COLUMBIA – When the Richland Two school board trustees’ former secretary declined to sign documents asserting that Board Chairwoman Amelia McKie is legally allowed to serve on the board, two trustees say the board was not notified the documents were modified to include phrasing dismissive of McKie’s ethics controversy.
“I was not aware of the addition of the extra line in the bond documents,” trustee James Manning said. “I really don’t have a response to the legitimacy [issue]. I’m spending all my research looking into why that [the paragraph] is there and why we need it, so I’ll be looking at that.”
Lindsay Agostini, the former board secretary, said her attorney advised her not to sign the documents. She thinks the document revisions should have been brought to the board’s attention.
“We weren’t briefed as a board,” she said. “I do believe, with the modifications, I think it would’ve been important for the board to be briefed, either individually or as a group.”
District Superintendent Dr. Baron Davis couldn’t be reached for comment.
At issue are clauses added to documents relating to the district’s $468.4 million building program. Richland Two voters recently approved a bond referendum that raises taxes to finance construction.
Added to the bond documents was the following statement:
“The School District is aware that members of the public have called for the resignation of the current Board Chair because of fines owed by the Board Chair to the South Carolina State Ethics Commission because the Board Chair did not have on file a current Statement of Economic Interest prior to being sworn in to a second term as a member of the Board,” the document states.
“The School District is not aware of any litigation, regulatory effort, or official proceeding challenging the Board Chair’s right and title to serve as a Board member of Board Chair,” the document continues.
Agostini repeated her call for McKie to step down as chair, but hasn’t called for McKie’s outright resignation as some members of the public have.
Manning said he doesn’t question McKie’s eligibility to serve.
“Our legal counsel has told us based on the current law and previous attorney general opinions, the board really has no purview over whether Ms. McKie is a legitimate board member or not,” he said. “That is beyond board control.”
Manning thinks state law should more clearly state whether public officials who fail to file ethics forms are legally allowed to serve.
Section 8-13-1110 of state law says no public official “may take the oath of office or enter upon his official responsibilities” unless a Statement of Economics Interest form is filed.
Section 8-13-1520 further states that ethics law violations are misdemeanors punishable by up to a year in prison, a $5,000 fine or both.
COLUMBIA – Chanda Jefferson of Fairfield Central High School was named the 2020 South Carolina Teacher of the Year last night in Columbia.
Jefferson received a total of $25,000, use of a BMW for a year and will serve a one-year residency at the Center for Educator Recruitment, Retention, and Advancement.
Nicole Hunter’s Child Development class at Geiger Elementary proudly displays some of the books donated by the community for summer reading. | Photo: Nicole HunterHunter
RIDGEWAY – What started as a request to friends on Facebook by Geiger Elementary School Child Development teacher Nicole Collins Hunter quickly turned into a community effort.
Hunter knew that most of her students would not have access to books over the summer and worried about them battling the ‘summer slide,’ so on March 26, Hunter posted a request to her Facebook friends.
“I need your help,” Hunter wrote. “Studies show that access to books during the summer prevents drastic loss in reading skill, especially for kids in need… I am determined to send my students home with five books for summer reading.”
Hunter’s students are excited to take their books home for the summer.
Hunter’s status was quickly shared by community members, and the effort was contagious. Her original goal of five books per student was swiftly met, and, as of May 8, Hunter has received 200 new and gently used books for her 15 students.
As a way of making the donated books even more special, Hunter asked that donors send a message with the books that she could share with her students. An anonymous Geiger faculty member purchased and donated canvas totes, which will be personalized in a collaboration with the art teacher, for the students to carry their books during the summer.
“Thanks in advance for helping instill a love of reading that lasts throughout a student’s life,” Hunter concluded in her Facebook plea.
To contribute to Hunter’s summer book drive, drop new or gently used books off at Geiger Elementary or mail to Nicole Hunter, Geiger Elementary, 150 T.M. Cook Lane, Ridgeway, SC 29130.
One student looks over his options as he chooses summer reading books.
