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Tag: William Frick

  • Frick named SC Public Defender of the Year

    MYRTLE BEACH, SC – Sixth Circuit Deputy Public Defender William Frick was named by his peers on Monday as the 2019 South Carolina Public Defender of the Year at the South Carolina Public Defender Association Annual Conference in Myrtle Beach.

    Sixth Circuit Chief Public Defender, Michael Lifsey, right, presents award to Sixth Circuit Deputy Public Defender William Frick, of Winnsboro.

    Frick has served as Deputy Public Defender for the Sixth Circuit since the office was established in 2009.  In that capacity, he has represented criminal defendants in Chester, Lancaster and Fairfield counties, the counties that make up the Sixth Judicial Circuit. 

    “I am so happy for William. This honor is well deserved,” said Michael H. Lifsey, Chief Public Defender for the Sixth Circuit.  “In addition to handling some of the most difficult cases in our office, William has helped manage our office as it has grown from five part time lawyers in early 2009 to a staff of ten full time attorneys plus support staff today,” Lifsey said. “We now have full time staff and offices open in the courthouses of Chester, Lancaster, and Fairfield counties and we fight every day to make sure the constitutional rights of our citizens are protected. We could not do that without William’s leadership.”

    A resident of Winnsboro, Frick is a 1993 graduate of Fairfield Central High School and received his bachelor’s degree and Master of International Business degree from the University of South Carolina.  He is a 2000 graduate of the University of South Carolina School of Law.  Frick and his wife Elena live in Winnsboro with their daughter.  In addition to his duties as a public defender, Frick also serves as the Chairman of the Fairfield County School Board of Trustees.

  • FCSD salary debate grows testy

    WINNSBORO – Once again questions over compensation arose during the Fairfield County School District board meeting.

    And once again, discussions got thorny at times.

    For nearly 40 minutes, board member Annie McDaniel sparred with Superintendent Dr. J.R. Green and board chairman William Frick over district salaries during the July meeting.

    At one point, McDaniel, who is running for the District 41 Representative in the State House, suggested board recordings of prior discussions had been removed from the district’s website.

    “Normally we have a tape that reflects the full conversation,” McDaniel said. “For some reason, I didn’t see that tape on there today.”

    “Are you insinuating I’m part of some conspiracy now, Ms. McDaniel?” Frick replied.

    At issue was a motion approved during the June 5 meeting that directed Green to develop options in which every employee makes at least $20,000 a year.

    As of Sunday, video of the meeting was viewable on the district’s website. And on that video, the motion the board approved instructed Green to present options that result in every employee making $20,000 a year.

    McDaniel pressed Green for other options at the July meeting. She grew frustrated over Green’s and Frick’s responses that Green was carrying out the board’s instructions to the letter of the law.

    McDaniel also said she hoped to vote to increase salaries that night. Board members said Green’s plan was presented for information only, and no votes were taken.

    “The concern was the sensitivity and the compassion for people making $13,000, $14,000 a year,” McDaniel said. “Whether I asked for a horse ride, a donkey or a monkey jumping upside down, for you guys not to take this seriously, I can’t even come up with the word for it.”

    “The board directed me to present an option, so I presented an option,” Green replied. “I told you from my professional expertise the only way I can do it is to increase the hourly rate.”

    Frick agreed.

    “That was the motion. It was voted upon,” Frick said. “I asked Ms. McDaniel to clarify. The motion was to bring back options to make sure no employees make less than $20,000 a year.”

    Green’s proposal increases starting hourly wages from $10.67 to $15.45 for Salary Class 1010 employees, which includes bus monitors, food service/cafeteria operators and safety officers.

    Class 1020 employees, including custodians, wouldn’t receive raises. They earn $11.67 an hour with zero years of experience.

    Green said the disparity is due to days worked. Class 1010 employees work 190 days while Class 1020 employees work 250 days, which is why Class 1010 employees earn less, he said.

    Because of the disparity, Green and other board members instead supported a comprehensive overhaul of the district’s salary schedule.

