Dear Editor,
I know personally the power of education to open doors that might otherwise be closed. Just as I have been able to stand proud on the education that I received in South Carolina, I want all of our children to be prepared for the opportinities our State and Nation have to offer. I am committed to ensuring that every child who graduates from high school in South Carolina is prepared for work or college and citizenship.
I pledge to you that as your next Superintendent of Education, I will fight to:
1. Bring Accountability to Every Classroom: Our schools should be accountable to students and the Department of Education should be accountable to taxpayers. I will fight to ensure that we focus on preparing every child for the future in an efficient and effective way. We must change the way we measure success in education away from meeting standards set by the federal government to whether or not we meet the standards of our students. Our focus should be on advancing children as they master content.
2. Individualize Education: When we give parents a choice in where and how their children are educated, we give kids a chance for a bright future. I support advancing educational freedom through school choice. Parents must be empowered to make effective educational decisions for their children, whether it be traditional, private, charter, magnet, Montessori, single-gender, homeschool, virtual, apprenticeship programs, or one of the many other options we must be willing to consider. Our children’s futures are too important to take any reasonable options off the table.
3. Protect Powers Enumerated to South Carolina and Eliminate Federal Overreach in Education: Education is an issue best addressed by the states, but particularly by parents, teachers, and local school districts. I will fight to eliminate the federal government’s meddling in education in the Palmetto State.
4. Attract the Best Teachers for our Students: We must actively recruit top talent from across the globe and top graduates from colleges and universities to come to South Carolina. Teaching in the Palmetto State must be seen as a noble profession that warrants top talent by re-examining how we evaluate, pay, and retain teachers. Options such as performance bonus pay, geographical relocation bonuses, and high-need subject area bonuses must be considered.
5. Improve Opportunity and Community Involvement: We need to hold our schools and educators accountable for the outcomes they produce. Still there are challenges that some of our schools face that they will not be able to solve on their own. We need to reinvigorate community involvement in our schools not through State mandates but through local efforts. With a greater quality of education comes a greater opportunity for success. I will fight hard so that every student and parent will be confident that the zip code they are educated in does not predict their ability to succeed.
–Meka Childs
GOP Candidate, S.C. Superintendent of Education
SIC SEZ
Meka, This is excellent information. Thank you for passing it along – and thanks for sending FITS your biographical information, too. I know this website hasn’t been especially engaged in this race – and was actually somewhat critical of you earlier in the campaign – but it’s becoming clearer to me that you are head and shoulders above the other candidates. Look forward to learning more about your candidacy and doing anything I can to help in the weeks ahead …
41 comments
“I support school choice.”
Instant game-changer from “clowns” and “jokers” to “head and shoulders above the other candidates.” At least, if you don’t actually give a shit about fixing public education.
I see very little more than what many others talk about.
Competition is the only thing that will change the game Smirks.
If Walmart was the only place you could buy TV’s, rest assured they’d jack the price up knowing that.
If public schools don’t have to compete for tax dollars, then there is no incentive for the to perform.
*them
Maybe you’re on to something there. If I follow your logic, the main thing needed to improve the dismal performance of the Columbia Police Dept. is to create a private police force. If the CPD is then forced “to compete for tax dollars,” they will have “an incentive to perform.”
HAH. Given how little is actually spent on CPD compared to other agencies, the fact that they get done what they do is nothing short of miraculous. Media loves to bash CPD simply because they are highly visible and because there will be no political backlash. Try that with some of the agencies the media…. ignores.
The thing so many people forget is that you have to be willing to pay for what you demand. Want a BMW? You can’t buy a brand-new M6 for the price of a used Yugo no matter HOW much you whine to the dealer. Same goes for quality of service. Oh, and businesses can cease unprofitable operations, unlike government.
Same goes for public versus private education. Private schools (and yes, I attended some) have the ability to dump troubled or otherwise undesirable students back into the public system (who cannot refuse them). Look at the percentage of disabled/ disturbed/ troubled/ low-income students in Heathwood Hall versus a public school… and look at the difference in legal restrictions placed on each.
Hey, let’s carry this one further…. I want to go to college out of state. With the logic behind the private school voucher program, shouldn’t I get a voucher for my out-of-state university because the in-state taxpayer-supported university wasn’t “good enough” for me?