Cam Bass (18), Tyler Tanner (6), Luke Martin and assistant Coach Brent Silvia celebrate Monday’s walk-off win at the plate. | Photos: Martha Ladd
WINNSBORO/EHRHARDT – Monday night’s matchup against Andrew Jackson Academy was one for the storybooks. Trailing the Confederates for almost the entire game, it looked to be a bleak ending for the Eagles in game one of the three-game SCISA 1A Semifinal series. In true hero fashion, sophomore Zack Taylor drove in the winning run with a walk-off double to give the Eagles the 4-3 win.
It was a pitcher’s duel kind of night. After three scoreless innings, the Confederates took control of the game in the fourth on some key Eagle fielding errors, scoring two on passed ball. With a 2-0 lead, the Confederates looked to be in the driver’s seat.
Luke Martin led off the bottom of the fourth with a single to right and scored off of Confederate fielding errors. The Eagles added two more base runners, but couldn’t plate any runs before ending the inning.
The 2-1 score remained until the Eagles took the field for the top of the seventh. Richard Winn quickly got the first two Andrew Jackson batters out. Then, a Confederate runner reached first on a dropped third strike. A fielding error on the next at bat scored a run to put Andrew Jackson ahead 3-1 heading into the bottom of the frame.
With one out looming, Hudson Wade singled on a ground ball to short that ignited the Eagles’ rally. Then, a strikeout left the Eagles with no outs to spare.
Taylor’s seventh inning double was his 13th of the season.
Martin reached first on an error by the shortstop, advancing Wade to second. Dru Caldwell reached base on an error from a fly to center that scored Wade and put Martin in scoring position. Brandon Miller followed with a line-drive single to center to plate Martin and tie the game at 3. Then Taylor blasted his sole hit of the night, a game-winning, walk-off double to left.
Taylor picked up the win on the mound for the Eagles, facing 29 batters in seven innings of work. He struck out eleven, allowing only one hit and three runs.
The Eagles took the 1-0 series advantage into Tuesday night’s rematch in Ehrhardt. The Eagles looked to be championship-ready. They took a decisive 5-1 win, punching their ticket to the title game and eliminating the Confederates from playoff contention.
Game two started off in similar fashion with three scoreless innings, but this time the Eagles took the lead and never relinquished it.
Austin Lancaster led off the fourth with a line drive double to right. Will Carvalho, courtesy runner for Lancaster, advanced to third when the Confederates made a fielding error from Jimmy McKeown’s ground to third. The Eagles loaded the bases with no outs when Hudson Wade was hit by a pitch. The next two Eagle batters followed with outs. Richard Winn looked to end the inning scoreless again until a shortstop error from Dru Caldwell’s grounder plated the Eagles’ first run of the night.
The Eagles struck again in the top of the sixth. McKeown led off with a walk. Wade put McKeown on second with a fielder’s choice, and John Russell followed with a single, putting runners on first and third. Martin plated McKeown on a line-drive double to right and landed Russell in scoring position at third. Brandon Miller gave the Eagles a 4-0 advantage with a two-out single to left, scoring Russell and Martin.
Andrew Jackson got on the board in the bottom of the sixth with a solo homerun to left, but a solid Richard Winn defense would not allow any more Confederate runs.
The Eagles added an insurance run in the top of the seventh when Cam Bass doubled to left, stole third and scored on a sacrifice fly to center from McKeown.
Wade picked up his fifth win on the mound for the Eagles with the 5-1 victory. He pitched a complete game, allowing only three hits and one run against 25 batters.
Martin and Lancaster each went 2-4 at the plate with a double.
Richard Winn’s sweep of the Confederates places them in the SCISA 1A State Championship series against Dorchester beginning Monday. Game one of the three-game series will be played at Dorchester, and the Eagles will host game two at Billy Ladd field on Tuesday. The third game, if needed, will be played on Thursday at a neutral site to be determined.
The Eagles look to repeat history as the baseball program claimed the SCISA 2A State Title in 2007 with a 2-0 sweep of Dorchester.
Blythewood claims Upper State Championship with 3-0 shutout of J.L. Mann
Michael Gregory went 2-2 at the plate with a double and triple. | Photos: Martha Ladd
BLYTHEWOOD – Two freshman pitchers and two big hits from Michael Gregory and Landon Lucas were just what Blythewood needed Wednesday night.
Davis Wright and Kevin Steelman combined for seven innings of shutout ball, Gregory tripled in a run in the third and Lucas hit a solo home run in the sixth, and the Bengals clinched their first upper state championship with a 3-0 victory over J.L. Mann.
