Did Supt. Bill Over-spending by Trustees?

The 2021-2022 School Year ended on June 30, 2022.

Last (school) year each school board trustee had $7,000 to spend on travel and training. Several of them over-spent their allowances; some by as much as $3,000.

By July 15th the superintendent could have received a report for those who exceeded their allowances. Did he?

And did he bill those trustees for the amounts over $7,000?

Expenses over $7,000 never should have been paid or approved for payment. Did a low-level Accounts Payable clerk alert her supervisor or manager that a trustee had exceeded her (or his) allowance? Who approved the over-payment(s)?

Actually, the superintendent shouldn't even have to bill the trustees for reimbursement. They should look at their statements and write checks to the District for the excess funds they received.

If they don't, are those funds considered "income", rather than expense reimbursement?

On August 11th I filed a FOIA Request for the last two reimbursement requests of Teresa Holmes. Why? I'm curious as to who approved payment to her for funds in excess of $7,000. The form requires signatures of two R2 staffers. (Teresa was board chairman at the time.)

The FOIA response is late, and a follow-up has been initiated.

What stupidity?

Richland 2 Trustee Lashonda McFadden is apparently still under some legal direction not to speak to Supt. Baron Davis outside of board meetings!

You have to wonder ... what kind of stupid game is that? What was that letter that Baron had his attorney send to Lashonda?

When did that come up? Back in December? Lashonda was trying to get action to protect students against guns in schools. 

The entire Board should have slammed Baron Davis for such a juvenile act. 

But the Board Chair at the time was Teresa Holmes. Rather than recognize that the superintendent works for the board, she never took the bull by the horns and reminded him that he takes orders from the board, not vice versa.

In November 2022 elect four candidates who understand Business and who understand what the function is of a Board of Trustees!

Open Letter to Supt. and Board Chair - CUBE Convention

The following email has been sent to James Manning, Chair of the Richland 2 school board (until November 2022) and Supt. Baron Davis:

Pursuant to Board Policy BEDH Public Participation at Meetings, particularly Agenda Items, which reads "Citizens wanting an item to be placed on the agenda..."

I, Gus Philpott, of 39 Barony Place Circle and resident of Richland School District Two, hereby make this request on September 3, 2022, which is more than three days before the next regular school board meeting on September 13, 2022, and request an Agenda Item for the September 13, 2022 regular board meeting for discussion of board member participation at the CUBE Annual Convention in Miami, Florida, on September 29-October 1, 2022.

Specifically, I request a full, fair, transparent discussion of the reason(s) that any board member(s) whose term-of-office in two months (November 2022), and especially those who have not filed for re-election, should have access to District funds for Conference fees, travel, ground transportation, lodging, meals, and incidentals (parking, rental car, gratuities).

I request that the board deny use of District funds to those whose terms are expiring, including the one current board member who has filed for re-election. Should she not be re-elected, such funds will have been wasted.

Sincerely,

Gus Philpott

If you agree that RSD2 funds should not be wasted on that junket to Miami (estimated cost: $3,000), email Manning and Davis your own request. 

AND show up at the board meeting on September 13, 2022 to let them know how you feel.

Gun at SVHS - 9/2/2022

A gun was found in a student's possession at Spring Valley High School today.

See articles in local media.

Be sure to read Richland Two's alert to SVHS parents from SVHS Principal Jeff Temoney.

Dear Spring Valley High School Families,

I am writing to let you know that this afternoon a weapon was confiscated from a student. I know this is alarming to hear so let me assure you that the situation was addressed swiftly, our students and employees are safe, and we have been able to continue with our school day without interruption. 

The weapon was found after our school received a tip that a student was talking about having a gun at school today. Immediately upon receiving the tip, school administrators and our School Resource Officers located the student and took possession of the student’s book bag. A hand gun was found while conducting a search of the book bag in an administrative office. So far in the investigation, we do not have any evidence to indicate that the student threatened to harm anyone at school.

School administrators and our SROs are following district procedures and board policy in administering disciplinary and legal consequences. Making sure our students and employees are safe remains our top priority, and anyone who compromises the safety of our campus faces serious consequences. In accordance with state and federal law, Richland Two Board Policy JICI states that a student who brings a weapon to school faces expulsion of no less than one year.

