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 Below is a release to EdgefieldDaily.com by veteran School Board member Brad Covar. web posted September 27, 2007 EXCLUSIVE – After Louise Talbert did not seek re-election in 2006, I became the longest serving member of the Edgefield County School Board. Though this title was never a goal of mine, it certainly allows me to provide the people of our county with a history of their school board actions, both good and not so good. My intent in issuing this press release is to inform the people of board actions in the past four years which have led us to a racial divide that must come to an end for the sake of our children’s education. When are we adults going to learn from our youth the art of getting along? Many of our board decisions over the years have been driven by racial issues that for the most part were laid on the table and discussed. I was proud to serve on a board with fellow members of my county willing to deliberate these issues with respect for each other, knowing that our common goal was the best education possible for all of the children of our county. During my last two years as board chairman (2003-04), it became very obvious race issues had moved to the front of the black board members concerns. Most of these issues were not publicized by the media or board members, so the general public did not know. I believed the board, based on our history of working together would get through it and get back to educating children. I have chronicled many instances of our “working together” in the paragraphs to follow. In April, of 2003, the board voted 4/3 along racial lines to refuse to uphold the superintendent’s termination of a black employee and instructed her to reassign this problem employee to another school. In June, of 2003, Eldwin Griffin and Nathaniel Jackson addressed the board and started the six month debacle over the mascot. Even though this issue was settled by compromise many years ago, the board voted 4/3 along racial lines to change the mascot. The mascot was dropped and the fighting rebels name was kept. This was all done after student input was requested on the subject and then completely ignored by the board. I was approached by several black parents and former classmates who did not agree with revisiting this issue and wanted me to know that the leaders of this cause did not speak for them. In October, of 2003, the board approved a reapportionment map along racial lines 4/3 after much discussion about the significant population increase in white voters in the Merriwether community and the need for additional representation for that district. That map was rejected because of the objection by Rep. Don Smith of North Augusta. In January, of 2004, the board hired a new varsity football coach. This vote was 5-2 in favor. Much discussion was made about the lack of black candidates for that position. In February, of 2004, the board rejected the recommendation by the superintendent to hire a white female assistant principal at STHS to be the next principal of that school. This vote was along racial lines 4/3. The next month, Mr. Greg Thompson was hired as the new principal of STHS. That vote was 5-2, with the 2 no votes cast by white members of the board expressing their concern over the compensation package and not Mr. Thompson’s qualifications or race. In August, of 2004, Nathaniel Jackson returns to the board to raise minority concerns about the hiring and bid solicitation practices of the school district. This triggers a board workshop on the hiring and bid practices of the board. Mr. Jackson returns in November to let the board know he is not satisfied with the response he has received from the administration. In December, of 2004, a black bus driver is observed on videotape by the administration cursing a white child. The driver is immediately placed on leave and recommended to the superintendent for termination. During the employee hearing the board was shown the tape. The language of the driver was certainly inappropriate and being the father of two girls, I was appalled. I remember Ms. Cooks telling me that what I thought I heard on the tape was not what I actually heard and that since I did not have a full appreciation for the black language and culture, I was making an incorrect conclusion. The board ended up reinstating the employee because it felt the employee had not been properly treated under board policy and procedure. This board meeting was the first meeting attended by three new board members since their election and the first meeting presided over by the new board chairperson, Sallie Cooks. In April, of 2005, the board overturned the termination of two black janitorial staff by the principal of STHS and approved by the superintendent. This vote was along racial lines 4/3. In December, of 2005, Ms. Cooks calls a special meeting to hear a discipline case appeal for two black children that had been expelled for the remainder of the school year. When asked why she has called a special meeting for these children, she responds that this is a high profile case and she did not want the situation to get out of hand. She was reminded that we were having our regular meeting the following week and that we normally hear appeals at our regular meetings. Mr. Livingston and I had prior commitments and were not able to attend the hearing. Board minutes show that Eldwin Griffin, president of the local chapter of the NAACP, offered the opening prayer. The board votes 3/2 to reinstate the children to the alternative school and enroll in an alcohol counseling program. Mr. Griffin would later address the board in March of 2006, claiming the alternative school did not treat kids fairly and that one of these children had already been punished enough and that he should be allowed back into the regular school program. He claims other students have committed greater crimes and have received lesser punishment. He further asserts that our hiring practices favor friends of current employees and that we should have in place multi-cultural hiring procedures. In January, of 2006, Ms. Ann Byrd, a representative from the Center for Educator Recruitment/Retention and Advancement meets with the board. The purpose of CERRA is to provide leadership in identifying, attracting, placing and retaining well-qualified individuals for the teaching profession in our state. In doing so, CERRA will respond to the changing needs for teachers from under-represented populations, in critical subject fields and in under-served geographical areas in South Carolina. Ms. Byrd stated, “Edgefield County is above the state average in administrators of color and below the average in female administrators.” In February, of 2006, motion to approve the superintendent’s recommendation to hire a white female to fill the newly created position of transition coach is approved 4/3 with Ms. Cooks voting with the prevailing side. In March, of 2006, motion to approve the superintendent’s recommendation to hire the white assistant principal at JET middle school as the new principal of that school rejected 3/2 along racial lines (Mr. Chitty and Ms. Jackson absent). This action by the board has resulted in the school district being the defendant in a discrimination lawsuit soon to be tried in Federal court. In October, of 2006, the board discussed the need for control of the board travel budget. All efforts to curtail the spending of a few board members were rejected. Our