Most Beaufort County school board candidates oppose educational penny sales tax
A majority of the candidates for the Beaufort County school board oppose proposals on the Nov. 7 ballot to increase the county’s sales tax by 1 percent to pay for new schools and renovations and provide property tax relief.
Opponents include five contenders — incumbent JoAnn Orischak of District 11, candidate Patricia Felton-Montgomery for District 6 and candidates Christopher Epps, Bridgette Frazier and Christina Gwozdz for District 9. Their reasons range from the size of the capital projects funding plan to the school board’s timing given the community’s distrust of the board over the last year.
That leaves just three supporters of the plan which is anticipated to generated about $313 million over 10 years. Incumbents Paul Roth of District 6 and Earl Campbell District 1 along with candidate Bill Fletcher for District 9 have each voted for, or in the case of Fletcher, spoken out in favor of the referendum, which includes two questions, one for the penny sales tax itself and one allowing the district to issue $217 million in bonds — or essentially, borrow money for projects and use sales-tax revenue to pay it back.
As for the $217 million, that’s how much the district anticipates spending on its capital projects. The board board has promised to spend the rest of the sales-tax revenue to lower its portion of property taxes, just as six other S.C. school systems have done since 2008 after levying educational sales taxes. Doing so would reduce property taxes on the district’s debt service by at least 42 percent, according to the district’s financial adviser, Brian Nurick of Columbia-based Compass Municipal Advisors.
Roth and Campbell have both been supportive of the tax since at least February, when superintendent Jeff Moss presented the 10-year-plan, a scaled-down version of his original, $480 million sales tax proposal.
But most candidates don’t share that perspective.
Orischak, for example, has been critical of the board’s communication with the public and its own members and argues that the educational sales tax requires trust voters don’t currently have. It takes trust because voters will be voting on two separate proposals with only verbal assurances from the board that it would use the money as promised.
Meanwhile, Felton-Montgomery, a former superintendent in New Jersey, said the district should have sought a more modest 5-year tax increase, for the period of time in which the district has its most accurate enrollment projections.
And Frazier, a former district teacher, said the board needs to better educate the public about its plans.
Gwozdz, a doctor, says she is concerned with how the district would pay for the increased operational costs associated with all of its new construction.
Epps, an architect, says he thinks the district already has a spending problem and must fix it before asking voters for more money.
Voting down the sales tax would require the school board to redo its long-term capital projects plan and potentially increase class sizes, add portable classrooms and reconfigure existing schools to handle more or less grades, according to district officials.
Tax proponents argue that’s unacceptable.
“We need to let the district properly manage what they are doing within the governance of our schools,” said Fletcher, a mortgage broker. “With board oversight. That’s the key. We don’t want them to run amok.”
Rebecca Lurye: 843-706-8155, @IPBG_Rebecca
The Contested Races
District 6 — Okatie
Paul Roth: Incumbent board member. Roth did not return a candidate questionnaire to The Island Packet and Beaufort Gazette.
Patricia Felton-Montgomery: 70, Educational consultant for the International Center for Leadership in Education and Houghton Mifflin Harcourt. On leave during the election.
District 9 — Bluffton
Incumbent Laura Bush is not seeking reelection.
Christopher Epps: 33, Architect. Owner of Incircle Architecture.
Bill Fletcher: 49, Mortgage broker. President of UniSource Mortgage Services, Inc.
Bridgette Frazier: 33, Baker and educator. Owner/operator of Deliciously Couture Catering LLC and Gullah Fried Sweet food truck. Eighth grade English language arts facilitator at Hardeeville-Ridgeland Middle School.
Christina Gwozdz: 58, Board-certified otolaryngologist. Owner and manager of Palmetto Ear, Nose and Throat, P.A. Co-founder/co-owner of Outpatient Surgery Center of Hilton Head.
The Issues
Why are you running for this office?
District 6
Roth: No answer provided.
Felton-Montgomery: I believe a coalition of board members who hold integrity and transparency in high regard can be the catalyst for changing the culture of the present board. This election provides an opportunity for a new majority of the board to be elected and bring about this kind of change.
District 9
Epps: Until we have a strong education system in place, we will not have healthy economic development. Another reason is that I am a product of the Beaufort County school system and had a very hard time in it. It took a long time to learn the tools I needed to be successful in life. I do not want my child to have to go through the same.
Fletcher: There has been an undeniable erosion of trust between the current board/superintendent and our community over the last 12 months. If elected, I intend to do everything within my power to help “bridge the gap.” As a parent of four children who has been actively engaged in making sure they succeed in the classroom, I have a very personal perspective and interest in seeing that our students receive the best education possible.
