Which school bus stop?

Just another day in the Life of a School Bus Driver...

Which route is this on?

https://www.facebook.com/reel/8237243493000264 (Be sure to turn on the sound.)

Spring Valley SRO escapes jail time

No doubt you saw the news about the Spring Valley SRO who escaped jail time for his misdeeds at Spring Valley High School. Just exactly why did Judge Daniel Coble not send him off to prison???

If you only read the local media or watched it on TV, you missed the whole story.

Read the long article on the Washington Post website. Read it slowly and carefully.

Ask why. Ask WHY!

What kind of investigations were done that allowed Jamel Bradley to get away with it for so long?

Where were the breakdowns in Richland 2? Where were the breakdowns at the Richland County Sheriff's Department?

Here's the link to the WashPo story:

https://www.washingtonpost.com/investigations/interactive/2024/south-carolina-sro-child-sexual-abuse-jamel-bradley/

Georgia School Shooting

I found a shocking statement in one of the CBS News' online articles.

"FBI Atlanta said on social media Wednesday night that county authorities had interviewed the suspect last year about online threats to commit a school shooting."

It's my guess that school officials, SROs, and other law-enforcement personnel know who the future shooters are.

And that they are reluctant to "profile" them.

The school-to-prison "pipeline" can be shutdown. Implement the right programs of respect and discipline. It's way past time for "Tough Love".

The Social Justice Warriors, at least around here, will scream racial profiling. I say, "So what?"

Look at the photos of the troublemakers in your schools. Look at the photos of the criminals and suspects in the news? What do you see? 

National BeSmart Week was August 26-30. I'll tell you, folks. Gun locks will not solve the gun violence problem in schools or in Columbia or in this country. Wimpy approaches to the problems will solve none.

All the "Did you know..." questions are worthless. I don't want to hear that pitch one more time. 

Surely there are some smart people around Richland 2 who can figure this out. It's time to stop talkin' the talk and start walkin' the walk. 

R2 School Board Race

The race is on. The filing period for the school board election closed on August 15. As I recall, there are at least eight hats in the ring.

What should the qualifications be to win one of the three Trustee positions that will be elected this November?

First and foremost, the person should have executive leadership and decision-making skills and experience. Help elect these people, not just the ones with the most friends.

The Trustees on the Board are in charge of policy-making. They don't operate the District; that is the job of the superintendent. They should leave the "dirty work" to the superintendent.

Give direction to the superintendent and then monitor her performance.

Too many board members have been "in the kitchen" too often. Can you imagine what would happen if Directors of Ford Motor Company spent time on the factory floor, listening to employees who put fenders on cars or operate robots?

The persons elected should understand finances and the "big picture". 

They should understand that "they" make the decisions for Richland 2, not the South Carolina School Boards Association. They should stop wasting so much time on revising Board  policies.

Splashed on the District's website is "Purpose Driven, Future Ready". Seriously? Look at the grade-level reports. 

Abdullah Mustafa was the sole speaker in the Public Comment period on August 13. To view Mr. Mustafa's comments, go to this board meeting and scroll forward to 20:44 on the timer.

R2 Board Members - how much pay???

Do you, a taxpayer, really know how much pay a Richland 2 School Board trustee receives?

Be sure to read this article from The Voice of Blythewood & Fairfield County (July 15, 2024).

Pay special attention to this sentence in the article: "Invoking FOIA to justify higher school board trustee member pay is 'a very creative interpretation of state law and accounting practices,' Bender said."

Jay Bender is an attorney with strong skills in school board matters. Read that comment again, and then read "between the lines". What does "creative interpretation" mean to you???

Apparently, Richland 2 trustees have found a way to earn more than $395/meeting times 30 meetings in a year (is that a school year or a calendar year?).

A while back it was pretty clear that they got paid only for School Board meetings. Then some of the trustees wanted to have committee meetings - lots of them. Why not scarf up $395 for a 2-hour meeting?

And agenda-setting meetings? What the heck! "It's my time; I should get paid." Seriously?

Who is watching? Anyone?

2024 School Board Race

I almost hate to put the word "race" in the same sentence as "school board", but there it is.

Who will be filing to run for the three seats that are up for election?

The terms of Trustees Agostini, McFadden, and Scott expire in November. 

The filing period is August 1-15. Who will be filing?

The voters should pick the very best three, but they should have excellent candidates from which to pick. Unfortunately, there are few qualifications for the office other than getting the most votes. 

Should successful candidates have good critical-thinking skills? Be free from bias and influence? Be free of identity-politics?  Have a clear understanding of business management? Business finances? Think as executives, not as management (or, worse, as employees)? Understand the role of Trustee is to direct, not "do".

Will Release Time Make a Come-back?

Will Release Time for Religious Education make a come-back in Richland 2?

Several people went into the attack mode against Lindsay Agostini in her run for S.C. Senate District 35 over the Release Time issue. Many of the comments were libelous. She probably won't spend money to drag the liars into court. If she did, I'd certainly kick in some money for her expenses..

The people with loud voices and pens dripping venom don't understand (and don't want to understand) exactly what happened at the last school board meeting that addressed Release Time.

Release Time for Religious Education was on the agenda as a Discussion-Only item. No vote could be taken that night to approve or disapprove of the item. All the Trustees knew that (or should have known that).

Trustee Agostini made a motion to remove that item from the agenda. Her reasoning was well-based. All that the motion did was remove the item from that night's agenda. Nothing else!

Before* the vote to remove it, Board Chair Joe Trapp announced that the vote to remove the item from the agenda would effectively kill Release Time. He was wrong. He should have been challenged on the spot, but he wasn't.

Release Time could have been right back on the agenda of the very next board meeting. But it wasn't, and I don't think it has been on an agenda since then.

But there are rumors that some trustees want to resurrect it. Will they?

The terms-of-office of three school board members (Trustees Agostini, McFadden, and Scott) expire this November. (The terms of Trustees Nash, Porter, Trapp, and Washington run until November 2026.)

The filing period for Richland County school board elections is August 1-15, 2024. Who will be filing to run for Richland 2 Trustee?

* [Edited 7/21/2024] The original blogpost read "After the vote to remove it ..."