finance director drew up travel procedures to be approved by the board which would require the board chairperson to approve/monitor the board travel account and to be responsible for operating that account within the budget. This procedure was rejected and the majority consensus was that board members needed the training and the district would pay for any and all expenses related to that training. In January, of 2007, a motion was made to pay board members for special called meetings. This motion was approved along racial lines 4/3. The 2006-07 school year saw a number of district administration employees submit their resignations. Our superintendent, human resources director, finance director, director of special services, and director of Title 1 services positions were all vacated by long-term employees of the district. In March, Dr. Roberson was approved as the new superintendent. The open positions remaining would be filled with Dr. Roberson essentially having the ability to hire his entire cabinet. These positions were advertised and applications were processed by the human resources director. Committees were formed to interview and score the applicants. The HR director screened the applications to verify the applicant met the qualifications as advertised. One of the positions filled during this process was by an individual that did not meet the qualifications as advertised. This individual did not pass the screening by the HR director but was added to the interview list by Dr. Roberson. This individual subsequently was hired for the position. I do not mean to imply this individual cannot perform the duties of the job, however, the individual did not meet the qualifications as advertised. The circumstances surrounding this hire do not meet the smell test. In early 2007, the board is briefed on the issue of a first year employee at the high school that has not been able to verify his credentials to hold the job for which he has been hired. We are told that the employee has offered numerous different reasons as to why he has not been able to confirm his credentials. He is given time off to gather his documentation and still no verification. The district plan is to reassign the employee so that we avoid an exception on our accreditation report. This plan is nixed by Dr. Roberson. I believe pressure was placed on Dr. Roberson to deal with this situation by certain board members close to this employee who were aware of the situation before other board members had knowledge. All of this was taking place during the interview process for hiring a new superintendent. When the news of this situation filtered into the halls of our schools, many teachers and administrators were very upset. Their frustration with this situation turned into a major problem for Dr. Roberson. He subsequently did the right thing and reassigned the employee which triggered the uproar from the black community and led to the five and a half hour grievance hearing in June. Of all the things I have witnessed since serving on the board, this had to be the most ridiculous. After nearly every high school and district administrative employee have been professionally attacked, two members of our board, Ms. Cooks and Mr. Bibbs, voted to grant the grievance request and reinstate the employee to his old job at the high school. One week after the hearing fiasco, the board learns of Dr. Roberson’s additional requests relating to his contract. One could wonder if these glitches in the contract negotiations were a way out for Dr. Roberson following his treatment during the grievance hearing. It is important for me to say at this point that I have the utmost respect for Dr. Roberson. He was an asset to our district and will be tremendously successful in whatever direction his career takes him. The night the board accepted the letter from Dr. Roberson to end his contract negotiation, I suggested that we contact Dr. Keesley to see if she would stay on until we could hire a new superintendent. This seemed like the only logical solution to our situation. She agreed to continue her service. Motion was made to hire her and the motion was defeated (you guessed it) along racial lines. The board is now back to having to perform a superintendent search all over again. Mr. Bibbs believes that we only need to move to the second choice from the first search if that candidate is still available. The board agrees to conduct a new search through our consultant, however, it is pretty obvious to me that our next superintendent will be that second choice from the first search. The new search was purely conducted to give the appearance of a true review of the potential candidates. On Monday, September 10th the board interviewed two finalists for the position of superintendent. Following the interviews and much discussion, a motion was made to hire David Mathis as the new superintendent for our school district. This motion was defeated 4/3 (you guessed it again) along racial lines. The following night the board voted to hire Dr. Mary Rice-Crenshaw as the new superintendent for our district on a 4/3 vote along racial lines. In our earlier discussions about the candidates, board members had agreed that testing results would be a major influence in hiring the right person for this job. A comparison of the district test scores for Dr. Crenshaw and Dr. Mathis provided a clear picture of the two candidates. In the end though, test scores meant nothing, a proven track record meant nothing, a career commitment to our district meant nothing, overwhelming support by district staff and teachers meant nothing. It got down to the color of a candidate’s skin. James Bibbs echoed this sentiment very clearly when he said “61% of our ninth graders who matriculate to the 12th grade do not graduate. Most of those children are in our African American communities. We need a change and we need a leader to make that change. Now Dr. Mathis is a good person but I personally do not believe he has the intestinal fortitude to make that change”. Viola Jackson expressed her discontent with the teachers for having contacted her about their support for Dr. Mathis and suggested that they should act in a professional manner. Ms. Jackson should be reminded that the board had requested input from the teachers regarding the qualities they would like to see in our new superintendent and also that teachers are parents of our school children and taxpayers in our county. A good employer always listens to his/her employees. The personal attack on Dr. Mathis’ character by Mr. Bibbs was so far out of order and disrespectful toward an honorable and respected professional educator that most people in the conference room were truly stunned. A public apology from Mr. Bibbs to Dr. Mathis is the very least an honorable elected public official could do to help the situation. I pray that our actions prior to and on 9/11 (what a coincidence) do not undermine the efforts our teachers, students, administrators, and other staff over the past 40 years. I do not place that burden on Dr. Mary Rice-Crenshaw. I place that burden squarely on the backs of those of us who call ourselves adults. Nothing is more precious to us than our children and nothing is more important to them today than a quality education in a safe environment. This divide must end. Have we not learned anything? Brad Covar Edgefield County School Board Member September 26, 2007 For all
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