Do Not Remain Silent

Take six minutes right now and watch this 5/3/2022 senior speech by Harvard University student Julie Hartman.

Watch it as a family.

Board Meeting - June 14, 2022

The next school board meeting will be this Tuesday, June 14, 2022. 5:30PM at R2i2.

Be sure to sign up to speak before the 6:15PM deadline. And do show up and speak. 

The Board must be evaluating the superintendent now. Express your opinion on his performance.

Are you unhappy about his trip to Australia? Ask how much that will cost Richland 2 and if he is going on his own time.

Are you happy about the state of security in Richland 2? Disappointed at the number of guns being found in schools?

Ask how many teachers have not renewed their contracts and what the District is doing to find out why they are leaving.

Ask why he didn't insist that the Board investigate what transpired on January 25, 2022 just before the board convened.

Ask why the Media Relations Dept. put out the statement that it did. And why it did not comment on the April 26 Executive Session.

Ask why the superintendent did not inform ALL board members of Sheriff Lott's press conference on May 26. Richland County Sheriff's Dept. told me that Notice of the meeting was provided to school superintendents. Holmes, McKie and Manning knew about it. Agostini, Scott and McFadden did not know about it. 

Remember the line in Cool Hand Luke? "What we've got here is a failure to communicate."

What evaluation will the board give the superintendent this year?

And express your opinions about the board officer election to take place on June 28, 2022. Should only fully-qualified board members be nominated and elected? Remember: Holmes and McKie are not legitimate board members and are not eligible to be officers. Neither has ever taken the oath-of-office legally.

Committee of the Whole meeting: 6/14/22 3:30PM

The Committee of the Whole on Safety & Security is scheduled to meet at 3:30PM on Tuesday, June 14, 2022 (election day) at R2i2. The meeting is open to the public, and no executive session is scheduled. For some reason it is announced as a "Special Meeting" (whatever that means).

The chairperson of the Committee is School Board Trustee Monica Scott. 

It is my understanding that she requested that the meeting be livestreamed. Nothing about livestream is included in the announcement. 

Who denied her request? The superintendent? The board chair? So much for wanting to include the public!

Take a look at the bland agenda.

2.1 Safety and Security

2.2 Safety Survey Results

2.3 Presenters

I've seen many meeting agendas over the years. This gets the prize for insufficient and incomplete information.

I, of course, would like to attend. Back on February 27, 2018, just two weeks after the shootings in Parkland, Florida, I requested a survey of parents, teachers and staff on the topic of arming teachers . I also suggested a parent and community members' advisory committee on school safety.

Perhaps I shouldn't assume that a request to attend Tuesday's meeting will be denied. It seems reasonable to me for permission to attend this important meeting could be granted. (My sentence to "Richland 2 Jail" is up on June 30, 2022 at 11:59PM.) I'll submit it right now.

To view and hear my remarks on February 27, 2018, go to https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jiJD_czDeh8 and fast-forward to 30:08.