FAIRFAX - A new principal and instructional facilitator were hired at Fairfax Elementary School prior to an official reprimand by the South Carolina State Board of Education earlier this month. The state response hinged on the former staff’s failure to provide proper documentation of an academic improvement plan.

The reprimand was issued to the Allendale County School District Board of Trustees on July 9 for “failing to provide support and direction” for Fairfax Elementary, which did not follow a plan for improvement designed at both the school and district level and mandated by state law.

According to Allendale County School District Superintendent Dr. Ora Watson, the state Department of Education stopped short of taking over the school because of the extenuating circumstances in Fairfax Elementary’s case.

“Prior to my arrival (in February of this year), all four of our schools had shown an unsatisfactory rating on its annual state report card,” Watson said. “In response, each school had to write a collaborative academic improvement plan separate from the district-wide improvement plan.

The state assigned an external review team liaison consultant to each school to oversee each improvement plan’s implementation and to provide feedback to the independent external review team assigned by the state as to the level of implementation and its success.”

Watson said the principals of each district school had to appear before the state review panel and provide documented evidence on the plan they had written in collaboration with the principal, school staff, parents and the district administration.

“Only Fairfax Elementary was not able to provide that documentation to the satisfaction of the state,” she said.

Watson noted that changes made prior to the state’s decision involved the removal of former Fairfax Elementary principal Hanna Priester. On July 1, Dewey Carey and Desherica Partlow from Georgia took over as the new principal and instructional facilitator, respectively, at the school.

“I feel very good about Mr. Carey and Ms. Partlow,” Watson said, “because both have demonstrated success in improving schools. The state also assigned Kay Gooding to be the new external review team liaison consultant at Fairfax Elementary this year.”

Jim Rex, state superintendent of education, said the actions of the Allendale County Schools board of trustees and Dr. Watson gave the state Board of Education reason for optimism.

“We saw that the Allendale County School District had hired a new superintendent and removed the former (Fairfax Elementary) principal. That’s why the state Board of Education chose not to take over the school,” Rex said. “However, since Fairfax Elementary didn’t meet any of the goals of its Focus School Renewal Plan and the effort was not documented, it didn’t meet the requirements of the South Carolina Education Accountability Act. The state has every right to expect that effort for the sake of the students there.”

Rex added, “There needed to be consequences since there were 40 schools from around the state in a similar situation and only two didn’t have documentation. By issuing the public reprimand, the state Board of Education sent a message to school boards around the state that this lack of effort won’t be tolerated.”

The reprimand also requires that two-member teams appointed by the state Department of Education conduct on-site reviews of Fairfax Elementary in October 2008 and in January and April 2009, with the results reported back to the state Board of Education. Progress reports on recommendation implementation must also be provided by Allendale County School Board members, Dr. Watson and Carey in December 2008 and May 2009.

Watson also pointed out that Allendale schools will be implementing a district-wide Comprehensive School Improvement Plan this year.

“This plan is different from the past because it is based on a demonstrated classroom walk-through model for principals and other district administrators, which will require at least 10 classrooms to be visited each week,” she said. “Additionally, all administrators will be trained on what to look for. Some simply aren’t aware what good instruction looks like.”

Alonzo Frazier, Allendale County School Board chairman, opted to withhold comment on the state reprimand at the present time.

“We have not officially received anything from the state board concerning this issue yet,” Frazier said. “We as a board can’t respond to anything until we actually know what is in the reprimand. I can say that the Allendale County School Board takes this issue very seriously.”

T&D Correspondent Phil Sarata can be reached by e-mail at pmhsarata@aol.com.

You must be logged in to comment.