    “The only way you can ensure that there is no employee in the district that makes less than $20,000 is to increase the hourly rate,” Green said. “It is not feasible to say we’re going to have every employee work 245 or 260 days. The question would be what they would do for the 245 or 260 days.”

    Board members Sylvia Harrison and Henry Miller chimed in, both expressing support for a comprehensive salary overhaul.

    “I want to see Dr. Green bring an option back where everybody is considered to get a raise,” Harrison said. “I do like the fact that the support staff need a bigger raise, but I’d like to see an option for everybody because they all deserve a raise.”

    McDaniel opposed waiting for a comprehensive salary, saying it would be too time-intensive when employees are struggling to make ends meet.

    “Are we going to just leave this tonight, or are we going to wait two years down the road after we get a salary study, which is a waste of money?” she said. “We’re talking about people making $13,000, $14,000 a year. That is awful.”

  • Board votes 2-1 for minimum salaries

    WINNSBORO – It’s rare when a major school budget measure passes by a 2-1 vote, but that’s exactly what happened at a recent board meeting.

    On June 5, the Fairfield County Board of Trustees voted 2-1 on a motion directing Superintendent Dr. J.R. Green to develop options in which no district employee makes less than $20,000 per year.

    Trustees Annie McDaniel and Paula Hartman voted for the motion that McDaniel introduced. Board Chairman William Frick voted against, and the remaining trustees abstained.

    Trustee Carl Jackson said the vote happened so quickly, he didn’t realized what had happened until it was too late.

    Jackson said he wasn’t opposed to McDaniel’s motion, but also expressed concern about micromanaging the superintendent.

    “I’m a little disillusioned here. We as a board can say to the superintendent what we want him to do with that salary range,” Jackson said. “I don’t have a problem with that. Let him bring what he’s going to bring and we’ll deal with it. Let the superintendent do his job.”

    Following the vote and further discussion, the board also adopted third and final reading of the 2018-2019 budget by a 6-1 vote, with Hartman opposing.

    Included in the $41.27 million budget are step increases and a 2 percent, across the board salary bump for all employees.

    At second reading, board members also voted to increase the annual band supplement by $10,000, as well as $1,500 increases for the boys’ and girls’ basketball coaches. Those supplements remained in the final version.

    The band stipend will be disbursed among all individuals who work in the band program, Green said.

    There is no tax increase in the budget, with millage remaining constant at 203.1 mills.

    Green, though, hinted that a millage increase might be required if the board enacted a measure to increase every employees’ salaries to at least $20,000.

    “I will bring back what you want me to bring back, even if it means a millage increase,” he said.

    The salary debate was a continuation of a heated discussion that first arose during the May board meeting.

    McDaniel, who is running for the House District 41 seat, pressed fellow school board members for details concerning unclassified worker salaries.

    Specifically, she wanted to know what an annual salary would be for various hourly employees, cafeteria workers in particular.

    Green said it was too difficult to provide an exact number, saying it depends on how many hours worked. McDaniel kept pressing.

    “I’m not understanding why it’s heartburn to have the conversation,” McDaniel said.

    Kevin Robinson, the district’s finance director, said school cafeteria worker salaries and can’t be easily annualized because they work varying numbers of hours.

    “Food service workers do not all work the same number of hours per day because it’s based on that school,” Robinson said. “All of the annual salaries are going to be different for the food service workers based on the fact they do work a different number of hours.”

    Green added some cafeteria workers work during the summer while others don’t.

    “There’s a variation there as well,” he said.

    As was the case at second reading, frustration eventually entered into the budget discussions.

    “You can’t pick one salary and say that’s not a fair salary,” Frick said. “That’s the issue I had last time. I’m seeing you trying to make a point.”

    “We need to look at this and if this is what we want it to be,” McDaniel snapped back. “Come on, $13,000 to $14,000 a year? That is not a livable salary.”

    Hartman, who supported McDaniel in voting against the budget at second reading, voiced some of the same concerns.

    “The richer get richer and the poorer gets poorer,” she said.

    $5.4 million deficit expected

    In related budget matters, the board also approved a tax anticipation note (TAN) not to exceed $5.4 million.

