New schools lead to teacher transfers

First-year teacher Deborah Acree had just begun settling into her comfort zone at Stratford High School when she was called to the principal's office.

Officials meeting there told her why she was summoned: she would be transferred to the new Cane Bay High School next year.

Twenty teachers, a guidance counselor and an assistant principal will be leaving Stratford for Berkeley County's newest school, set to open this fall. The Stratford teachers found out about their transfers several weeks ago, but instructors in Dorchester District 2 still are waiting to hear whether they'll be sent to Ashley Ridge High School also opening this fall.

Ashley Ridge Principal Karen Radcliffe said she intends to start telling faculty members their status next week.

Acree, a first-year biology teacher, said she didn't request the transfer to Berkeley's Cane Bay. "I think I was shocked at first, but then I became excited," she said.

Stratford is so crowded that some science teachers don't teach in laboratory classrooms, resulting in logistical headaches when they want to conduct hands-on experiments but don't have the equipment to do so. At Cane Bay next year, Acree will teach in a state-of-the-art lab. She said she's also looking forward to working in a school that boasts a separate lunchroom for teachers.

Although teachers may develop a strong affinity for their individual schools, they remain employees of the district as a whole. Policies in both Berkeley and Dorchester District 2 give district superintendents the power to move personnel — on a voluntary or involuntarily basis — to serve the district's needs.

Read more in Saturday's edition of The Post and Courier.