Frazier: Our students and educators deserve to have a person on the board who has more than good intentions; but the actual experience gained through a degree program in education and classroom experience in teaching. I am passionate about ensuring that ALL students succeed, teachers are able to work and live in the communities they teach in with ease and I believe that no child or teacher should ever be made to feel that there's only one way to learn or teach.
Christina Gwozdz: I decided to run for this office after I witnessed the nepotism fiasco and the board’s inability to properly handle it. Change is needed on the board. As a physician and business owner with board experience, I am used to critically analyzing situations, solving problems and managing employees. I also have the parental perspective as all three of my children went completely through the Bluffton public school system.
What do you see as the district’s biggest strength and weakness in serving students?
District 6
Roth: No answer provided.
Felton-Montgomery: Although the Beaufort County School District has seen improvements, they pale when compared to state statistics and when compared to national statistics. The district’s excellent teacher force needs to be provided with research-based curriculum programs that have been proven to provide significantly higher student performance results.
District 9
Epps: I do not believe in the school system, but I do believe in its educators, coaches, and parents. They work tirelessly for the students. They will give everything for the students to succeed. We need to stand up for them to its broken leadership.
Fletcher: The biggest strength is our educators who are working diligently to put our students on a path of academic success. There is more work and improvement to be done, but we are moving in the right direction. Unfortunately, the biggest weakness is the lack of faith and trust our community has in district leadership, and, often times, this overshadows the positive things that are happening in our classrooms each and every day.
Frazier: The biggest strengths are educators and staff who are dedicated and vested in the success of their students so much. The district's biggest weakness is not valuing educators enough to do what is necessary to retain them in this district so they can continue to mold the minds of our children. Another glaring weakness is the inability to effectively develop and implement a plan that will allow our minority students to achieve at the same level as their counterparts.
Christina Gwozdz: Its biggest strength is students can earn a high-quality education here. A weakness that has been brought to my attention during my campaign by concerned parents is that students are not being issued textbooks and homework has been eliminated in some grade(s). Eliminating textbooks and homework seems counterproductive to our goal of educating our children well.
What specific steps will you take to make government more open and accessible to the public?
District 6
Roth: No answer provided.
Felton-Montgomery: Given the present lack of trust, the board would also do well to hold forums in each school board election district to hear the concerns and interests of our constituents in a more informal setting than is possible in traditional board meetings. Respect for the public also calls for a reduction in the number of closed executive sessions and that board meetings start on-time.
District 9
Epps: We need more open discussions, not closed-door sessions. One thing I will do is to ask the media for ideas on how to achieve this goal. Then, I will come up with a plan to reach that purpose and see it through.
Fletcher: With the exception of what happens in executive session, I think our district does a fairly decent job of being open and accessible. In my opinion, we need a more engaged citizenry which will not only benefit our district, but our entire community. If elected, I intend on doing the exact same thing I’m doing now... being accessible.
Frazier: I'd implement hosting bi-monthly or quarterly sessions with my constituents to keep them abreast of district initiatives and hear their concerns on district matters. The public is indeed why government exists so I'm a staunch believer on keeping them involved and knowledgeable of everything that is going on.
Christina Gwozdz: When elected, vote for board leaders who value the importance of open and ethical governance. Conduct business in a transparent manner and encourage public input. Communicating with my constituents via a Facebook page could be helpful. Workshops and open houses with Board representatives.
What is another top issue you would address if elected, and how?
District 6
Paul Roth: No answer provided.
Felton-Montgomery: The district must make closing the achievement gap a district priority. The Beaufort County School District has given lip service to closing the gap but has not established this goal as its major priority, nor has it specifically devoted resources to new administrative actions and instructional strategies to change its trajectory.
District 9
Epps: We need to support our teachers more, to raise their pay, to stand by them, ask their opinions and needs, and give them tools to succeed in their jobs. Another issue is to bring trust back into the school system. Until this happens, the public will not believe the board decisions. We need to let the current school superintendent go; Moss has caused enough damage to the ability for the public to trust the school system.
Fletcher: Effective and timely communication is critical. Without it, we have disorganization, misinformation, and chaos. In speaking with both educators and parents, there is a bit of a disconnect when it comes to communication from district leadership to our teachers and families.
Frazier: No teacher anywhere in this country should have to give up their planning period to cover lunch duties, break up fights or monitor halls. If elected one of my goals is to definitely ensure the safety of our students and reduce the burden of our educators by hiring hall monitors to be staffed in all of our schools.
Christina Gwozdz: The district needs to attract and retain high quality teachers. I am in favor of raising teacher salaries to help accomplish this goal.
This story was originally published October 28, 2016 at 6:00 AM with the headline "Most Beaufort County school board candidates oppose educational penny sales tax."