“Unbelievable,” head coach Banks Faulkner said of Wright and Steelman’s 4-hitter. “They’ve got unbelievable poise and composure. They’re very mature beyond their years and we’ve got all the confidence in the world in them.”
Blythewood (25-8) will play Dutch Fork for the 5A state championship in a best-of-3 series. Game one will be at Blythewood Saturday at 7. Game two will be on the road for the Bengals Tuesday night. If necessary, the deciding game will be set at a neutral site Saturday.
“This just another step in the journey,” Faulkner said. “One of our goals in the offseason was to win the last game we played, and to do that, it’s going to take an unbelievable effort.”
“It’s been three long years”, Faulkner, who came to coach the program from Summerville in 2016, said. “When I got here this was such a young program that looked nothing like what I left. To see them get to this point has been a process, and we’ve had some guys that have been really committed to being great. It’s been gratifying to see them accomplish this after their hard work and dedication.”
Freshman Davis Wright picked up the win for the Bengals.
Wright, third in the team’s rotation, had six starts on the year, but he was still a little nervous in starting the upper state title game.
“A little bit but once I got through the first inning I was good to go,” Wright said. “It means a lot, all the work we put in, my dad, my mom supported me, all my coaches believed in me. They called the pitches and I executed, and it worked out for us.”
Gregory provided the run support in the second inning.
Nate Hinson led off the inning with a double and moved to third after Josh Cowan walked.
With two out, Gregory got to the plate and took a passed ball that enabled Hinson to score the first run. Gregory then lashed out a triple that easily scored Colton Harman, Cowan’s courtesy runner.
“It’s crazy, Gregory said. “The top of our order wasn’t performing very well at the beginning of the game and I knew I had to get something started. I went up, not worried, just trying to get the job done. I got a runner in scoring position and found a way to make it work.”
With two runs on the board, and later Lucas’ sixth-inning shot, Wright and Steelman made it work for them, too.
“That’s huge,” Gregory said. “They are both so talented, just being freshman and being able to have the poise to go out and combine for seven innings and that’s a huge stage for them.”
Wright worked a clean first inning. He gave up two hits in the second with one out before striking out two straight Patriots to get out of the jam. He got into trouble in the fourth inning but escaped a bases-loaded jam when Cody Nichols grounded into a fielder’s choice.
“Throughout the season I’ve been put out for about four innings,” Wright said. “Coach knows what he’s doing and he made the right move.”
Freshman Kevin Steelman (24)
Steelman found out he would take the mound last weekend, when assistant coach Trey Dyson was playing in a local golf tournament with Steelman’s dad.
“I was working there, and I went up to him and (Dyson) tossed me a baseball and told me to change my grips and stuff,” Steelman said. “He just told me to be ready because I would be playing on Wednesday.”
When Davis finished up, he set the stage for Steelman.
J.L. Mann’s Tomas Frick got on board with an error to lead off the inning, but Steelman got Reed Morrissey to hit into a 6-4-3 double play on the next at-bat. Ben Lumsden flied out in centerfield to end the inning.
The right-hander struck out two in the sixth and two more in the seventh innings—generally the territory for closer Josh Cowan, the team’s starting catcher. Because High School League rules wouldn’t allow Cowan to catch in the nightcap of a doubleheader if he pitched in the first game, Faulkner opted for Steelman to stay on the mound for as long as possible.
“The rule makes it difficult,” Faulkner said. “If we bring in Josh, and then things don’t happen to go our way, and we can’t use him (for the deciding game). It’s a really tough rule. We were prepared to go to Landon, not an ideal situation, but I felt like Kevin was in control of the game. We were gonna give him a base runner and just let him go.”
Steelman’s three innings of no-hit ball evaporated Mann’s chance of a comeback.
“It was crazy. It was scary.” Steelman said. “But I believed in my stuff and just went out there and did my job, threw strikes. My coaches are always building me up. Coach Dyson and Coach Faulkner they always believed in my stuff. I’ve been working on my changeup with Coach Dyson and it really paid off today.”
Now the Bengals set their sights on winning their last game of the season. The team knows all about Coach Faulkner’s ups and downs with the team over the last three years, and Gregory said Blythewood will do all it can to go one series further.
