School Structure
The school is an independent, private, non-profit organization registered in the State of South Carolina. We are in the process of obtaining our Federal designation as 501 (c )(3) status with the Federal Government
We have no affiliation with any other educational institutions.
Who We Serve
Student Criteria
- Average to Above Average Intelligence
- Language based learning differences (learning disability)
- Dyslexia, Dysgraphia, Dyscalculia as a primary diagnosis
Grades
- Elementary School and Middle School (Initially, grades 1-6)
- We will grow in subsequent years to serve K-8
Founders
Dan and Brandie D’Orazio
Brandie is a Registered Nurse, specializing in Trauma and Critical Care. Professionally, she has held positions in Nurse Leadership and Education. She has been very active in her child’s education, having held board positions in public and private schools.
Dan is the CEO of a national healthcare consulting firm, Sage Growth Partners.
Dan taught in the Johns Hopkins Carey Business School in strategy and entrepreneurship.
We both have a deep history in non-profits service and leadership, church boards, school PTO and and school boards, hospital advisory boards, non-profit fundraising and have led several church ministries (school and Christmas drives, marriage preparation).
Why Did We Start the Promise School?
We have two children who are dyslexic, and we have been inspired by their journey and the amazing educators who have helped to unlock their learning.
Our journey to founding The Promise school is also guided by our fourth child, Leo. Leo was born with a rare genetic disorder, a condition that was imperceptible during pregnancy, even with the our scientific advances. Unexpected to make it out of the hospital, Leo had other plans. He graced our family and community with three amazing years, (2017-2020), beating all the odds. While Leo had his share of deficits, he was perfect in so many ways. He taught us the power of seeing his gifts, not his deficits, and he also helped us and many others to realize the importance of maximizing each person’s quality of life. While we have no regrets about Leo’s amazing life, we could not change his long-term outcomes.
With two of our children being diagnosed with Dyslexia and our amazing journey with Leo, we realized that we could help our children and many others use the unique gifts they were given to learn without limits. Learning and advancing with Dyslexia, not in spite of Dyslexia.
We have become steadfast believers in the Orton-Gillingham approach and upholding the model’s fidelity with rigor.
We see the need and the opportunity to build a world-class school serving the children with learning disabilities and language-based language differences in Charleston!
What’s in a Name?
We intentionally named the Promise School for the following reasons:
- We are driven to unlock our student’s amazing gifts and full Promise.
- We Promise to stay fully committed to the Orton-Gillingham Approach. We are starting with the end in mind as we drive towards full O-G Academy Accreditation.
- We Promise to be transparent and incredibly thoughtful with decisions that we know will impact your family and your children. As advocates, parents, community members, and Founders, our commitments mean everything to us. We are far from infallible, but we Promise to be open, and open-minded.
Accreditation
- We are members of The South Carolina Independent School Association (SCISA), and are pursuing accreditation
- We will pursue O-G Academy Accreditation once we meet the requirements.
- From the beginning, we have been building to hire the best staff, to deploy the optimal education models, and to seek guidance from our Fellows to align and meet the requirements for Orton Gillingham Accreditation