    A TAN is a short-term loan to help the district cover temporary budget shortfalls until sufficient tax revenues become available in January 2019.

    According to board documents, a shortfall is expected to begin on or about Sept. 22 and continue through late January 2019. The total projected shortfall amount is $5,346,850.

    The loan’s interest rate was not stated.

    Board Chairman William Frick, a longtime critic of the board’s habit of issuing millions of dollars of TANS each year, voiced frustration over needing to vote for the note.

    “Is there going to be a year where I’m not going to have to vote on one of these things?” Frick asked. “I understand the reasoning behind this, but I would like to see a day when I don’t have to vote on this.”

    The board signed a $5 million TAN in 2017, district documents state.

    Tax bills are due Jan. 15, 2019, which is when the district anticipates receiving the needed tax revenues sufficient to cover expenses.

    Related: School budget talks heat up,

  • School budget talks heat up

    WINNSBORO – An apparently routine budget vote turned into a heated debate about how to address salaries in the Fairfield County School District.

    During discussion of the proposed $41.3 million budget, trustee Annie McDaniel said she wanted a deeper discussion about increasing salaries for support staff, some of whom she said make less than $20,000 a year.

    That led to confusion, followed by frustration, over determining exactly what the scope of that discussion should entail.

    Superintendent Dr. J.R. Green said his long-term goal is to assemble a comprehensive salary review for all employees.

    Green said he wants to present something sometime next year, but estimated the plan would potentially cost several million dollars.

    “Obviously I would love to see us make an adjustment to our salary schedule that positively impacts all of our employees,” Green said. “I would love to see teachers make more, I would love to see custodial staff make more, clerical staff and bus drivers.”

    McDaniel didn’t discount that, but also said support staff deserves particular attention.

    “I thought we were just going to talk about it and give you the opportunity to review it,” McDaniel said, responding to Green.

    Board chairman William Frick said he was having difficulty discerning exactly what salary information McDaniel was seeking.

    “I just want to be clear about what we want to do,” Frick said. “We say we want to have a meeting about salaries. What do we want to look at? I don’t know what you’re asking.”

    “Because you’re trying to make it complicated,” McDaniel replied.

    “No. Ms. McDaniel. I’ve been on this board for five years, and every time someone gives you information, you tell them that’s not what you wanted,” Frick fired back. “So I want to make sure we’ve got the information that you want.”

    “No, no you need to take that back,” McDaniel answered. “Since you’ve been on this board, you have not been giving us information.

    “I don’t understand why we make a federal issue out of just looking at information, which may not warrant any recommendation for an increase,” McDaniel continued.

    In the end, the board voted 5-2 to approve second reading of the budget.

    As it stands, the proposed budget does not include a tax increase.

    Included in the budget are step increases and a 2 percent, across the board salary increase for all employees. It also includes funding for additional school resource officers.

    The proposed budget also increases the annual band stipend by $10,000. It also includes $1,500 stipend increases for boys’ and girls’ basketball coaches.

    Lastly, estimated health insurance costs dropped $13,000.

    Third and final reading is expected during the June board meeting. McDaniel also insisted that a deeper discussion of support staff salaries be added to the agenda.

  • FCSD Board moves parent conferences

    WINNSBORO – Fairfield County school board members will take a second look at the 2018-2019 academic calendar next month, with changes in parent conference days potentially impacting how next year’s calendar unfolds.

    For the 2017-2018 school year, the school district decided to schedule spring parent conferences on Thursday instead of Friday, prompting questions from some board members.

    “This week we’re out on Thursday [for conferences], but come back on Friday. Next year we are doing the same thing,” said board we are doing the same thing,” said board member Henry Miller. “Why did we do that rather than do [conferences] on a Friday?”

    “We felt if we put it in the middle of the week, we’d have better participation,” answered Dr. Claudia Avery, the district’s deputy superintendent of academics. “It wouldn’t conflict with school performances or anything of that nature.”

    Superintendent Dr. J.R. Green concurred.

