Agency veteran to be interim director

Staff report

The S.C. Employment Security Commission said former Commissioner Samuel R. Foster will serve as its interim executive director effective Nov 9 to replace Roosevelt "Ted" Halley.

Halley is retiring as the head of the agency Nov 8, nearly two months earlier than projected. He previously announced he would step down Dec. 31.

The commission said Halley is retiring after 38 years with the commission "earlier than planned to help expedite the process of choosing" a permanent replacement. He will continue to be employed with the agency until the end of this year."

Halley has served as executive director since December 2002.

His retirement announcement in September followed months of record-setting unemployment numbers and criticism from Gov. Mark Sanford over job statistics.

Foster, a Chester native, served with the commission from 1992-2000. Previously, he was a member of the state House of Representatives from 1981 to 1992. Also, Foster worked for 32 years in South Carolina public schools, as either a teacher or administrator.

"The Employment Security Commission is committed to the goal of transparency as we seek to fill the executive director's position," said its chairman, McKinley Washington. "We are also committed to delivering continuity of leadership, so that the programs we administer will not be affected. Sam Foster's long experience with the agency will be especially helpful in this regard."