is ABC Quality different from SC Endeavors?
- ABC Quality is the rating system that scores program quality, while SC Endeavors is the registry that records each educator's training hours. ABC Quality relies on the training data held in SC Endeavors.
- Can training from outside South Carolina count toward ABC Quality?
- Yes, through an individual training request in SC Endeavors, which reviews the certificate and course details. Approval is not guaranteed, and the same course cannot be repeated for licensing credit within five years.