THIS IS A “REPUBLICAN” ADMINISTRATION?
By FITSNEWS || Incoming “Republican” S.C. Superintendent of Education Molly Spearman hasn’t taken office yet – but she’s already making major staff moves at the Palmetto State’s Department of Education (SDE).
The only problem? Her moves are unlikely to please the GOP base that inexplicably chose her as their nominee for this post back in June.
Spearman – the longtime director of the uber-liberal S.C. Association of School Administrators (SCASA) – won the GOP primary earlier this year over our strong objections.
We like Spearman on a personal level (very much so, actually), but we don’t believe someone who has spent her entire career protecting bureaucrats and fighting academic freedom is the best choice to turn around our worst-in-the-nation government-run education system.
“Spearman doesn’t represent students, teachers or parents – her group exists for the sole purpose of protecting overpaid, underachieving administrators,” we warned GOP voters. “In fact teachers consistently get the short shrift from Spearman’s group, which entertains administrators on lavish summer holidays paid for with taxpayer funds.”
Anyway … Spearman’s initial staff moves reflect the status quo direction her administration is likely to take.
For example, she’s reportedly hired Betsy Carpentier – deputy superintendent to former Democratic Superintendent Jim Rex – as her chief of staff.
She’s also started cleaning house – booting numerous staffers and demoting those she cannot fire.
Among the casualties? Nancy Busbee – the deputy superintendent for accountability under outgoing superintendent Mick Zais. Busbee led Zais’ efforts against the federal government’s invasive Common Core standards – and her ouster would seem to indicate the new administration is going to be far more amenable to Washington, D.C. diktats.
Also getting the boot? Cindy Van Buren – a Zais’ staffer who had the audacity to suggest student achievement ought to have some impact on the grades we assign to teachers.
Yeah … and you thought accountability in this state was bad now?
Technically, “Republicans” still maintain control of this office … but it’s abundantly clear there is going to be a major shift in policy once Spearman takes the reins.
That’s unfortunate. Zais was no great reformer, but at least he wasn’t pushing the state in the wrong direction. Spearman? She’s about to double down on failure …
We’ve said it before and we’ll say it again: Way to go, South Carolina “Republicans.”
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72 comments
Zais was an idiot
For you to say that means you are…and you’ll love Spearman…
Most definitely
What will she do about the perennially unaccountable First Steps program?
Is First Steps under the Education Dept?
And, isn’t it just a way to funnel public money to private businesses aka daycares?
Yes but they are required
to fix a lot of other problems with zero evidence they have accomplished any of
it. However, their director Susan
Williamson DeVenny is paid more than any other dept. of ed. employee, she reports
questionable statistics to the public and was caught taking like three weeks with
of unapproved vacation time. Just for starters.
Check out the December 4th
video of the First Steps study committee on the SC Legislature website. When asked for a general accounting of state
and federal funds that goes to First Steps, the board member could barely
articulate an answer. When asked to tell
about the outcomes of First Steps, she basically said “I’ll have to get back to
you.”
Later in the session, you
find out the disabilities and special needs department has been providing services
to disabled little kids for First Steps’s BabyNet program for three years
without a contract so kids don’t go unserved.
First Steps can’t even execute a proper services contract for SC’s most vulnerable
children. That program is managed by “Dr. Dan” Wuori.
And, isn’t it just a way to funnel public money to private businesses aka daycares?
Isn’t that what the Republican shell-game is all about? “We will funnel money into private hands with no accountability.” Come now, how can anyone keep a straight face when saying “public schools an teachers MUST be held accountable but we don’t care who public money is spent by charter school.”
The legislature will have to COME DOWN HARD to control Spearman and thwart the damage she will do. She is as bad as Tenenbaum or Rex. They OUTLAWED Common Core….she needs her FACE rubbed in that FACT….
Atwater screwed the whole thing up because she made the run-off on the alphabet as the name at the top of the GOP ballot.
Sherri Few was THE right Choice. FITS hated her because she knows the deal…and had the guts to fight, unlike Zais, even though he was doing the right thing. He was floored that the leftwing education industry cared about getting paid…and Screw the kids…
The GA better be ready to club the F*#k out of Spearman…She will drive education into the ground as all liberals do…and she’ll fatten greedy liberal B@$t@*ds in the process.
PS: I LMAO at how FITS trips over his @$$ to tell us how much he LOVES Spearman personally. What an ignorant D*#K he is…He is no more against her than Sanford is adultery…
Sheri Few…ahhhhh…hahahahahahahhahahahahhahahahhahahhahah! A loser like you would support another loser like her.
Actually Meka Childs was by far the best candidate. Knowledgeable, experienced (worked for Zais) , solid conservative, she also had the best plan. As is to often the case in SC politics , the best candidate doesn’t always win. Spearman was the worst possible candidate in the crowd. Part of the problem not part of the solution.
I would have MUCH rather had Childs than Spearman. She was an excellent candidate.
