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DENMARK - The Bamberg School District 2 Board of Trustees discussed their options for conducting the search for a new superintendent for the 2009-2010 school year during a meeting on July 14.

BSD 2 Superintendent Dr. Secaida Howell will be leaving the district after his contract expires on June 30, 2009.

After volleying around a few options to either handle the search themselves with the help of a paid consultant, hire a firm or go through the South Carolina School Boards Association, the board agreed to have Board Chairman Al Maynor procure a list of possible consultants to present at the board’s next meeting on Aug. 11.

“My suggestion is that when all applications have come in, they will be distributed among all five board members so that we can get together and look at them individually and collectively,” Trustee Blossom Thompson said. “We went through the School Board Association last time, which cost us around $11,000 or $12,000. That wasn’t a good choice for the board to make.”

Trustee Loretta Goodman said, “I’m not too familiar with the procedure ... but I think that as the applications come in and we see them, I think we need some guidance of some sort from someone that knows more about the placing of superintendents in schools than we do.”

In other matters, the board voted against a motion to release administrative staff salary information to Trustee Thompson. Thompson requested the information and that it be broken down as to where each administrative staff person’s salary comes from, whether through a grant or from the district, and the amount they made.

“The purpose -- that’s my concern. What is the purpose of knowing these people’s salaries and the budget has already been approved?” Maynor said.

During his report, the chairman referenced a letter he had written to Councilwoman Ann Causby, who has been absent for five consecutive board meetings, including Monday night’s meeting. His letter stated in part: “You have been elected by the citizens of Denmark ... to serve and represent our school community. Please let me know ... how you can be assisted in fulfilling your duties as a member of the board.”

Maynor then presented Causby’s response letter, in which she stated her medical care advisors told her to distance herself from what she considered “the insulting and abusive treatment heaped on me at board meetings by you (Maynor) and certain others.” In her letter, Causby requested that she receive in writing assurance that Maynor “and those joining with” him were ready to discontinue their “atrocious misconduct.”

“I certainly deny that anyone has been abusive and treated her any different than anyone else ... . I wish she would have named those others that she was talking about. ... But, this is a matter because of the other legal matters that we’re going to respond to,” said Maynor, who following an executive session was given board approval to write Causby a response letter on their behalf.

“We expect for the superintendent ... and we expect for the faculty and staff to be in school every day. We are board members. We meet only once a month, and we cannot meet that once a month? It’s just not fair for some of us to come in here late and leave early. But, then when you start talking about board pay and ... docking those people that leave early, then it’s a fight,” Maynor said. “We ought to be for real about what we’re doing. Our attendance is ridiculous.”

In other business, the board:

* Received as information a June financial report, with budgeted expenditures standing at $7,757,467 and year-to-date expenditures currently at $5,863,832. The district has a general fund balance of $1,070,321 for June. Anderson said the report was the final financial report for the 2007-2008 fiscal year, with the district now set to begin its audit process.

* Received as information from Anderson that the Tax Anticipation Notice resolution, which the board approved during its June meeting, would come with favorable interest and borrowing rates. The TAN will allow the district to borrow up to $500,000. The interest rate has dropped from 4.25 percent to 3 percent over the previous year, while the borrowing rates have dropped from 3.66 percent to 1.54 percent, Anderson said.

The board also approved Anderson’s recommendation to not pursue a general obligation bond through the South Carolina Association of Governmental Organizations, which promotes financing and investment opportunities to benefit the state’s public school districts. The funds would have been used for building projects.

“We’re looking at just $58,000. ... We look at some of our schools and talk about air conditioning. Recently, we had an inspection and have to so some improvement on some things. This just won’t cover it,” Anderson said. “It’s my suggestion that we probably put this off for another year, do some research and put a project together ... and go for a larger amount of money.”

* Approved the payment of $3,422.10 in attorney fees.

* Received as information a report from Howell that utilizing technology coaches, including one at the elementary school, is one way the district is trying to engage more technology in instruction. He also reported that district staff and schools met their 2007-2008 goals, including those in the human resource, business operation and special service areas.

The district also received a letter from the state Department of Education’s Office of Exceptional Children, stating the district’s special education department met compliance standards for all required indicators. The district also met each of its standards following an evaluation from the department’s external review team, Howell reported.

With the removal of PACT as the state’s accountability assessment test, Howell said, “high-order multiple choice” questions and “a major writing component” are among the preliminary changes for a replacement test.

T&D Staff Writer Dionne Gleaton can be reached by e-mail at dgleaton@timesanddemocrat.com or by phone at 803-533-5534.

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