Read The Probability Broach, by L.Neil Smith (The entire graphic novel is online or can be purchased in Kindle form). It not only can be done that way, but, he argues, there doesn’t need to be a public police force at all and no taxes are spent. But it takes arming even the cowards, and that would never be allowed by the Brie and Croissant crowd which rules this state. Nevertheless, “…an armed society is a polite society.”
Don’t think I see her mention selling Dope to fund Schools….or maybe I missed that…
Problem w/ democrats. You are BRAIN Dead…you are flat-footed, punch-drunk and ignorant…
It’s why you will support failure, then defend it…and say stupid-A$$ things (see above.)
Dope is for elected Republican Conservative’s. Everyone knows that.
So you are for vouchers and against “Common Core.” Don’t we already have Sheri Few on the ballot?
Yes, but nearly every candidate is against Common Core (other than Molly Spearman), and have talked about some form of vouchers/tax incentives. The difference is that Meka is actually qualified to lead the Department of Education and capable of representing South Carolina on education matters…Sheri Few most definitely is not.
You’ve wandered off the Democrat plantation by promoting choice in school selection. Please report for re-education.
I am become Berg, destroyer of boards.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xdgJRTBmdMc
Child’s stance is exactly like Sheri Few’s except Few has been in the feild , doing the heavy lifting….. Why did FITS unmercifially savage Few?
FITS @$$-kissing makes me highly suspect….and is not likely an endorsement Childs should want…if she is a fit candidate.
Why did FITS unmercifially savage Few?
Because she’s nuts?
No offense.
Yet you aborted you first born as a sacrifice to Nancy Pelosi…your goddess…
Forgive me…but for any Paul-ite to call Few nuts…is full of S#!t….she actually understands who the enemy is…
“Yet you aborted you first born as a sacrifice to Nancy Pelosi…your goddess…”
How does aborting your “first born” work??
I said ‘would-be’…you F*#king Dumb@$$, non-comprehending Liberal…
D*#n the liberals have F*#ked up our schools, and produced some Dumb-F*#ks like this…learn to READ!!!!!!
Great job, journalist!!
That BTW was a copy and paste…really funny how that works…you lyin’ ass hypocrite. LMAO!
Gotta vote for black Republican and Gary Burgess won’t do. If it won’t drive the racists out of the GOP at least it will drive the cockroachs in to the dark crevices.
Meka Childs is head and shoulders above all the other superintendent candidates. She knows from her 1st hand experience what is and is not achievable—–and is clearly focused on those issues, in my opinion.
Meka is a “Mini-Mick,” and he’s been a disaster as state superintendent. Totally un-engaged. And she’s totally un-engaging. Plus, she’s clearly throwing bait on the water for some Howie money.
“Just as I have been able to stand proud on the education that I received in South Carolina, I want all of our children to be prepared for the opportinities our State and Nation have to offer.”
Show us some ‘tinities!!!!!
Of course, you’re speaking of the exclusive art house,Tinties Naturena, in Johannesurg, S.A.
Of course, you’re speaking of the exclusive art house,Tinties Naturena, in Johannesburg, S.A.
You give TBG waaaaaay too much credit.
Y’all have TBG wearing out GTS [GOOGLE That Shit], today!!
But, sadly, no. Nothing highbrow about TBG’s comment. Just a riff on the old reliable “Show us some titties”….
….
mmmmm…..titties…..
…..
*refocuses*
…
….
Just amazed that someone running for Sec. of Education doesn’t adequately spellcheck/proofread. There were some comma errors also.
http://www.findallwords.com/wordfinder_index_en.php?ucontain=tinities&utitle=Words%20containing%20tinities
Huh? fits is supporting an establishment hack who is barely wet behind the ears, who lies about having kids (she has NO kids!), who has never home schooled, who has never proven any thing that she talks about and whose ONLY agenda is to terminate the office of superintendent because that’s what Nikki Haley wants. the Republican party wants to get rid of the office entirely and put education in the hands of the GOVERNOR, and no, not for an appointment either. Meka Childs, whose real name is Bertha Bosket (no lie), has taken a 25K a YEAR raise at tax payers expense for years! Why would we support this?? Meka’s husband is a hard core democrat who is a reservist, they haven’t been married long and Meka goes around crying about how she is making all these military wife sacrifices… What a lie! Is there anyone running for this office who hasn’t been on the government teat?? http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xvXXqdf1KMc
“Meka, This is excellent information. . . . . . . . .I know this website hasn’t been especially engaged in this race . . . .”