Spearman was the worst possible candidate in the crowd.
You spelled Atwater wrong.
The fact that an ignorant, failed leftwing radical like you, hates her, is an endorsement of her quality.
Quality? And I’m the ignorant one? Only Pat Paulsen has lost more elections, but at least he was funny. Not a leftwing radical, but let me ask you: where were you on this day? Too afraid to defend your girl against the truth? Or in line sucking off the government teet somewhere (Just like Sheri). Hypocrite.
https://www.fitsnews.com/2014/04/21/letter-sherri-fraud/
Some of you live by EVERY WORD I use to define you…and you are one of those. You bash me, and hate me…but you KNOW I’m exactly right about you…because I tell you what others, who use you, will not tell you…
As far as some link about education: SCPSD has written extensively about Spearman, and her actually being a Democrat who is lying…and she is HORRIBLE for SC education.
I don’t care what FITS has to say about her or any politician. His track record is terrible and his political instincts, and insight, are even worse…
I’ve never seen someone go on and on about how right they were every single time as much as you do. You’re a very conceited individual, son.
You’re too delusional to see you’re just a doddering old fool pestering a bunch of commenters who don’t give a damn what you think, and mostly just laugh at the inanity of your diatribes.
Where has Tango ever been wrong ? Not since I began on here.
No, of course you wouldn’t think that.
Essentially the rest of the commenters here do.
Where has he been wrong?
Well, dumbass: He stated Perry, Newt and many others would win in ’12. Gay marriage would not be legal in this state. Also, his views are full of ignorant, bigoted bullshit, Sandi. Oh, I’m stalking your family…
I was wrong about Romney winning….and they’re still orgasmic about that one time…no matter that it meant horrible and continued suffering for millions of Americans, and a country is a disaster…
As long as I was wrong, these selfish B@*tards care for nothing else…
Did you begin on here a few minutes ago? Wake up.
Squeak much?….LMAO….
Great dodge, dude. Have a Merry Christmas.
For God’s sake, Fits, getting rid of the Zais cabal of dimwits is almost as good as being rid of the fool, Zais, himself.
We have in one fell swoop a person who has been in the classroom, administration of schools, and the General Assembly at the head of perhaps our most important state agency.
Why would we bitch and complain after seeing the results of the last imposter?
Amen
“…in one fell swoop a person who has been in the classroom, administration of schools, and the General Assembly…”
Hey dipstick – Zais had done all of those things as well with the exception of being in the general assembly – in our state that “Assembly thing” may be more damning than a recommendation.
FYI: wired mag: http://www.wired.com/2014/12/a10-warthog-isis/?mbid=nl_121014#x
Total non sequitur but very cool nonetheless.
I am normally a peaceful & peace loving guy, but it seems such a waste to let those birds gather dust. Neither the Air Force nor other branches seem to have the right tools specifically for the job at hand in the middle east.
A non sequitur fur sure.
I got to see an A-10 in a live fire exercise as a teenager some 27 years ago in the desert, near Barstow, CA….it was an incredible display.(cannon on an old WW2 tank)
:>) … close air support for troops on the ground. The Air Force does not have a replacement, leaving any boots-on-the-ground engagement, naked except for drone eyes and heat. The design (low and slow with fast get-away) is good, the new wing on the -2 is a modest improvement, but the original was good.
IMOP: ground support from drones is risky, fraught with possible “friendly fire” questions, inaccuracies.
When was Zais ever a public school teacher or administrator?
He taught at West Point and was the president of Newberry College. Newberry was failing when he took over, he doubled enrollment and the endowment while he was there. Frankly both positions had far greater responsibility than a normal school teacher or administrator would have had.
So the answer is never. Thanks for confirming.
Only in your narrow little mind.
You’re a fool if you think that teaching students at the USMA or managing a private university in any way resembles the challenges faced by public school teachers and administrators. Since you don’t actually believe your own bs you’re just being a disingenuous sob.
Zais never managed a private college. He chaired meetings and held fundraisers. The people who have been running Newberry for years before he came, ran it while he was there and are running it now.
Bet he never got cursed out by a student or parent because the student was doing absolutely nothing and failing a class.
Who cares. the Office has ZERO power. You have admitted that yourself.
And the pay checks & pensions & perks?
Did Jean Toal’s sister who was hired by Inez T for a job created just for her and was never advertised survive the Spearman cut? Haha. That’s right. Molly is a Toal disciple through and through.
Speaking of Jean Toal and Molly Spearman and their long professional Democratice party relationship, Spearman and her father gave Richard Breibart hundreds of thousands of dollars to put in his trust account. The Mitchells are not stupid people. They sued Breibart and of course, claimed they were duped by Breibart. There was all that publicity about the closing of Breibart’s office and his going to jail where he is now. He will be out in less than a year. The Feds have done all sorts of reports and all sorts of statements about the situation. However, Jean Toal has yet to actually disbar Breibart. He was suspended from practicing law, but some creative order disbarring Breibart has not ever been issued. This would lead one to believe that Toal does not want to issue her “Findings of Facts” about that Mitchell case in Breibart’s order until Spearman is snuggly sworn into her new position. Jean and Molly, we are watching.
