To Whom It Should Concern:
My Simplified Story: Horry County Schools' Intent to Commit Fraud
I had heard that Horry County Schools was pursuing a federal grant through President Obama’s Race to the Top program, but I had no idea I was supposed to be involved, in any way, until Thursday, September 12, 2013. I was naive, thinking that the administration and the board could act, without my participation. However, all of a sudden, the superintendent was urging me to support our district’s application by signing a form provided by the district, which had to be turned into the district by the end of the school day. Teachers all over Horry County were being given less than a working day to provide their signatures, most while they were engaged in teaching, not thinking about or even knowing the content on which they were voting. I knew something was very wrong.
If my signature was needed by the school district on a matter which involved its possible reception of $2.5 million, and I had not been properly involved in its development and support, then I knew that a possible federal crime was in the works. If false or misleading information is provided on a federal grant application, that is fraud. Of course, no crime had been committed before the district submitted the application on October 8, 2013, but unprofessional conduct by Superintendent Cynthia Elsberry was exhibited throughout this entire endeavor.
A teacher should never be put into a position of giving consent on a matter of significant import, especially one that involves money and stances on educational philosophy, without sufficient time to consider all of the ramifications of his doing so. Yet, that is exactly what Dr. Elsberry did on Thursday, September 12, 2013.
I communicated with the superintendent and the Horry County Board of Education my concerns over the next four days in a series of emails, culminating in an address before the board on the night of Monday, September 16, urging it to reverse itself and not to pursue the grant because of improper teacher involvement. Instead, it heard me but did not even discuss any of my objections before voting unanimously that night to support our grant application.
Shortly thereafter, I initiated a series of South Carolina Freedom of Information Act requests of the district to gain greater insight into how this travesty occurred. The first answers and documents I received were in the middle of October, after the submission of our grant application.
Having studied the relevant portions of our 1500 page application, I came to the conclusion that a fraudulent act had indeed occurred. By law, if I did not report this, I could have been charged with a felony. I would have reported it, anyway, because it was my duty to do so.
First, I reported problems with the application to the Race to the Top – District Team, then to the Government Accountability Office in Washington. I followed up with a report to the US Department of Justice and finally to the particular office at the US Department of Education which is responsible for investigating particular allegations of fraud, the Office of Inspector General.
In the meantime, I detailed my concerns to the Office of General Counsel at the South Carolina Department of Education to address my allegations of “unprofessional conduct” and possible “incompetence” against Superintendent Cynthia Elsberry.
I know I am misunderstood by many, but I am compelled to follow my conscience. Most teachers will not get involved and speak out because of fear, even against something so very wrong.
The superintendent and board of education hold offices of public trust. They must be held accountable.
As far as intent goes, the superintendent and the board were given the opportunity for three weeks to check out my claims, before submitting the application. A simple read of only three pages, B4, pages 25-27, would have shown them that my claim is accurate, for all of the evidence I presented, beginning on September 12, clearly showed that neither I nor the thousands of teachers in Horry County were meaningfully involved in the development and support of our application, as claimed in section B4.
They would not have had to read the 1500 page document to find this out. A simple look at the table of contents would have pointed them to the object of my claims: “Stakeholder Engagement and Support.”
They had access to the application, if they so desired to examine it. I did not, until the middle of October, after it had already been submitted. Although I suspected fraud from the beginning, I could not be sure, until I had answers to the questions I submitted through the South Carolina Freedom of Information Act. In response to some of my questions, the district provided the application for my examination, before I requested it, which was my next intended step. I did have to request the appendices later, some 1100 pages of evidence, for the district did not originally provide this information. Both the board and the superintendent should have easily known that they were committing fraud.
If the superintendent and the board did not check out my claims and proceeded to file the application, this would have been the height of ignorance and absurdity, for I was making a strong public claim about my non-involvement in a process that was demanded by the requirements of the application, which all board members and the superintendent should have been familiar with.
Dr. Elsberry acted with specific intent, after each presentation of the evidence, and made no attempt to reverse herself over a three week period. The board did the same.
I can only conclude that both acted with intent to commit fraud. Perhaps neither recognized the gravity of their actions or inactions and perhaps did not know that what they were committing was a criminal act, but their intent was to proceed. Money and district desires were more important than how teachers had been treated. Ignorance of the law is no excuse.