Meka. This is excellent information . . . . . I know this website has been especially engaged on race. See my recent article about “Mayorhood” where I talked about black men and their white girlfriends.
Biographical link does not indicate whether she prefers white men. Fits, you need to investigate.
JEEZ, BT!
FITS IS A MARRIED MAN!!!!
*TBG can handle the investigation.
I’m aware of Will’s respect for the institution of marriage. He is writing a book on the subject.
I’m aware of Will’s respect for the institution of marriage. He is writing a book on the subject.
Oh No.
You di-unt!
Now Sic wants to fuck the black chick. Sick.
Education is a tender subject only because almost nobody knows what to do about it. When you have a problem that is unfixable, it is a dead-on sign that the system needs to be junked. Public education can only work when the teachers know their subject and can teach it. You cannot have one without the other. You can teach a child whose parents a negligent. You can teach a child who has had no previous referential learning. But a teacher can be a genius and not be able to teach or be a great performer but not know his subject. Until we begin hiring teachers and professors with EXPERIENCE in their subjects, and the ability to do improv, we are just blowing smoke up our own butts. I am not kidding. Think about your best teacher.
If she is elected, will she be called Superintendent-Hood on this site??
Spearman or Prosperity?
Pick one because they don’t go together!
“Republican” Superintendent of Education candidate Molly
Spearman is running in the wrong Primary.
Do you know her Democratic
history?
The only reason she is running in the Republican Primary
instead of the Democratic Party is because she has a better chance of winning
as a Republican in this Republican controlled state. All constitutional offices
and six of the seven congressional seats are held by Republicans.
Here are some examples of her Democratic credentials
-She has a long history of supporting Democratic candidates
2014- Superintendent
of Education Candidate Rep. Mike Anthony
Spearman got Anthony to drop out
of the race to prevent a Democratic Primary, therefore encouraging Democrats to
vote for her in the Republican Primary. She will also use the political machine
of the SC Association of School Administrators to help her campaign in addition
to the administrators she represents in each and every community in the state.
http://www.thestate.com/2014/03/05/3307045/election-2014.html
Spearman donated to these
Democratic candidates
2013-Superintendent of Education
Candidate Rep. Mike Anthony-$200 when he was the only announced candidate facing Republican
incumbent at the time Dr. Mick Zais
2012- Sen Nikki Setzler $100
2012-
Rep. Gilda Cobb- Hunter $100
2010-
Superintendent of Education Candidate Frank Holleman III $750
2010- Gubernatorial
Candidate Jim Rex $500
2010- Gubernatorial
Candidate Vincent Sheheen $750
2010-
Rep. Mia Butler $100
2008- Rep. Gilda Cobb-Hunter $500
2004- Superintendent of Education
& US Senate Inez candidate Inez Tenenbaum
$1000
http://apps.sc.gov/PublicReporting/Contributions/ContributorResults.aspx
She did wise up politically and
make a donation to Governor Haley of $200 in March of this year when she
decided to run and realized her democratic contributions would be scrutinized.
Spearman who worked for Democratic Superintendent of
Education Inez Tenenbaum after donating to her campaign saw her salary increase
22% in 2003 and it ended up being $98,699 as the agencies top lobbyist, so much
for keeping more money in the classroom.
Spearman was also anti- Jim DeMint when Tenenbaum ran against DeMint for
the US Senate saying “The target her opponent used was that South Carolina was
last in education in the country and didn’t say anything positive, which harmed
the image of the state. I’m sure it was
on the minds of a lot of people. It
wasn’t Inez’s fault- that’s just politics.
They didn’t have much to get her on, so they used the state’s SAT
status.”
Spearman is for
Taxing SC “Heavily”
When Spearman was a SC State Representative she said “I
don’t have any problem with it (Video Poker) as long as we tax it heavily.”