I assure you that school and district leaders understand how concerning it is for parents and students to learn about a weapon on campus. We all share the alarm and concern at this growing problem, and we must all work together to prevent our children from getting access to weapons. Our district’s partners BeSMART and the Richland County Sheriff’s Department provide free gun locks, available by calling 803-576-3498. For more information on BeSMART’s efforts to help parents talk with their children about gun safety and take responsible actions to prevent children from getting access to weapons visit their website at www.BeSMARTforKids.org. Also, Richland Two’s Office of Emergency and Security Services will conduct random metal detector screenings at high schools starting this month. The district will be providing more information about these screenings in a safety update.

Thank you for helping us keep our school a safe place for teaching and learning. If you have any questions or concerns about school safety, please contact a school administrator. 

How many words would be in Principal Temoney's announcement if you cut out all the boilerplate and P.R. nonsense? The District probably has a form letter, pre-approved by the lawyers, for explaining away how much it cares.

Anyone care to comment on the effectiveness of the BeSmart initiative coordinated by Supt. Baron Davis and Richland Two last December?

Or about the effectiveness of the Committee of the Whole on Safety and Security?

CUBE Conference, Miami, Sept. 29-Oct. 1. Who is going?

The National School Boards Association (NSBA) and CUBE will hold the 2022 Annual Conference in Miami from September 29 through October 1, 2022.

Registration fees vary from $550-$775, depending on Early Bird and Member/Non-Member rates. Add to that, travel, hotel, meals, incidentals (parking, baggage, car rental?).

What is CUBE? Council of Urban Boards of Education.

You may remember that it was NSBA that instigated U.S. Attorney General's determination that parents are domestic terrorists. If I recall correctly, the South Carolina School Boards Association (SCSBA) dropped out of the NSBA. 

Did Richland 2 drop out and just go silent?

There are seven board members (including two trustees-elect who have never taken the oath-of-office legally) on the Richland 2 School Board. The terms of four of them end in two months. On November 8, 2022 four candidates will be elected to the 2022-2026 term-of-office.

Three incumbents are not running for re-election. Trustees James Manning and Cheryl Caution-Parker did not file for re-election. Trustee-elect Amelia McKie (proud $57,100 debtor of the South Carolina Ethics Commission) did not file for re-election.

Should any board members who did not file for re-election attend the CUBE conference at Richland 2 expense?

WIS-TV on R2 meal mess

WIS-TV weighed in on Richland Two's meal debt mess on August 29th. Read it here.

Supt. Davis told WIS-TV: "Students were not, and will not be, denied food, regardless of their debt status."

In other words, free meals for all. Just start running up your debt, kiddo.

Wrong! Those that can pay, should pay. If they spend their lunch money elsewhere (at the Apple Store (and I don't mean on apples), at Chick-fil-A, at McDonald's, at GameStop), they don't get lunch.

Those that can't pay need to fill out the forms for free or reduced-price meals. Otherwise, they pay or they don't eat.

Kids (and parents) learn today that they don't have to follow the rules. Just ignore them; you'll get food, anyway.

What are they learning about budgeting and responsibility in Richland Two schools? Nothing!

Gun Safety at Richland 2. What's Next?

Is anything happening with gun safety at Richland 2?

Earlier this year the school board created a Committee of the Whole for Safety & Security. If you didn't show up at any meetings, it's hard to know what is going on. There don't seem to be any Minutes of meetings that are available for public viewing. One meeting was livestreamed (at the last minute). 

Trustee Monica Scott is the chairperson of the Committee.

The Committee had several meetings, and then ...  nothing. Was the last meeting on June 14, 2022?

Why weren't there any meetings in July or August? When will the next meeting be?

Richland One just had another gun incident, when a 17-year-old was arrested today at C.A. Johnson High School, 2219 Barhamville Road. A pistol was in his book bag. See this article in The State newspaper for details.

The City of Columbia is looking into how to slow down gun violence. Mayor Rickenmann announced that the City Council is exploring the creation of a new department.

From The State newspaper, "Columbia Mayor Daniel Rickenmann is hoping his colleagues on council will approve spending $803,000 on a new four-person office of gun violence prevention that he hopes will cut shootings in half over the next three years."  

Read more at: https://www.thestate.com/news/local/article265081504.html#storylink=cpy"

But what about Richland Two's efforts? 

As long as only the District personnel are involved, nothing new will happen. They should have been already working hard on the problem and solutions. New creative ideas and action are needed.

Here's a novel idea: Make a list of all the kids who are likely to bring guns or other weapons to school. Make a list of all the kids who are being bullied and who might react one of these days. Then work those lists.

The first claim will be Profiling.

Well, do you want to stop the problem or not?