“He’s our coach,” Gregory said. “It doesn’t matter what happens, we all love him. It’s been three rough years, but we’re here.”
Blythewood 3, J.L. Mann 0
JLM – 0-0-0-0-0-0-0 – 0, 4, 0
BHS – 0-2-0-0-0-1-X – 3, 4, 2
WP: Davis Wright (6-2) LP: Freeman S: Kevin Steelman
Hitters: J.L. Mann – Blythewood – Michael Gregory 2-2, 3B, 2B. Landon Lucas HR (6). Nate Hinson 2B.
WINNSBORO – During Fairfield County Council’s retreat last month, County Administrator Jason Taylor and his staff – Community Planner Chris Clausen, Economic Development Director Ty Davenport and Deputy Administrator Davis Anderson – guided council members through what Taylor called “thoughts, ideas and discussions of where we want to take the county and how we want to work to improve it.”
“The economic development building is a nice building at the commerce center but it is not really set up for an [economic development] office,” Taylor said. “We’ve looked for a number of ways to add on to that facility. But to show the county off and to do something that’s nice and impressive and get people’s attention, I would suggest we look at something bigger and better out there that helps sell Fairfield County. Something that would let people know we’re forward looking and not just some small, unimpressive office.”
Davenport said an addition to the current building is estimated to be $400,000. A new stand-alone building is estimated at $1.2 million on the high end.
“We need to do something that is the face of the community,” Davenport said. “It’s the first thing that prospects see. We need to keep up with the Jones. It needs to be as nice as those in Orangeburg, Aiken, Richland, Chester and York. They all have great facilities. We need to be at this level,” he said.
‘I would love to build a new building up near the front of the park so that when you pull up to the park, it catches the eye, like, “Wow, this is Fairfield County?” Taylor added. He conceded, however, that a new build might not be financially feasible when council looks at the budget.
“We’ll have to see what happens,” Taylor said, adding several possibilities to help fund it.
“It could house the Water Authority which is a separate entity that generates its own revenue, so it would pay rent in the new building,” Taylor said. “We hope to bring Mitford in and are working with Winnsboro…we’d have 900 new customers almost immediately which would actually generate revenue to help support a new building. We have to have a place for the Water Authority and this would be an appropriate place for it.”
Sewer Plant Property
“We need to purchase property for a sewer plant and get it nailed down,” Taylor said. “That’s a top priority.”
“We plan to design a two million gallon plant expandable to four-million gallons that will initially discharge up to 2 million gallons of effluent a day.” Davenport said.
“We’ve been working with DHEC on this for a long time, Taylor said. “Commerce awarded us $2 million to survey and preform engineering studies on the megasite. A portion of those funds were also used for engineering studies necessary to design the wastewater treatment plant. We are working with Thomas and Hutton Engineering to get the permitting and design engineering approved by DHEC,” Taylor said.
Then, when we have someone who wants to locate on the megasite, we drop the hammer and build the treatment plant. They’d be looking at only 15 months of construction instead of 3 – 4 years if they had to start from ground zero.”
Farmer’s Market
“Economic Development brings jobs. Community Development makes people who get those jobs want to say here and spend their paychecks here. And that’s what the Farmer’s Market and the Market parking lot are about” Taylor said.
The County has restored the stable building on East Washington Street with $35,000 from the Chamber of Commerce. Taylor said that while it is being restored for use by the Farmer’s Market, it can also be used as an event center for weddings, reunions, parties and other events that will bring in revenue.
The County also plans to repave and upgrade the parking lot behind the Market building for parking. Taylor said the idea is to bring people to the downtown area. The events would also bring in revenue for the County. He said it would be a draw for the downtown area.
“Mom and pop stores and boutiques are what we want downtown. We need an anchor drawing card restaurant downtown. The buildings in downtown are cheap, but it takes a pile of money to get them up and going. We’re looking for more retail and restaurants downtown.”
Upgrade Fire Stations
All but about four of our firefighters are volunteers, so if we have a fire during working hours, we have a bad situation,” Anderson said. “To make sure we have round the clock service, we’re going to start improving our fire station living and sleeping areas and showers.”