    “When you plan parent conferences on a Friday afternoon, many parents are busy planning their weekends,” Green said. “Many teachers are not excited about staying until 7 p.m. for parent conferences.”

    Thursday was the first time conferences were scheduled in the middle of the week.

    Board chairman William Frick said the board could use feedback from schools to determine whether to keep or abandon holding conferences on a Thursday.

    “At least that way we’ll have more information to go on,” Frick said. “Surely Dr. Avery can tell us if there was a better participation rate this go-around than in the past. We don’t have that information to make that decision right now.”

    Green cautioned about making too many changes to the calendar, noting it was developed with significant community input.

    “There are lots of people who feel this is preferable. Sometimes we tend to forget that,” he said.

    Board members approved first reading of the calendar by unanimous vote. Second reading will take place in May.

    As it stands, the proposed calendar includes three makeup days for inclement weather in 2017-2018. Makeup days have been scheduled for Nov. 19, Feb. 18 and May 27.

    Other calendar dates of note include:

    • First day for teachers: Aug. 13.
    • First day for students: Aug. 20.
    • Christmas break: Dec. 21 to Jan. 4.
    • Fall break: Nov. 19-23.
    • Spring break: April 15-19.
    • Last day for students: June 7.
    • Graduation: June 8.

    State assessment dates have not yet been released.

  • Did FCHS ‘fire drill’ force walkout?

    FCHS students exit the school during the 17-minute ‘fire drill’ that coincided with the 17-minute national student walkouts last week. | wistv.com

    WINNSBORO – Students in schools around the country, including those at Fairfield Central High School, walked out of classes at 10 a.m. on Wednesday, Mar. 14 and remained outside for 17 minutes in remembrance of the 17 people recently killed at a school in Florida.

    But some parents of Fairfield High School students took to Facebook claiming that the FCHS walkout was not the choice of all students and that the timing of a fire drill was contrived by the school administration to force all students to participate.

    “Will the Fairfield County School Board please explain why [some] students were forced to participate in the school walkout disguised as a fire drill?” one parent wrote on School Board Chairman William Frick’s Facebook page.

    “I am working to find out how this occurred,” Frick posted. “As I understand it, this was not originally intended to endorse any particular view. Unfortunately, as it transpired, it did just that. While I certainly support an individual’s right to express their political opinion, a certain political view should not be endorsed by our school as a whole. I have expressed my personal displeasure with this situation today.”

    When asked for a comment, FCHS principal Tracie Swilley e-mailed the following statement to The Voice: “In an attempt to prevent a potential confrontation with students who wished to express their acknowledgement for the lives lost during the Florida tragedy, we decided to conduct our monthly fire drill.  While out during the drill some students elected to discuss their concerns relating to school safety.  There was no mention of politics or gun control but an opportunity for students to understand how to appropriately express their voice.  Some students remained outside for several minutes after the drill, while others returned immediately.”

    As parents continued to comment, one post stated: “We should not lend any validity to this thinly veiled attempt to cover this up as something that it’s not.”

    By one parent’s account, some students did not want to participate, so at exactly 10 a.m., the students were alerted that a fire drill was taking place and all marched outside, ostensibly for the fire drill, and stayed outside as TV cameras from WIS-TV and WLTX-TV rolled. Then, after 17 minutes, the students returned to their classrooms.

    While school officials claimed that what was perceived as a walkout was actually a fire drill, some parents who posted on Facebook and called The Voice questioned the fire drill’s timing, that it coincided to the minute with the national walking out and, in effect, forced students to participate.

    “I think that’s probably what happened,” Frick said. “By doing a contemporaneous fire drill, it ended up being an actual walkout,” he said.

    Frick told The Voice that he did not know who called the television stations to be at the school at the time of the fire drill.

    “That was an issue I raised because I saw it was on WLTX & WIS. It was my concern,” Frick said.

    “It was perceived as a political event. It’s a touchy issue and I don’t like it for the school to appear to take a side,” Frick said. “I want to be sure we have an open dialogue and that people know what’s going on…I understand the parents’ concerns. There was an implication that we need to take some corrective action and whatever we need to do we’re going to do.”