On Wednesday, May 27, 2020, South Carolina School Boards Association (SCSBA) President Chuck Saylors and Executive Director Scott Price held a press conference to release the results of a survey of local school board members statewide, gauging how they believe school districts should proceed to safely and effectively resume normal operations and how their schools have fared during months of e-learning and other methods used to instruct students at home as a result of COVID-19 closures.
From May 5-14, SCSBA surveyed 591 board members governing the state’s 79 local school districts. Fifty-two percent, or 310 school board members responded, representing each of the state’s 46 counties.
As the state develops its guidance for the reopening of school, board members want a range of options, not universal mandates, so that school districts can do what best meets the needs of their students and their communities.
They support the following provisions:
Finally, school board members are split on the decision of whether parents should have a choice of sending their children back to school for in-person instruction or continuing with online/paper instruction at home, with 49.68% agreeing with this option and 50.32% opposing it, some noting that this option would put an additional burden on classroom teachers.
The survey findings are attached as a summary, infographic and the responses for each question of the board member return-to-school survey with individual comments.
Quotes from the press conference:
“We know that school board members are the voice of their local communities and regularly receive feedback from families and students, which is why a survey of the state’s 79 local boards was so important.”
–SCSBA Executive Director Scott Price
“I have spoken to many, many school board members during these past few months, and I can say without hesitation that all of them are focused on the health and safety of their students, staff and their families.”
-–SCSBA President and Greenville County School Board Member Chuck Saylors
“The main message from school board members is the need for recognition by the state that one-size-fits-all solutions do not work. As the state develops its guidance for the fall, board members have been pretty clear – they want a range of options, not universal mandates, so that their school districts can best meet the needs of their students and communities.”
–SCSBA President and Greenville County School Board Member Chuck Saylors
“As school boards and educators must work at the massive task of managing education and continuing learning in a period of unprecedented disruption, we should remember what has always been true: every school is different, and every district is different.”
–SCSBA President and Greenville County School Board Member Chuck Saylors