The release of scores for high schools and districts is still set for Tuesday, but state Education Department officials held a press conference Friday to address the information already circulating -- that South Carolina once again was ranked 50th, a slot it had moved out of in 2002 when Georgia received that dubious distinction. The information released Tuesday will include all 50 states and Washington, D.C.

State Education Superintendent Inez Tenenbaum emphasized that, even with a three-point drop in SAT scores, the state still had the highest improvement rate in the nation over the past five years. During that time, SAT scores in South Carolina have increased by 32 points.

Tenenbaum is running for U.S. Sen. Fritz Hollings' seat in November. She wouldn't say there was a political purpose behind the early leak of the information, but she did predict there would be negative ads to follow.

The College Board, which administers the SAT, recommends against ranking states based on scores.

South Carolina is one of 23 states where more than half of students take the college entrance exam. States with more students taking the test usually have average scores lower than those of states where a small number of top students take the test.

"For some reason, in South Carolina, the SAT has become the litmus test of education progress," Tenenbaum said.

She said the state had increases this year on other national tests and will see an increase in the Palmetto Achievement Challenge Test scores when those are released next month.

Terry Sullivan, campaign manager for Jim DeMint, Tenenbaum's Republican opponent, released a statement from DeMint saying he wasn't going to politicize the drop in scores.

"This isn't politics," the release said. "We just need to figure out a way to solve the problem."

Gov. Mark Sanford used the SAT results to call for education reform, including more school choice. "There are far too many kids, parents and teachers out there working far too hard for our school system to continue to show these unacceptable results," he said in a statement.

When Georgia slipped to the 50th slot two years ago, the issue became politically charged. A spokesman with the Georgia Education Department would not comment Friday, citing the actual release of scores on Tuesday.

But a 2003 press release showed Georgia officials hoped to improve scores by strengthening curriculum; encouraging more students to take higher-level courses; encouraging more students to take the PSAT, a preliminary version of the test and using PSAT results to better teach students to improve their SAT scores.

South Carolina also has focused similar efforts on SAT improvement, including paying for the PSAT for any 10th-grader who takes it, encouraging students to take tougher courses and providing SAT preparation materials for students and training for teachers.

The state budgeted about $1 million in 2000 for SAT improvement, though state budget cuts have trimmed that to less than $250,000, Tenenbaum said.

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