Interim Executive Associate Superintendent of Literacy and Certified Staff Development Terri Nichols

Terri H. Nichols is a longtime employee of the Charleston County School District who has dedicated most of her adult life to children, teaching, and learning. She began her career as a teacher at Morningside Elementary and also taught at Brentwood Middle School where she was named Teacher of the Year and a CCSD semi-finalist in 1987. Mrs. Nichols moved into administration and became Assistant Principal at Hunley Park before she was named Principal at Mary Ford Elementary in 1991. During her tenure at Mary Ford, the school was recognized by the National Title I department at their convention in Anaheim, California for demonstrating marked academic achievement in both reading and mathematics. Additionally, Mrs. Nichols was awarded the CCSD Principal of the Year Honor in 1996. 

Mrs. Nichols continued as a principal moving to lead Belle Hall Elementary from 1999 through 2008. During this time, the school maintained its excellent rating awarded by the South Carolina Department of Education. Mrs. Nichols, a huge supporter of students with special needs, was recognized by the Downs Syndrome Association of the Lowcountry with the Education Award in 2005, and, in 2009, she was awarded the Friend of Reading Recovery for her support of Reading Recovery as an intervention for struggling first-grade readers.

In 2008, Mrs. Nichols became an Associate Superintendent for elementary schools supervising at first 17 elementary schools and ultimately having primary responsibility for the operation and supervision of all 45 elementary schools in CCSD. 

The Citadel and the Anita Zucker School of Education honored Mrs. Nichols with the Outstanding Alumnus Award in 2017 for her many years of service to the students, teachers, and parents of Charleston County.

Her current role is Interim Executive Associate Superintendent of Literacy and Certified Staff Development and is working with a variety of initiatives including literacy and leadership development.