“We also need to move toward having more paid staff,” Taylor said. “If we have a huge plant located at the megasite, we can’t tell them we have a volunteer fire service. No, they’re going to want dedicated service. For economic development, we have to assure them that if they have a need, someone’s going to show up.
Court House
Taylor said the Court House must be restored because of moisture, mildew and mold and other problems. It is a bond project that was allocated about $2.1 million.
“But that’s an old number and we’ll need to add about 10 percent more now,” Taylor said.
Anderson said about $1.3 million is allocated for repairs of the HVAC, lighting and infrastructure for computer systems. To save money, the county asked engineers to estimate costs to work on the building without moving out the employees.
“So they will be in there working on it at night and by 9 a.m., the employees can go back in to work during the day. The night and weekend work will cost another $300,000,” Anderson said, “plus an additional 10 percent. So we’re going to try to do that – working at nights and weekends and stay within budget.”
Drawdy Parking Lot
“When you go down to Drawdy Park in the afternoon, it’s chaos with 200 – 300 kids,” Anderson said. “So we’re going to try to put a parking lot there by the old Everett school, so people can actually park and walk down to the fields instead of cars parking on the graveyard and other places they shouldn’t be. This should make it a better municipal park for the citizens.”
A-Tax & Penny Sales Tax
“We recently passed the A-Tax ordinance with projections of revenue at about $250,000 a year,” Taylor said. “This revenue stream will do a lot to help community development. We won’t see immediate results because we’ll let it build up about a year.”
“We’ve got our attorney working on a penny sales tax,” Taylor said. “That’s something that a lot of communities use to a great effect for growth,” Taylor said. “But before we pass it, we have to figure out exactly where we’re going to designate the revenues to go.”
BLYTHEWOOD – Prepare to be entertained when the Reggie Sullivan band takes the stage in Doko Meadows Park Friday night with Christina Bhola opening. The concert admission and parking is free, and those attending are encouraged to bring the kids, lawn chairs and blankets.
From 6 – 9 p.m., the entertainment will include Jazz, funk, soul and rock originals and covers influenced by B.B. King, Miles Davis, John Mayer, Duke Ellington, James Brown, Ray Charles, Little Richard, John Coltrane, Marvin Gaye, The Canton Spirituals, The Beatles and more.
There will be kid-friendly activities and food vendors.
Beer, wine and soft drinks sales will be sold to benefit Bravo! Blythewood.
And for those who feel the need for some exercise during the concert, the Relay for Life event will also be taking place in the park until 10 p.m., and everyone is invited to join in the walk.
The Bravo event is funded by the accommodation tax revenue.
R2 school board member Lindsay Agostini resigns as secretary. James Shadd, right, was elected to replace Agostini as board secretary. | Barbara Ball
COLUMBIA – Chairwoman Amelia McKie’s ongoing ethics problems have prompted another member of the Richland 2 Board of Trustees to resign her officer position.
Lindsay Agostini stepped down as secretary of the Richland Two board, but still remains on the board as a voting member. Agostini notified McKie and Superintendent Dr. Baron Davis of her decision via email Friday.
In a prepared statement read at Tuesday’s meeting, Agostini said she consulted her personal attorney after raising concerns about two documents she says she was asked in her position as secretary to sign.
Both documents alluded to lingering legal and ethics issues that have haunted McKie for months.
“With these questions in mind and under advice of legal counsel, my principles would not allow me to sign these two documents,” Agostini said. “Therefore, I felt it was in the best interest of the district for me to resign as board secretary but continue in the capacity as a member of the Board of Trustees.”
Neither McKie nor other trustees at Tuesday’s meeting responded to Agostini’s statement.
One document, titled “Certificate of Incumbency,” asked Agostini to confirm McKie as the board chair. It also stated the dates of McKie’s chairmanship are July 1, 2018 to June 30, 2019, Agostini said.
The “Signature and No Litigation Document,” which related to the recently passed $468.4 million bond referendum for school building upgrades, was modified to include verbiage inferring that McKie is legally allowed to serve on the board in spite of failing to follow state ethics law.
“The School District is aware that members of the public have called for the resignation of the current Board Chair because of fines owed by the Board Chair to the South Carolina State Ethics Commission because the Board Chair did not have on file a current Statement of Economic Interest prior to being sworn in to a second term as a member of the Board,” the document stated.
