A Charleston County school board meeting can be like a professional wrestling match – only with more fighting spirit.
And of course a louder audience.
Board meetings can sometimes resemble an episode of SmackDown, so it was encouraging to see the board review its leadership and communication skills at its retreat last week.
Board members discussed their strengths and weaknesses, how they performed on a leadership test, and how they can work together as a functioning board. Chairman Keith Grybowski even suggested “spending more time together as a board” in the name of better working relationships.
Yes, that is exactly your problem.
You see, the five people who make up the majority on the board were all in the room – but the four people who make up the minority were absent by a ratio of one.
To be fair, some of them have jobs and at least one of them has reported a scheduling conflict, but their collective absence is symbolic of a larger problem at 75 Calhoun.
Charleston County schools are showing a lot of potential right now. Test scores are rising, teachers are getting $8,000 more in pay, and a new, smart funding formula is funneling money directly into classrooms.
All of these things were approved by a unanimous school board, proof that the nine can come together. Unfortunately, that’s about all the common ground there is here.
Members of the school board’s minority (“the Four” in district parlance, as opposed to the majority – “the Five”) are rarely seen outside of official school board meetings. They rarely appear at district press conferences and did not even attend Darius Rucker’s back-to-school party in August.
They show up at meetings, in committees, and speak up when they disagree with the majority. Not that it does any good, and that’s the problem.
The four are of the opinion that they have neither power nor influence in the decisions of the school board, nor do they have a say – and they are not wrong.
