Law boosts school chief's clout

Clarification:This story about a new amendment to the 1967 law that created the Charleston County School District, which was published on Tuesday, June 26, 2007, needs clarification. The amendment gives the county board the authority to appoint principals. The superintendent interviews and recommends principals for hire to the county board. - (inserted Wednesday, June 27, 2007)

Charleston County school superintendents now will have the authority to place teachers and principals where they want them because of an amendment signed into law Monday.

It's a fundamental change in the way the district hires its educators because it eliminates constituent boards from the process, giving sole hiring power to the superintendent. The change also allows the superintendent to move educators where they are needed without first getting approval from constituent school boards.

"It's huge because it aligns the superintendent's authority with her responsibility," said school board member Gregg Meyers, who drafted the memo that eventually was proposed as legislation. "It's really been needed since they created the district. It's the beginning of having the ability to allocate resources where you need them."

The amendment was made to the Act of Consolidation, the law that created the county board and eight constituent school boards in 1969. The act has been amended four or five times to change financial rules, but Meyers said he didn't think "there's ever been a substantive change like this."

Meyers credited new school board member and former U.S. Rep. and state Sen. Arthur Ravenel Jr. for helping make the change a reality because "everybody knew him, and everybody would take his call."

New Superintendent Nancy McGinley said the amendment streamlines the hiring process and the district's ability to hire people in a timely way so they aren't lost to other districts, which has happened. The change also will cut down on the bureaucracy of requesting permission from constituent school boards to move educators rather than just approving the transfers because it's best for the children.

She sees the change as giving the district more flexibility to create incentives to attract teachers to needy schools, but she said she doesn't plan to force teachers to transfer to places where they don't want to go.

McGinley said she still values the input of constituent school boards and wants to find a way to solicit their input in hiring principals. She plans to meet with constituent school boards to get their feedback after creating a new process for hiring principals.

The amendment will take some responsibility and power away from constituent school boards, which likely will be met with resistance.

Downtown constituent school board Chairman Marvin Stewart said he saw the change as a minute one.

The district administration and county board already hired who they wanted to, regardless of constituent boards, he said. His board rubber-stamped the names of teachers recommended for hire and interviewed only principal and assistant principal candidates who were recommended by a school-based committee.

"Other people saw this as a big part of the issue of why Charleston has failing schools, but that's such a very small issue," he said.

Rep. Wallace Scarborough, R-Charleston, said lawmakers were trying to put the school board in a more business-like model. He was pleased but surprised that the governor signed the bill.

"I fully expected the governor to veto it," he said. "He always vetoes local legislation."

Joel Sawyer, spokesman for Gov. Mark Sanford, said Sanford vetoes local legislation that's unconstitutional, such as when a bill changes a law that could be changed statewide.

He said Sanford either signs or allows bills to become law that have to do with education because those changes have to be done at the state level. He said Sanford doesn't often weigh in on the merits of those bills.

Sen. Robert Ford, D-Charleston, said he supported the bill.

He introduced legislation this session that called for constituent school board members to be appointed by the county board rather than elected. Ford said this measure puts into law what's been practiced.

"I don't know any county outside of Charleston County that has a setup like this," Ford said.

Ford said he'd like to see further action that would break the school district into five smaller districts. He backed off the idea when former superintendent Maria Goodloe-Johnson took the reins and plans to give McGinley time to prove herself before pursuing the legislation.

"I want to give her a chance," Ford said. "Even though Dr. Goodloe-Johnson did a superb job, we still have problems."

The recent bill, which was sponsored by Rep. Ben Hagood, R-Sullivan's Island, was introduced in late May. Hagood could not immediately be reached for comment Monday night.

Reps. Floyd Breeland, D-Charleston, and Robert Brown, D-Hollywood, objected to the bill. Neither could immediately be reached for comment late Monday.

Yvonne Wenger contributed to this report. Reach Diette Courrégé at 937-5546 or dcourrege@postandcourier.com.

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