By London Ling & Danielle King 
Eye of the Hurricanes Staff 

After a long saga with the investigation of the Jasper County School District, the state has officially taken over.

State Superintendent of Education Ellen Weaver visited Hardeeville Junior and Senior High School on August 25. During the visit she observed classrooms, met with teachers and students, and was interviewed by a student and staff members.  

The Jasper County School District has been flagged for years of fraudulent activity and financial corruption under the leadership of former JCSD Superintendent Dr. Rechel Anderson. For a long period under the administration of Dr. Anderson, there were failures to submit financial audits reports and other mismanagement that the district alleged.  

Weaver sought control as she presented letters which revealed years of financial turmoil in JCSD. As the state took control of the situation, the local JCSD school board was disbanded, and Weaver appointed Dr. Laura Hickson as Interim Superintendent.  

Weaver was appointed as SC’s 19^th State Superintendent of Education on November 9, 2022. She has her bachelor’s degree in political science, and she founded the Palmetto State Institute, which fights for policies that keep the interests of South Carolinians at heart.  

We were able to speak with Weaver about the upcoming plans for the JCSD. Here is what she had to say.  

Q. What is the long-term vision for the school?  

Ellen Weaver: And now that this thing has taken over, we are so excited to be here, partnering with the students and the teachers and the families of Jasper County. And our vision is for every single student in Jasper County to graduate college, career or military ready, so that whatever their pathway to success is, they are fully equipped to reach it. 

Q. How would the transition process work? And what is the expected timeline? 

Ellen Weaver: So actually, state law sets out what the timeline for state support is, and so there will be a minimum of three years of the State Superintendent, which is me and the Department of Education, partnering to help run the district here. And then after there are benchmarks that are set, that are met, there will be a specially appointed board, and that will be a minimum of three years too. So, all in it’s about a six-year process, give or take, a few years based on the criteria that are established and then are met by the local district here. So, the process so far, I think, has been a smooth transition. We have a great new interim superintendent, Dr Laura Hickson, who’s in place, and she is a very experienced educator who has been a superintendent for many years, and I think she’s going to do a great job here in Jasper County. 

Q. What specific improvements or changes do you plan to implement to raise student achievement? 

Ellen Weaver: That’s a great question. So, one of the things that I am most passionate about when it comes to laying a strong foundation for student achievement is early literacy. If we get ahead of reading in those early grades, students will have the tools that they need to be successful throughout their academic career. And so that’s something that we’re working on, not just here in Jasper County, but all across the state of South Carolina. My vision is for every single student in South Carolina to have that foundational skill of literacy. 

Q. How will parents, students and community members be involved in decisions moving forward? 

Ellen Weaver: It’s another great question. Community involvement is absolutely essential for our schools to succeed. Whenever I travel across the state of South Carolina, I love to remind people that these are our schools, which means they are our responsibility. It’s not just the responsibility of the teachers and the students. We need every single one of our parents and our community members engaged as well. And so just today, after I get to visit your awesome school here, we’re going to be doing a community forum with Dr. Hickson and other leaders across Jasper County to do exactly what you’re talking about, which is to listen and to learn from each other, both from the State Department level, here at the local district level, and in the larger community. So, by working together, I am confident that we are going to be able to achieve educational success here in Jasper. 

Q. How do you plan to build trust with the local community after the takeover? 

Ellen Weaver: I think that getting out in the community and talking with people is really what it’s all about. It’s about listening and learning, learning what the community’s dreams and hopes and aspirations for their children are and just as important talking to students like yourself, what are your dreams and aspirations? Because if we understand what your goals are, we’ll be able to put tools in place to help you meet them.