TheTandD.com | Gov. defers to SCSU trustees on Hugine, spokesman says

Gov. defers to SCSU trustees on Hugine, spokesman says

By LEE TANT, T&D Staff WriterFriday, December 28, 2007

Gov. Mark Sanford does not support South Carolina State University trustees' decision to remove Dr. Andrew Hugine as president so much as he defers to the board's judgment, the governor's spokesman said.

Spokesman Joel Sawyer said it is not Sanford's job to evaluate Hugine's performance.

"The governor believes the way the system is set up is for the board to make those decisions and you defer to them. The people on the board are a lot more involved than the governor and the legislature," Sawyer said. He added that personnel matters concerning colleges and universities are handled at the discretion of their boards.

Saturday's edition of the Charleston Post and Courier carried a story with the headline, "S.C. State board gets Gov. Sanford's support."

Sawyer said that was not an endorsement of the board's action by Sanford, but rather a statement that people should defer to the government closest to the situation, in this case the S.C. State trustees.

Earlier this month, the S.C. State board voted 7-3 with one abstention to not renew Hugine's contract and place him on administrative leave until his last day, Jan. 4. The board selected Dr. Leonard McIntyre as the interim president.

The General Assembly elects 12 of the 13 members of the S.C. State board. Six of those 12 are elected by congressional district, with another six being selected at-large.

The governor appoints one trustee. Trustee Marsha Smith of Columbia is Sanford's appointee to the board, serving since May 2003.

S.C. State Board Chairman Maurice Washington was elected by the General Assembly to represent the Sixth Congressional District.

Sawyer said Sanford has known Washington for years in a public capacity, but their interaction has primarily involved policy. Washington served on Sanford's transition team in 2002 and also on his inaugural committee in 2006. Sanford also endorsed Washington during his failed bid to unseat Charleston Sen. Robert Ford in 2004.

Sawyer also responded to the allegations made by Washington that political pressure was applied on board members to retain Hugine.

"We can't speak for what elected officials try to involve themselves in. Other people in public policy are free to make their decisions in that regard," Sawyer said.

State Rep. John Scott said recently some lawmakers upset at Hugine's removal are considering actions including removing the board, restructuring the board and removing individual members.

"That's a matter for the General Assembly to decide," Sawyer said.

T&D Staff Writer Lee Tant can be reached by e-mail at ltant@timesanddemocrat.com or by phone at 803-534-1060. Discuss this and other stories online at TheTandD.com.

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17 comment(s)

The following comments are reader submitted. They do not represent the views of The T&D or Lee Enterprises.

minimouse wrote on Jan 3, 2008 5:13 PM:

" If Sweatr and Con had supported and helped guide the public schools in Orangeburg since desegregation was forced upon them, all the schools in the county would be far better than they are now. Instead they and many others said “To heck with you all. We are going to make our own private school and we will pay for it.” The deterioration of these schools in all the ways you mention was in large measure due to the flight of the best and brightest and most of the whitest who could have had a big share in making public school in Orangeburg at least as good as in the top performing public school districts of this state. At this eleventh hour they realize that their children will have ever larger amounts of their income "confissuscated" by the private school of their choice to educate the grandchildren and they are trying to get government to subsidize them with a new entitlement program. The US Justice Department which still has a case open in Orangeburg County would call such a plan separate but equal and therefore unconstitutional. Other Districts of this state that are not under a desegregation order may have an easier time of pulling off the “vouchers for private schools” scheme. I don’t know, these are just my opinions. None are meant to be offensive just thought provoking. "

sweatr wrote on Jan 2, 2008 6:41 PM:

" How is it your prerogative to send your children to a private school, when you are forced to pay for failing, substandard public schools? The teachers unions and certain members of society have made sure that our public schools will never be the “best schools possible”. There are going to be a lot of excuses for not supporting a voucher system, but you should not be manipulated into sending your children to schools that do not provide what they claim to provide. That is one reason why this country is so far behind the youths of Asia and Europe when it comes to education. I equate the public education system to this: you don't want what I'm selling, and it really isn't worth what you're paying, but you're forced to purchase it. "

confisussum wrote on Jan 2, 2008 3:18 PM:

" Ms. Mouse is totally wrong. What parents are demanding is a choice. They are demanding accountability. They are demanding fair treatment. They place their children in private school because in many cases, the public schools are failing. The State mandates a report card, but fails to do anything when the results are bad. The schools have had money and resources thrown at them like bottomless pits, with NO results. Private school parents foot the bill while having to pay additional money to insure the education of their children. Statistically speaking, private school children come from economically stable households. But what this means is that these households pay the bulk of the taxes for schools their kids do not attend. "

MINIMOUSE wrote on Dec 31, 2007 4:56 PM:

" SWTR
No one is forced to go to public schools.If you want to pay for your child to go to private school that is your perogitive. Public education would look a lot different in SC if all the rich and church people had put their kids in public schools after desegregation and spent their money and energy on making them the best schools possible.
Now however we have private school supporters coming full circle from then and demanding that government pay for their separate form of education.Again! "

sweatr wrote on Dec 31, 2007 1:01 PM:

" Receiving Pell Grant money does not override lottery funding. Anyone that meets the GPA and semester hour requirements is eligible for lottery money. What is wrong with vouchers? Why should an individual be forced to place their children in government schools that are unable to educate them? "

confisussum wrote on Dec 31, 2007 11:38 AM:

" Mr. Cloths comments are slanderous and without merit. I challenge this poster to produce one shred of evidence supporting this preposterous notion. While this level of racist venom may be welcomed in your place of worship, it has no place in discussions on this particular topic. Your conspiracy theories are disturbing,as is your mentality. "

CONCERNED04 wrote on Dec 30, 2007 10:29 PM:

" Did the governor deny that he wanted Hugine out as president? What exactly did he say? "

CONCERNED04 wrote on Dec 30, 2007 10:28 PM:

" why wait so late to bring this information....I smell a rat "

nvs1 wrote on Dec 30, 2007 5:19 AM:

" The Honorable Chairman did not fabricate when he said he had the governor's support because the governor and the General Assembly have given or authorized all of the board members to do what they believe is appropriate to best run SCSU. Words are being "played" with at best in this article. In this instance, "defer" means to empower or to entrust to another person. The Post and Courier article (from last Saturday) clearly indicated that the Governor supported the actions of the SCSU BOT. This article does not refute that, nor does it change any of the facts or any of the recent events. It is capable of adding fuel to the fire, if it is misinterpreted. The fact still remains that the SCSU Board of Trustees made a legal decision. The spokesperson for the governor does say "The governor believes the way the system is set up is for the board to make those decisions and you defer to them. The people on the board are a lot more involved than the governor and the legislature." So, the governor has empowered the board to use their discretion to best meet the needs of the students and the university. Growth and rebuilding will continue to happen for SCSU if we as loyal sons and daughters are supportive and do everything we can to assist the board as they endeavor to provide the students with the best learning environment. No one needs to step down. We all need to 'step up' and join forces so our future leaders will be availed the most challenging environment to learn. SCSU is in the best position yet to advance. Let's rally together to make that a reality. "

Bmore#1 wrote on Dec 29, 2007 6:37 AM:

" The more we learn about the firing of Dr. Hugine, the less we know! I never really wanted to believe this, but now I'm starting to question whether the BOT acted alone in this matter. Clearly it's within their power and discretion to remove the Prez, but without any reasonable and plausible answer as to why is very troubling. "

Chris' Cloths wrote on Dec 29, 2007 3:41 AM:

" What a filp flppper when it comes to the issues. Mr. Vouchers is right on the money. But what about giving poor whites, blacks, and other minorities 3-500 bucks in pell grant money so they don't qualify for the lottery money. But the rich white kid's education at USC, Furman, etc. gets paid for in total. That's government slick. It's utterly amazing how Hugine is expected to build a dorm 3 days after finding out what his enrollment will look like; but Sanford can visit SC State and see the conditions of Lowman, Bradom, Manning, the library,Hodge, SHM, and Earle Halls but doesn't allocate funds to repair these buildings. But he will be hear to campaign if we are on MSNBC or ESPN. "

honest wrote on Dec 29, 2007 1:22 AM:

" People move on If Hugine is so great, he should have no problems finding employmentscsu is not the last stop, go work for the govenor just move on "

minimouse wrote on Dec 28, 2007 6:39 PM:

" Did I include the fact that I would support vouchers that allowed students to take the local effort dollars and state dollars to any other public school in their county? Just have to figure out a fair way to transport the kids who rely of buses. "

minimouse wrote on Dec 28, 2007 6:31 PM:

" Vouchers for private schools only benefit the people who are in middle and upper income levels.Unless you are going to make vouchers that carry the full weight of federal state and local money the majority of SC students still wont be able to afford to attend a private school.Also I would want all state and federal accountability standards applied to any school that receives tax payer money(nclb pact ayp) "

confisussum wrote on Dec 28, 2007 4:12 PM:

" Please explain your opposition to school vouchers. "

minimouse wrote on Dec 28, 2007 3:15 PM:

" how agile is our governator to be able to take both sides of this conflict that he really doesnt give a hoot about.
Public education has no friend in "Mr Vouchers for private schools." "

db wrote on Dec 28, 2007 9:00 AM:

" So, Mr. Washington lied when he said that he had the Governors support? He really needs to step down. "

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Gov. defers to SCSU trustees on Hugine, spokesman says

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