The Columbia Democrat said he has asked the school district and the state Department of Education for details and data on the reassignment, and told the audience, “This is just the beginning.”
The next steps could take place on Oct. 24, when the Richland One school board is scheduled to meet at Hopkins Middle School. Angela Zokan, a parent of two students at Thatchelford Elementary School, who also lost two of her teachers in the reassignment, urged demonstrators gathered inside State House to attend the rally and speak out. “Everyone needs to get out,” he said.
On October 23, protesters marched through Columbia after 11 teachers in the Richland One School District were reassigned to other schools.Ian Grenier/Staff
One of Zokan’s children’s classes welcomed six new students after classes were combined on Oct. 23 to replace a relocated teacher, a change that changed the atmosphere at the school. she said.
Sarah Brown, a senior education student at the University of South Carolina and an intern teacher at Brennen Elementary School, said the reassignment has made her feel “anxious” and affected her desire to become a teacher.
“It’s a profession that’s already low-paid and undervalued, so it’s a little scary,” she said.
A relocation of the scale at Richland One is “absolutely unprecedented,” said Patrick Kelly, a Blythewood High School teacher and director of government affairs for the Palmetto State Teachers Association.
“It’s a failure of leadership to get into this situation without a clear plan in place,” he said.
On October 23, protesters marched through Columbia after 11 teachers in the Richland One School District were reassigned to other schools.Ian Grenier/Staff
Adjacent Richland School District 2 did not make any teacher reassignments this year, said spokesman Ishmael Tate, but he said the Northeast Richland School District, which serves about 6,500 students, did not make any mid-year reassignments. “This is by no means an everyday occurrence,” he said. More student-friendly than Richland One.
Other Columbia-area school districts did not respond to questions Oct. 23 about the frequency of such reassignments.
At an Oct. 20 press conference, Witherspoon called the changes “unfortunate” and said the staffing changes were not made earlier this year because enrollment levels could still change. Enrollment data released by the district shows changes in student numbers from day 10 to day 45 of enrollment in affected schools.
