Richland 2 and COVID-19

The State newspaper (online) continues to report the number of positive COVID-19 for schools, but it still fails to provide a context. Here's what it has to say today:

Richland 2

• Catawba Trail Elementary: Fewer than 5 employee cases
• Forest Lake Elementary: Fewer than 5 employee cases
• L.B. Nelson Elementary: Fewer than 5 student cases
• Muller Road Middle: Fewer than 5 employee cases
• Richland Northeast High: Fewer than 5 student cases
• Spring Valley High: Fewer than 5 student cases and fewer than 5 employee cases
• Windsor Elementary: Fewer than 5 employee cases

"Fewer than 5" could mean 1, 2, 3 or 4. At least one; not more than four.

So, the Richland 2 District night have 3-12 student cases and 5-20 employee cases.

Where The State fails is when it does not provide a frame of reference by including total number of students in the State of South Carolina and the total number of school employees in the categories covered.

Richland 2 had 27,822 students on Day 10, according to the superintendent's report to the Board on September 22.

With "only" 3-12 student cases, why aren't kids back in school?

Remember, not so long ago (before the superintendent himself was diagnosed positive), when the board was told there were NO cases in Richland 2?

Although DHEC doesn't want to break down exact numbers in the "Fewer than 5" group, Richland 2 certainly could. How would parents feel, if they learned that the real number was "1" at each school?

Public Participation at School Board Meetings

The District has updated information on its website about Public Participation at board meetings. Click here for the whole scoop.

When the agenda for the next board meeting is published on the Friday before the meeting, the window opens ("activates", the District calls it) for written comments. The window closes at 1:00PM on the day of the board meeting.

Submit your written comments on the webform on the Board's Public Participation webpage. The webform will magically appear when the page "activates". You'll be asked to include your name and contact information.

When your comment is read to the board, your name will be read with it (but not your contact information).

The letters are shown to the public as Mrs. Roof reads them. She is a fantastic reader. She is accurate, and she is also a very fast reader. If you have any trouble understanding her or keeping up with the pace, be sure to drop her a note at LRoof@richland2.org

Some of the letters were long. It is not possible to judge the interest of the board members, because their faces are not shown while letters are being read. I guess some might wonder whether all of them are really listening.

Do you have an opinion about whether schools should re-open for in-person education?

Are your special needs or young children falling behind because of virtual learning?

Write and submit your messages on the Friday before the next board meeting (or not later than the day of the meeting, Tuesday, 1:00PM). Contact your network, neighbors, friends, other parents. Tell them to write.

Mrs. Roof read 52 comments on September 22. Was that a lot? As of Day 10 of this school year, there are 27,822 students in Richland 2. If there are 12,000 active parents, 52 letters represents 0.43%. But many letters were from teachers, some of whom are probably parents of Richland 2 students.

Do you even watch the Zoom school board meetings? On Tuesday about 200 viewers did. That's 200 out of 27,822 students and 12,000 parents and 3,000+ employees.

Was anyone else brave enough to watch the whole meeting from 5:30PM until 8:08PM? Not sure "brave" is the right word.

Who will explain to me?

Who can explain to me why Richland 2 School Board does not have two illegitimate members; i.e., two are not legal members of the board?

This is what the South Carolina law says about taking the oath of office and entering upon official responsibilities. Let's start here:

South Carolina Code of Laws Section 8-13-1110. 

SECTION 8-13-1110. Persons required to file statement of economic interests.

(A) No public official, regardless of compensation, and no public member or public employee as designated in subsection (B) may take the oath of office or enter upon his official responsibilities unless he has filed a statement of economic interests in accordance with the provisions of this chapter with the appropriate supervisory office. If a public official, public member, or public employee referred to in this section has no economic interests to disclose, he shall nevertheless file a statement of inactivity to that effect with the appropriate supervisory office. All disclosure statements are matters of public record open to inspection upon request.

(B) Each of the following public officials, public members, and public employees must file a statement of economic interests with the appropriate supervisory office, unless otherwise provided:

(1) a person appointed to fill the unexpired term of an elective office; 

(2)-(7) omitted

(8) a school district board member and a county board of education member;

To simply (emphasis added), 

(A) No public official, regardless of compensation, and no public member or public employee as designated in subsection (B) may take the oath of office or enter upon his official responsibilities unless he has filed a statement of economic interests in accordance with the provisions of this chapter with the appropriate supervisory office. If a public official, public member, or public employee referred to in this section has no economic interests to disclose, he shall nevertheless file a statement of inactivity to that effect with the appropriate supervisory office. All disclosure statements are matters of public record open to inspection upon request.

11/13/2019 McKie and Holmes took the oath of office.

12/4/2019 McKie and Holmes filed their statements of economic interests

Therefore, they took the oath of office illegally.

To me, it's black and white. Cut and dried. First, you file the statement of economic interests; then you take the oatch of office; then you enter upon official responsibilities. That's not what they did.

A candidate becomes "qualified" for office by winning the election. But that candidate is not "eligible" to take the oath of office unless he (or she) has filed the statement of economic interests.

If you take the oath of office before you are eligible to do so, then you are just practicing. Any oath taken before one is eligible to take it is invalid.

Is there anyone who thinks an elected person can legally become an official by taking the oath of office and then, three weeks later, filing the statement of economic interests.

Shouldn't the elected person have the taken the oath after filing the required statement?

