Horry County Schools Not Selected for Race to the Top (2013)

On November 11, 2013, I urged Horry County Schools to withdraw from the Race to the Top - District competition, FY 2013, because it inappropriately handled the stakeholder development and support processes of the application (see my board address below).   It did not withdraw. 

Finalists for this year's competition were announced on November 19, 2013, just eight days later.

Horry County Schools was not selected as a finalist in this year's competition.  It was selected as a finalist in the FY 2012 competition but did not receive the grant.

The following, copied email, was sent on Monday, November 11, 2013.  The date is wrong in the opening line.  I made this mistake, probably because I was going to address the South Carolina State Board of Education in Columbia on November 13.

 

Socastee Family,

The following concerns you directly and was delivered orally tonight to the Horry County Board of Education in the public comments portion of its November 13, 2013, meeting.

Members of the Board:

Horry County Schools submitted a federal grant application on October 8, 2013, as part of a district competition called Race to the Top.  Our district hopes to obtain about $2.5 million to supplement its Personalized Digital Learning initiative, according to Dr. Elsberry, who first shared this information with the professional staffs of our schools on September 12.  She did so via a 2 and ½ minute video, after teachers were already instructing students that morning.  Most teachers were unaware that an email had arrived about 8:30 a. m., instructing them to watch the video and urging them to support this grant application by signing a sheet which each school had to return to the district office by the end of the day.  Many did not even have a chance to view the video, before their signatures were being required.  I challenged this publicly from day one and offered solid evidence as to why this board should not support this effort.  Nevertheless, you voted unanimously to support this just four days later on September 16.  New evidence just surfaced today to prove that the district did not have to have teacher support by the end of the day on September 12, and more time could have been allotted for teacher involvement, debate, and the giving of support or non-support. 

According to the application directives, teachers were supposed to be involved in the development of this grant application over a period of time for the purpose of giving feedback for possible revisions.  The extent of our involvement was “none” in its development.  Yet, there we were, in the course of less than eight hours, being asked to support this effort.

When the vote was taken and had to be complete by the end of the day on September 12, the professional staff of Conway Middle School had voted and submitted faculty support of only 46%.  The superintendent had said that at least 80% was needed.  We all know now that the application directives required 70%.  Why the superintendent did not know this is a mystery.  It is clearly written in the Executive Summary document.

The very day you voted your unanimous support of the application, September 16, Dr. Elsberry made a personal appearance at Conway Middle School to talk to the faculty.  The next day, the principal of Conway Middle School wrote an email to the superintendent, thanking her for her visit.  In the email, she informed the superintendent that she had counted the votes the morning of the 17^th and that faculty support was now at 80%, 38 “yes” votes and 8 “no” votes, with no evidence provided.  The 80% figure is the one the district reported to the U. S. Department of Education in Appendix B of the application.

Dr. Elsberry was afforded an opportunity to have an impact on a school’s vote.  Her talk made a difference.  I was afforded no such opportunity.  No teacher in Horry County was.  We should have had that opportunity for at least two months, since the beginning of the new competition round.  Yet, our voices did not matter.  According to the application requirements, they were supposed to be an integral part of our application’s development.

The district left the professional staffs out of the process, either through ignorance or intentionally.  Neither is an acceptable answer.

Documents provided to me by the district today through the Freedom of Information Act clearly show that a number of votes were accompanied by brief statements, such as “needing more information.”  Of course, more information was needed, and is still needed.  Professional staffs are still in the dark, yet our application is under consideration in Washington.

I urge this district to withdraw its application and show teachers that they are more important than money and district desires.

 

Sincerely,

Bobby Chandler

 

722 Pine Drive, Surfside Beach, S. C.   29575

Phone (843) 450-0962

 

District Office

Conway, S. C.

Monday, November 11, 2013