NEWS: Supreme Court to hear, review rural school cases

By Andy Brack, editor and publisher  |  State officials will have until July 11 to answer a lawsuit by the Allendale County School Board that seeks to nullify this week’s state takeover of the school district, according to an order filed this morning by the S.C. Supreme Court.

Today’s order is the latest in a series of developments about rural education splattered in newspapers throughout the week.  Last week, Statehouse Report highlighted a national report that illustrated urgent, critical needs of rural schools in the Palmetto State.

• On Monday, S.C. Superintendent of Education Molly Spearman declared a state of emergency for Allendale County schools and announced a takeover of the countywide school district. Allendale County is one of the plaintiff districts in a school funding lawsuit filed more than two decades ago by poor districts against the state.  It also was under state control in the early 2000s for performance and other issues.
• On Wednesday, the Allendale school board filed suit against the state in an attempt to override Spearman’s takeover. It also called on the high court to issue a temporary injunction to keep control of Allendale schools in local hands until the lawsuit is settled.  As of this morning, the state remains in control and is moving forward with planned improvements.
• On Thursday, House Speaker Jay Lucas asked the Supreme Court to remove it from the 1993 Abbeville lawsuit by rural school districts seeking more equitable school funding. The court ordered remedies in 2015.  Lucas said Thursday that the House had fulfilled its legal responsibilities.  Opponents said the request was premature.

“State of emergency”

Allendale County schools have among the biggest challenges in the state, according to recent rankings.

The state’s 2016 report card for the school district showed 1,236 students attended four local schools.  The district employed 86 teachers.

In 2016, 78.7 percent of seniors graduated from high school in four years, which is about four points lower than the state average.  However, the county’s schools have a five-year graduation rate of 85.5 percent, which is slightly higher than the state’s 83.9 percent rate.  In 2016 standardized tests, more than twice the percentage of Allendale students did not meet science and social studies standards compared to students across the state.

“After a lengthy review I have determined that this declaration is in the best interest of the children and families of Allendale County,” Spearman wrote Monday.  “Allendale schools have failed to show improvement for many, many years and unless intense action is taken, I fear that the children of Allendale County will continue to suffer.  They have enormous potential and they deserve better educational opportunities.”

In a statement, Allendale County School Board Chair Patricia Jenkins said the district had been cooperating with the state to coordinate improvements when the takeover was announced.

“Unfortunately, Ms. Spearman has reached a decision that seeks to diminish the governance of the Board and remove the management authority of the District’s leadership,” she said.  “We believe that the citizens of Allendale County elected the board to carry out the educational mission entrusted to them within the district.

“Moreover, we believe that the community expects the Board to operate within the law and take all measures reasonable and necessary to assure that Allendale, which includes the Board, our community, and our children, is respected under the law.”

In 1999, the state took over Allendale schools for poor performance.  Last year, Spearman’s agency took over control of two Timmonsville schools to spur improvement.    In a statement this week, Education Department spokesman Ryan Brown said assessment results for the two Timmonsville schools wouldn’t be available until later this year.

“We do know that the culture has changed drastically in the district and the students and teachers have benefitted greatly from the new leadership and ongoing professional development,” he said.  “They have implemented career and technology programs and are offering students opportunities that they have never had before.”

Lawsuit filed Wednesday

The Allendale County School District filed a suit to wrest control from the state on Wednesday.  The lawsuit alleges the state wrongly took over the district because it relied on an improper mechanism – a budget proviso — to get administrative control of the district.

“The right to manage the educational operations of a school district, whatever authority the governing body has to expend funds issued by the South Carolina Department of Education, does not reasonably and inherently relate to the raising and spending of tax monies and, therefore, is not germane to the purpose of the Appropriations Act of 2017-18,” the lawsuit said.

In a Wednesday statement, Spearman countered that the takeover was the right thing to do.

“South Carolina has both a constitutional and moral responsibility to provide a quality education for all of our students,” she said.  “I believe this power was granted to address cases of gross mismanagement and to protect South Carolina’s most valuable resource, our children.”

Spearman’s takeover has, in effect, neutered the power of the Allendale County School District Board of Trustees.  Gov. Henry McMaster has authority to remove members of local boards, such as school boards.  Despite repeated requests, his office did not provide a comment for this story.

Lucas seeks House removal from Abbeville case

Meanwhile on Thursday, House Speaker Jay Lucas asked the state Supreme Court to remove it from the two-decade lawsuit in which poor, rural districts have tried to get more equitable funding from the state.  In December 2015 in Abbeville v. State of South Carolina, the court ordered the General Assembly and school districts to come up with a way to pay for the state’s failure to provide adequate public education opportunities, especially in poor, rural districts.  The court essentially also said it would maintain oversight until enough progress had been made.

In a 117-page petition that included 14 exhibits, Lucas on Thursday outlined several initiatives taken by the General Assembly “to make education a top priority,” including more overall education funding, increased per-pupil spending, more early childhood education and an addition of $55.8 million in capital improvement funding in the 2017-18 budget as well as more money for charter schools, school buses and technical assistance.

“Since the Abbeville opinion, the House has led the charge to implement effective policy reforms and fiscal improvements to South Carolina’s education delivery system,” Lucas said in a statement.  “After the Supreme Court applauded our efforts in last September’s order, the House continued to legislatively equip school districts with the tools they need to succeed. I believe our work achieves a higher standard than the Court’s definition of a ‘minimally adequate education.’ Therefore, the House should be relieved of its responsibilities in this lawsuit.”

But Bernadette Hampton, president of The S.C. Education Association, said dismissing the House as a party to the suit was premature “given the fact that it has taken so long to get anything done.”

She added, “I would think it wouldn’t be in the best interest [of students] for them [the House] to be removed” from the court’s oversight.

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