There is so much more to this story that will never see the light of day. Don’t count on SLED to do anything about it. Talk to some of the guys in Saluda….. It was bad and sad that Molly’s brother died a couple of months ago. Good guy.
Breibart has been so discredited partially because he knows where some of Toal’s bodies are buried.
You don’t mention whether any of the Zais appointees had any educational background at all or if they were all lifelong GOP hacks like his one time spokesman whose name I can’t recall, but who made nearly $80,000 a year.
Molly has already started hiring her own hacks like Emily Heatwole.
or if they were all lifelong GOP hacks with no knowledge of anything related to education
You just described an overwhelming majority of School Choice supporters.
OUCH..!! That’s a creepy looking broad…..
Voter Fatigue
The voters are given an endless array of offices to vote on. They often are not informed when faced with so many candidates for so many offices. The Superintendent should be appointed by the the Governor, confirmed by the state Senate, to serve at his/her pleasure.
As bad as some appointments are, at least the bad ones have been pushed out of office. It is more likely office holders can be held accountable to the voters by applying pressure on the Governor than by the voters every four years. 36 Governors appoint the Superintendent and only 14 are elected.
I remember at least two incumbent governors voted out of office. I don’t recall many other statewide incumbents voted out. Charlie Williams was one I believe. There are no term limits on any statewide offices other than the Governor.
Smart woman. Educated. Experienced. Elected by the people. Probably thinks she is better qualified to make decisions on the education of a child than the people elected by God. Who? The parents.
Perhaps it should be noted also that Spearman hates home schooling because of one experience she had with a father who abused the system. She will hear from us home school parents should she attempt to make changes that would be detrimental to our rights to choose the best schooling options for our children. The lawmakers learned a couple of years ago about the voices of home schooling in this state when they attempted to shut down our third option and force state testing on us. They, and Spearman, will hear from us again should they come after us.
I bet she also hates home schooling because you can give a child a quality education and instill the spiritual, moral and cultural foundations they need for as little as $1,000 a year.
Compare that to the $10,000 + per year the failed state controlled schools charge to fail to educate while brainwashing children that America is evil/unfair and Kim Kardashian is a hero.
If the Republican establishment had not lined up behind the incompetent Sally Atwater than highly-qualified Meka Childs might have stood a decent chance to defeat Spearman. Unfortunately, with the Democrat crossover vote for Spearman in an “open primary” the outcome was probably predetermined. We are a Conservative state with an educrat running the show – go figure.
The SC GOP isn’t a party so much as it is a club. Who your daddy was and how well connected you are have value to them, being qualified is way down the list of priorities.
The SC Democrat Party is a collection of racists, femi-nazi’s homosexuals/lesbians and generational welfare leeches.
Being qualified is apparently way down on the list of priorities. Just look at the candidates they put forward.
Yet, still more worthy than the Republicans to hold office.
There is a recall process, right? … Being totally unfamiliar with this case, I might suggest give it a chance.
No recalls in South Carolina. She would have to be remove for cause and then their would be a special election. Doubtful that will happen.
Then the governor should stand up for wasteful g’ment and smaller g’ment values and “line item” veto their cash.
Isn’t that what you all have a [republicrat] governor for?
Why is it that we always attack the teachers, and not the parents and elected school board members?
You can’t blame parents and at the same time tell them teachers are the professionals and know what is best. We don’t give parents choices and tell them they are not qualified to make decisions.
Complaning about gov’t run education is akin to complaining about the gov’t run driver license system.
You might be right, but it won’t ever substantially change for the better.
Spearman is actually kinda hot!
can someone ask her how she feels about gay marriage?
Dino freaking sucks. I hope he gets the can. I bet he’s kissing ass to the Spearman people and the Quinn’s so he can stay even though he was pushing out all of the anti-Spearman messages from Zais during the Primary.
You mean the woman that was pointed out to be a left-wing educrat and has a record to prove it is turning out to be that way as superintendent? Go figure.
How wonderful! I hoped she would be good and it appears my hopes are coming true. For all the children of SC, I say thank you, Molly, thank you!
Any of the candidates would have created the SAME result: failure. You cannot fix the system. Replaced, yes, but not fixed.
Please tell me that weasel Scott English is out of a job and out of government for good. The man, like his boss Zais, only cared about damaging public education in SC. Unfortunately English has spent his entire career sucking off the public teet and I’m not sure he can make it in the private sector.
Betsy Carpenter is the biggest piece of shit ever. She was a crappy Director at the SCDOR under Hodges.
She is one in Toal’s inner circle. With a “Democrat” in the Superintendent’s position, Toal called in a card to get Betsy a job.
So glad to see these fools go. Four lost years under Zais. Keep on, Molly.