The only way you can become a legitimate member of the school board is to take the oath after filing the required statement. 

Another South Carolina law says you have to take the oath before assuming office. This must mean, Take the oath legally.

So, if one has never taken the oath of office legally, then the person cannot assume office. The public body - here, the Richland 2 School Board - should not be allowing two women to be seated at the Board, because they have never legally taken the oath of office. Why is the District allowing this? Why have the five legal Board members allowed this for more than 18 months.

What laws are being violated?

Section 8-13-1110(A) (above). Holmes and McKie were elected on 11/6/2019 and took the oath of office (illegally) on 11/13/2019. But they had not filed their statements of economic interests. They filed those statements on 12/4/2019, which is the earliest date on which they could legally take the oath of office.

Section 8-3-10. "It shall be unlawful for any person to assume the duties of any public office until he has taken the oath provided by the Constitution and been regularly commissioned by the Governor."

McKie and Holmes have never taken the oath of office legally.

Section 15-63-60 Usurping public office - any person [who] shall usurp, intrude into, or unlawfully hold or exercise any public office

Section 59-19-315. Beginning of term of office. "The term of office of every elected trustee of a school district must commence one week following the certification of his election."

Keyword: must. The election was certified on 11/9/2019. One week after the certification was 11/16/2019. McKie and Holmes attended and participated in the Board Meeting on 11/13/2019, three days before the election was certified. Board Policy BBB reflects this law.

Now, am I wrote to believe that they are not legal board members?

Introducing Deon Jacobs, candidate

The election for the three open seats on the school board is right around the corner. While the General Election (date) is November 3, 2020, early voting starts October 5th or 7th, depending on where you vote. 

A candidates' forum is scheduled for October 20th at R2i2. More information to follow.

If you are going to vote Absentee by mail, request your ballot now and then follow your request and return at www.SCVotes.org

Here is Deon Jacobs' campaign flyer.  

SC for Ed plans another walk-out

The State newspaper revealed on September 22, 2020: "And SC for Ed, a grassroots teacher advocacy group, is planning a Stand Up and Step Out day, encouraging its members to step out of their classrooms and take a personal day to call for step increases."

The Stand-Up link goes to a Facebook page. Since Facebook is mostly a waste of my time, I'm unwilling to unlock my deactivated account to try to read any message there. It's probably within a page only available to teachers, as much of the SC for Ed material was when I last looked.

The Richland 2 School Board should hop on this right away and direct the Superintendent to inform staff that they risk discipline, up to and including termination, if they walk out that day. 

Teachers do not rule the universe. They work under a contract. The contract says "Work and you get paid." And yes, they weaseled "Personal Days" into the contract, so that they can go to the doctor if they are sick. This doesn't mean they can strike for a day because they are sick of working.

It was sickening to watch the Richland 2 School Board roll over, when SC for Ed (red t-shirts, "Red for Ed", walk out on May 1 (you do know the history of May Day, don't you? - Day of International Solidarity with Workers Day (1918) in the former Soviet Union; that's the old Russia)), when so many Richland 2 teachers walked off the job that the District closed schools at the last minute.

Those are your "beloved" teachers who are supposed to be in the classroom with Amelia McKie's "babies" in Richland 2. 

The School Board is Management. The teachers are workers. Most on the school board need some solid instruction about what being a Manager means.

Plan now, Board Members. Make it plain to the Richland 2 superintendent and teachers. You will be working that day!

If you know when Stand Up and Step Out Day will be, please post the date in the Comments.

How to Shorten School Board Meetings

Richland 2 School Board meetings could be shortened to one hour; maybe to 90 minutes - max. How?

Eliminate the long-winded, unnecessary introductions of the Inspirational Moment. By the way, it's not spelled INSPRIATIONAL. That should have been corrected after the last meeting.

Limit the Inspirational Moment to a "moment"; say, 90-120 seconds.

Wake up some of the board members so that, when the Chair calls for a routine Motion, somebody pipes up. It's just a motion. You're not signing up for after-school duty.

Eliminate unnecessary, extraneous, long-winded statements by board members. Say what you've got to say, keep it on topic, and zip it.

Limit the superintendent to ten minutes for his reports. Tell him not to read to people who can read and not to repeat himself. Set a timer. When it dings, he gets the red light.

Tell the superintendent to stop sniping at Trustee Agostini. He works for her; not the other way around. She asked him a question. To answer with something like "I covered that in my Facebook LIVE", insinuating that she should have spent her time watching the Baron Davis Show, was disrespectful.

Same for staffers. Ten minutes. Or less.

Limit board members' remarks to those that contribute to the conversation. Eliminate rambling. 

As soon as a board member says she'll keep it short, start a timer. It's not necessary to ramble on and on about the COVID-19 count worldwide, in the U.S. and in South Carolina. It's in The State every day.

Board members, let the Chair do his job. The Chair can thank speakers, teachers. Don't usurp his role.

Was it really necessary for the Chair to wish former board member Chip Jackson a happy birthday for tomorrow? He died on August 7.

Capital Improvements Report

If you want to know how your $468,000,000 from the 2018 bond issue is being spent, be sure to watch the Capital Improvements Report given by Will Anderson. 

Richland 2 must be in the running for national architectural awards. Look at the modern buildings, including the Arts Center! Are they really suitable for the expenditure of public dollars? 

Will's report starts at approximate one hour 34 minutes into the meeting. It's mind-blowing!