Sincerely and professionally,
Bobby Chandler
International Baccalaureate History Instructor
Socastee High School
Myrtle Beach, SC
My Simplified Story: Horry County Schools' Intent to Commit Fraud
I had heard that Horry County Schools was pursuing a federal grant through President Obama’s Race to the Top program, but I had no idea I was supposed to be involved, in any way, until Thursday, September 12, 2013. I was naive, thinking that the administration and the board could act, without my participation. However, all of a sudden, the superintendent was urging me to support our district’s application by signing a form provided by the district, which had to be turned into the district by the end of the school day. Teachers all over Horry County were being given less than a working day to provide their signatures, most while they were engaged in teaching, not thinking about or even knowing the content on which they were voting. I knew something was very wrong.
If my signature was needed by the school district on a matter which involved its possible reception of $2.5 million, and I had not been properly involved in its development and support, then I knew that a possible federal crime was in the works. If false or misleading information is provided on a federal grant application, that is fraud. Of course, no crime had been committed before the district submitted the application on October 8, 2013, but unprofessional conduct by Superintendent Cynthia Elsberry was exhibited throughout this entire endeavor.
A teacher should never be put into a position of giving consent on a matter of significant import, especially one that involves money and stances on educational philosophy, without sufficient time to consider all of the ramifications of his doing so. Yet, that is exactly what Dr. Elsberry did on Thursday, September 12, 2013.
I communicated with the superintendent and the Horry County Board of Education my concerns over the next four days in a series of emails, culminating in an address before the board on the night of Monday, September 16, urging it to reverse itself and not to pursue the grant because of improper teacher involvement. Instead, it heard me but did not even discuss any of my objections before voting unanimously that night to support our grant application.
Shortly thereafter, I initiated a series of South Carolina Freedom of Information Act requests of the district to gain greater insight into how this travesty occurred. The first answers and documents I received were in the middle of October, after the submission of our grant application.
Having studied the relevant portions of our 1500 page application, I came to the conclusion that a fraudulent act had indeed occurred. By law, if I did not report this, I could have been charged with a felony. I would have reported it, anyway, because it was my duty to do so.
First, I reported problems with the application to the Race to the Top – District Team, then to the Government Accountability Office in Washington. I followed up with a report to the US Department of Justice and finally to the particular office at the US Department of Education which is responsible for investigating particular allegations of fraud, the Office of Inspector General.
In the meantime, I detailed my concerns to the Office of General Counsel at the South Carolina Department of Education to address my allegations of “unprofessional conduct” and possible “incompetence” against Superintendent Cynthia Elsberry.
I know I am misunderstood by many, but I am compelled to follow my conscience. Most teachers will not get involved and speak out because of fear, even against something so very wrong.
The superintendent and board of education hold offices of public trust. They must be held accountable.
As far as intent goes, the superintendent and the board were given the opportunity for three weeks to check out my claims, before submitting the application. A simple read of only three pages, B4, pages 25-27, would have shown them that my claim is accurate, for all of the evidence I presented, beginning on September 12, clearly showed that neither I nor the thousands of teachers in Horry County were meaningfully involved in the development and support of our application, as claimed in section B4.
They would not have had to read the 1500 page document to find this out. A simple look at the table of contents would have pointed them to the object of my claims: “Stakeholder Engagement and Support.”
They had access to the application, if they so desired to examine it. I did not, until the middle of October, after it had already been submitted. Although I suspected fraud from the beginning, I could not be sure, until I had answers to the questions I submitted through the South Carolina Freedom of Information Act. In response to some of my questions, the district provided the application for my examination, before I requested it, which was my next intended step. I did have to request the appendices later, some 1100 pages of evidence, for the district did not originally provide this information. Both the board and the superintendent should have easily known that they were committing fraud.
If the superintendent and the board did not check out my claims and proceeded to file the application, this would have been the height of ignorance and absurdity, for I was making a strong public claim about my non-involvement in a process that was demanded by the requirements of the application, which all board members and the superintendent should have been familiar with.
Dr. Elsberry acted with specific intent, after each presentation of the evidence, and made no attempt to reverse herself over a three week period. The board did the same.
I can only conclude that both acted with intent to commit fraud. Perhaps neither recognized the gravity of their actions or inactions and perhaps did not know that what they were committing was a criminal act, but their intent was to proceed. Money and district desires were more important than how teachers had been treated. Ignorance of the law is no excuse.
Sincerely and professionally,
Bobby Chandler
International Baccalaureate History Instructor
Socastee High School
Myrtle Beach, SC
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