INSIDE: All of Swan Lake Iris Gardens now open A2 REVIEWS
Like the original Star Wars? Then you’ll love J.J. Abrams’ ‘The Force Awakens’ A5
SERVING SOUTH CAROLINA SINCE OCTOBER 15, 1894
SATURDAY, DECEMBER 19, 2015
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Sumter School District hosts Winter Wonderland
Education task force OKs report Final document recommends ways to improve poor districts BY JIM HILLEY jim@theitem.com South Carolina House Education Policy Review and Reform Task Force has unanimously approved a final version of its report, according to a news release by S.C. Speaker of the House Jay Lucas, R-Darlington. Lucas formed the task force in January with Rep. Rita Allison, R-Spartanburg, as chair after South Carolina Supreme Court refused to reconsider its
decision in Abbeville County School District v. the State of South Carolina that ordered the state to make changes in how it funds poor, rural school districts. Key findings in the task force’s report are: • The state must make a coordinated effort to improve the quality of leadership among teachers and administrators in the plaintiff districts; • The state must outline
SEE EDUCATION, PAGE A7
Ideas differ on how to boost teacher pay BY SEANNA ADCOX The Associated Press
PHOTOS BY KEITH GEDAMKE / THE SUMTER ITEM
Earlonta Jenkins, 4, smiles as he spins a hula-hoop during the Sumter School District’s Winter Wonderland at Sumter County Civic Center on Friday. The event is geared for children with special needs in the district.
Event puts smile on faces of students with special needs BY KONSTANTIN VENGEROWSKY konstantin@theitem.com Students with special needs from across the Sumter School District danced, played games, jumped in bounce houses and bonded with other children and teachers at the seventh annual Winter Wonderland event held Friday at Sumter County Civic Center. The event attracted 500 children, pre-kindergarten through eighth-grade, and their families providing them with an opportunity to have some fun outside the classroom. “Winter Wonderland gives children a chance to let their hair down,” said Diandra Polk, a mild intellectual disability teacher at Crosswell Drive Elementary School. “It gives them an outlet to just be kids. Seeing the joy on all of their faces is priceless. We encourage people to see the child and not the disability.” Shawn Hagerty, Sumter School District director of specialized programs and one of the organizers, said about
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Lauren Olsen, a Sumter School District employee, dances with Christopher Samlond, 10, during Winter Wonderland at Sumter County Civic Center on Friday. 200 students from clubs and organizations volunteered at the event, putting what they learned into practice. “I volunteered to make a difference in children’s lives,” said Eric Caldwell Jr., a senior at Crestwood High School, and a member of Future Business Leaders of America. “I love it. It provides me with a great experience to work with
special needs students.” Students from Alice Drive Middle School’s Peer Tutors program also gave their time at the event. The group works with students with disabilities on a daily basis with basic reading and social skills. “The program and this event gives me a chance to
SEE WONDERLAND, PAGE A7
DEATHS, A7 Jamal L. Pendergrass Rev. Dr. Lawrence Presley Ricky Mouzon Mary Louise J. Davis Ruth J. Martin Sybil A. Holliday
Melvin L. Hodge Mark E. Barkley Alma M. Outlaw Diane M. Mathis Henry L. Jackson Jr.
COLUMBIA — State education officials agree South Carolina’s public school teachers should be paid more, but they differ on whether to start at the front or back end of teachers’ careers. The state Education Department wants to begin by better compensating veteran teachers. Its budget proposal would ensure that all teachers, starting next school year, would receive an annual raise for experience through 23 years in the classroom. Right now, the state-required boost stops at 22 years, and 24 of the state’s 81 districts go no further. Other districts use local property tax money to pay for additional years, creating wide disparities, even among districts in the same county. When veteran teachers can get a job that boosts their pay without having to relocate, “you can’t blame teachers for doing that,” Kathy Maness, director of the Palmetto State Teachers Association, said this week. “But it’s the smaller districts that can’t afford to do it that really need those teachers.” According to the Education Department, 20 percent of the state’s teachers see no compensation for experience past 22 years. Funding that additional year statewide would cost $6.3 million. “We are not compensat-
ing our most experienced and seasoned teachers,” reads the agency’s budget request for 2016-17. Maness’ group hopes that by 2021-22, the state will extend experience pay through 28 years — the number of years public employees in South Carolina must work to retire with full pension benefits. But the independent Education Oversight Committee is not supporting the department’s proposal. It instead suggests starting next year on the front end of teachers’ careers while working on a plan that overhauls the entire salary schedule. It recommends asking an outside group, such as University of South Carolina’s business school, to develop a new one. While the department’s request “may assist in retaining some of the state’s most veteran teachers, it will not address recruiting more teachers into the pipeline,” reads its recommendation, adopted earlier this week by the agency’s board. “We don’t need to add on to the back end until we look at the whole system,” EOC Director Melanie Barton said Monday. Salaries are particularly critical during a teacher’s first five years in the classroom because that’s when many decide to leave the profession for a better-paying job. The low starting pay is also preventing students from pursuing the job
SEE SALARIES, PAGE A7
WEATHER, A8
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2 SECTIONS, 16 PAGES VOL. 121, NO. 56
Plenty of sunshine today and clear today. HIGH 53, LOW 31
Classifieds B6 Comics B5
Lotteries A8 Television A4-A5