No Recession For Kershaw Educrats
While the vast majority of South Carolinians are struggling to make ends meet in one of the worst recessionary economies ever, educrats in rural Kershaw County are living high on the hog.
That’s because the Kershaw County (S.C.) School District has paid out $850,000 in raises this year – including an average raise of $9,600 for more than fifty administrators. Teachers in Kershaw got raises, too, but those accounted for just over 40% of the total (or $350,000) and averaged “only” $3,500 apiece.
Approved in 2008, the raises were the recommendation of … get this … a taxpayer-funded “salary report” prepared by a consultant that the district hired.
Sheesh. There’s your problem right there …
Anyway, the raises were uncovered as part of a special report by Jody Barr of WIS TV 10 (NBC – Columbia).
If you’d like to go and throw things (nothing sharp or heavy, please) at the morons who are doling your tax dollars this way, it turns out the school board is holding its next meeting on Tuesday, December 15 at 7:00 p.m.
Or, feel free to email the morons a piece of your mind by clicking on their names below …
Mrs. Mara Horton Jones
Sherri J. Brosious
Joseph Dorton, Jr. (Chairman)
M. Andrew James
Carol Thompson (Vice Chair)
Kim DuRant
Charles W. King II
James A. Smith
Frank Morgan (Superintendent)
Kershaw School Board: Recession? What recession?
Comments
By Todd on December 15th, 2009 at 8:47 am
There are 50 administrators for the schools in Kershaw County? Sheesh. Does anyone in Fitsland, America, know is there is a study comparing South Carolina’s number of administrators per student compared to the other 49 states? I bet we would be at that top of that list of dubious national distinctions also. They are tripping all over each other here in Richland District 1.
By OhNoNotAgain on December 15th, 2009 at 9:53 am
To say 50 administrators does sound like a lot.
If you’ve got 15 schools, each with one principal and one assistant principal only, that’s 30 administrators.
I don’t know how many are there, just a hypothetical.
And you suspect the high school, at least the main one, would have more assistant principals.
Just saying we ought not get worked up without proper context.
If they have five schools with 50 admins, now, that’s a problem.
By Chris on December 15th, 2009 at 10:55 am
This is nothing more than another shameful act by the Kershaw County School Board. The district has already laid off over thirty people this year to make up for the budget shortages. Now in all of there wisdom they are giving large raises to administrators and smaller raises to teachers. First of all, why are they even giving raises in an economic recession, and why do teachers always get less than the administrators? We are in a recession, raises should not be given period. The $850,000 could have saved the majority of the jobs lost, or at the very least be put back into the classrooms.
Dr. Morgan states that the raises are needed to keep quality administrators in the county. With over 10% unemployment in South Carolina, and school districts cutting back across the state, where are the “under paid” administrators going to go? While the board is giving out these raises, I hope that they are thinking about the ones that they let go and are sitting at home unemployed this holiday season.
By Catherine on December 15th, 2009 at 11:20 am
Welcome to the party! I started the I hate Reggie Dean fan club in 1993 when I was a personal witness to the colossal failure that has been as the principal of Camden High School. He and several other administrators are getting paid two salaries because they are “retired” and still working. It was a program that the school district enacted several years ago before the shit hit the fan with the economy; teachers and administrators were offered retirement pay while still continuing work. So now, the district has not only not renewed the contracts of the administrators, AND given them raises, they have NOT renewed the contracts of some of the best teachers the Kershaw County school district will ever see! It is an utter outrage that these assholes are making 2 salaries and getting raises, especially when caring, committed, life changing teachers are being forced out! This scandal goes far beyond the information in this piece. It is MUCH WORSE than you think. Oh, and last month, the school district asked the county council to raise the millage rate on property taxes for education by 10.5 mils. The council passed a 3.5 mils raise.
By Commonman on December 16th, 2009 at 8:16 am
This is education for goodness sake. They ask and you empty your wallet to answer their every want, including huge raises in the midst of a recession. You are Santa and they are the spoiled kid that asks for and gets everything. Look at your property tax bill and 9 out of 10 times your school district has once again raised millage and your county council says there is nothing they can do but approve the request within state guidelines. School districts are going to bleed us dry and there does not appear to be a poltician that gives a damn. Someone needs to provide some adult supervision, but from what I see, it is not out there.
By Wayne on December 20th, 2009 at 9:17 am
Somebody ought to do an exposé on these salary studies. Top administrators love it when other districts do them. It gives them an excuse to perform a study and boost up their own district’s salaries. Lexington-Richland 5 did one a couple years ago because the other nearby districts did one. Then Kershaw…. It’s a vicious cycle. And it seems they are usually performed when a school district is getting ready to have a bond referendum. They want to try to keep their employees happy so they’ll be more willing to perform their marching orders. Really, someone should check to see how much salaries have gone up in the last 10 years because of “salary studies.” They feed off of each other at our expense and the expense the students. The money is not getting into the classroom. If they’re lucky, they’ll give teachers a token raise.