“The School District is not aware of any litigation, regulatory effort, or official proceeding challenging the Board Chair’s right and title to serve as a Board member or Board Chair,” the document continues.
Agostini said she refused to sign both documents since she said she cannot, in fact, verify that McKie is legally allowed to serve.
“This presented several questions to me. Is this normal wording? Why is an extra paragraph needed? Have we ever included wording like this in a Richland Two bond document?” Agostini asked. “We are asking our community for half of a billion dollar bond and we need to include this language?”
McKie owes nearly $52,000 in ethics fines for failing to file various campaign disclosure reports.
She also didn’t file statements of economic interest, or SEI, forms from 2015 to 2018 until December 2018, the S.C. Ethics Commission’s online database states.
McKie did not file the forms until after The Voice sought comment from her about the missing forms. March 31 is the deadline to file SEI forms in a given year, according to the Ethics Commission.
Section 8-13-1110 of state law says no public official “may take the oath of office or enter upon his official responsibilities” unless an SEI form is filed.
McKie has been serving on the board since her re-election in November 2018. She didn’t file her SEI forms until Dec. 4, nearly a month later.
McKie’s apparent ineligibility to serve has prompted several residents to call for her and other non-compliant trustees to step down.
“The proper action is for Ms. McKie and [board trustee Teresa] Holmes to stand up now and step away from the board immediately,” Richland County resident Gus Philpott said at a Richland Two meeting in March. “Ms. McKie is not legally a board member and so cannot be chair of this board.”
In January, when The Voice asked the state ethics and election commission spokespersons which agency is tasked with enforcing the eligibility statute, each agency punted the issue back to the other.
“I would think compliance would be a question for that body [the ethics commission],” Chris Whitmire, spokesman for the S.C. Election Commission, told The Voice in January.
Meghan Walker, the ethics commission’s director, said only the election commission has the power to remove a candidate from the ballot. She said the ethics commission only fines candidates for non-compliance.
“We don’t file an injunction or anything,” Walker said.
Section 8-13-1520 further says violations of the ethics chapter are misdemeanors punishable by up to a year in prison, a $5,000 fine or both, though there’s been no indication that charges will be filed.
RIDGEWAY – Ridgeway will be colorfully yarn-bombed and read for visitors on Saturday, May 4, when the 13th annual Arts on the Ridge festival kicks off with a farmer’s market opening at 9 a.m. and festival activities from 10 a.m. – 3 p.m.
This year’s focus is on Opening Doors to Literary and Artisan Expression featuring 17 published local authors, panel discussions and book giveaways, arts and crafts vendors and unique handcrafted items.
Plein Air painters will be at work along the streets, there will be free musical performances, the Fairfield County Farmers Market will be open from 9 a.m. – 1 p.m. and attendees will be welcomed to visit the town’s new library.
At straight up 10 a.m., the festival organizer, Phyllis Gutierrez, will welcome the crowd and present the Fairfield County Arts Association will present the 2019 Friend of the Arts Award. The remainder of the day will be filled with musical performances, literary discussions, giveaways and drawings.
Stores and restaurants will be open all day with specials for Mother’s Day and other sales.
“The weather is expected to be great and the shopping will be too,” Gutierrez said. “It will be a really fun day for the whole family.”
WINNSBORO – A Ridgeway man has been arrested and charged with assault and battery on Monday, April 29.
Wayne
Robert Wayne, 30, was taken into custody after he reportedly assaulted and held a Ridgeway resident against his will in a residence on Longtown Road. The incident occurred at approximately 1:45 on Monday afternoon.
Fairfield County Sheriff’s Office (FCSO) deputies reported that an assault had occurred and that the victim was being held against his will at this residence while a suspect was armed with a firearm and barricaded inside of the same residence.
Due to the nature of the information received, Sheriff Montgomery said he activated the FCSO Special Response Team in an effort to minimize risks to the victim, suspect, and responding officers while this incident was being resolved.
Officers secured the area to contain any potential threats and to protect other residents in that area. Deputies were then able to secure all persons inside of the residence without any further incident and the victim was provided with medical treatment.
Wayne was transported to the Fairfield County Detention Center.