When Governor Mark Sanford refused to accept federal
stimulus money in 2009, Spearman, as the Executive Director of the South
Carolina Association of School Administrators filed a lawsuit against the
Governor.
Spearman is against
School Choice
In an Op-Ed by Adam
Schaeffer, a policy analyst with the
Cato Institute, said Spearman had either “a complete disregard for the basic
fact and research findings”, of a school choice tax credit bill he testified
before the South Carolina Legislature “or an ignorance of those facts,
resulting in errors big and small” He says her research appears to have
consisted of calling someone in the Florida Department of Education to ask them
why they thought academic achievement in Florida has increased.” Spearman apparently missed the official
government study, conducted by academic researcher David Figlio at Northwestern
University, which found the tax credit school choice program significantly
improved academic achievement of PUBLIC schools. This study is consistent with 17 other
studies that find private school choice programs improve public school performance.
When the School Choice bill for special needs children
passed the SC House for the first time in 2012, Spearman, while serving as the
Director of the SC Association of School Administrators, said “This isn’t going
to do anything to improve our education in this state. At a time when we can’t fulfil
our state requirement for public schools, we’re diverting resources to places
where there is no accountability, where we aren’t sure the type of education
students will receive.” This is another
example of a lobbyist and former government bureaucrat thinking they know what
is best for a student more so than the parent.
In 2011, Spearman wrote an editorial in The State newspaper
titled “SC can’t afford fool’s gold of private school subsidies.” In this
editorial, she argued that private schools wouldn’t accept students that the
credits would help.” Several schools in the state are accepting special needs
students now after the bill passed last year.
In an AP article on June 27, 2011 entitled “SC School
leaders want to seek federal money”, Spearman said “There are things you say in
a campaign, but the picture opens up when you get in office. You have to leave the campaign behind.” She
is admitting you say one thing in a campaign and you do things differently when
you are get into office.
Molly Spearman is a pro-stimulus “educrat” who supports
increased spending in South Carolina
Fact: Spearman and the SC Association of School
Administrators sued the State of South Carolina and Governor Mark Sanford to
accept the $700 million in federal stimulus
Fact: Spearman applauded the judge’s ruling the South
Carolina must accept the stimulus money.
“Thank goodness for the people of South Carolina. He’s (Sanford) realizing that he’s going to
lose and there’s no reason to try and delay this any longer.”
Fact: Spearman has attacked Superintendent of Education Mick
Zais for not accepting federal education money.
“We really feel that some very bad decisions are being made without the
input of people who are on the ground in the districts.”
Fact: Under Spearman’s leadership, SCASA received $29,070 in
taxpayers’ dollars in one month for consulting services from Superintendent Jim
Rex’s Department of Education.
Molly Spearman’s timeline
Democrat SC State Representative 1993-1995
1995 Switched from Democratic Party to the Republican Party
(To make sure she got re-elected)
“Republican” SC State
Representative 1995-1999
Lobbyist for the South Carolina Department of Education
1999-2004
2005-Present- Executive Director of the South Carolina
Association of School Administrators
When South Carolina Radio host Rocky “Rocky D” Disabato sued
the SC Association of School Administrators for not turning over documents
after submitting a FOIA, Spearman said “We feel strongly that our First
Amendment rights as an association is to join together and be heard freely
without harassment of FOIA is our protection.”
Rocky D requested the documents because the SCASA receives taxpayer
money through membership and professional development training with the school
districts. Attorney General Alan Wilson submitted a brief supporting Rocky D’s
case. The case was named the case of the
month in October 2012 by the South Carolina Supreme Court. Mrs Spearman does not believe in transparency
as she will not honor FOIA requests. The case is still in the courts.
Fairfield County GOP Superintendent of Education Candidate
forum YouTube link https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RU3JL07c8Ig&list=UU0yEuhuOMRlP6KkPfKCOpDw
Question – Common Core is an attempt by D.C. special
interest groups and the federal government to herd children into
one-size-fits-all national standards. States were coerced by the federal
government into adopting the Standards resulting in an illegal federal takeover
of education. The Common Core Standards have never been field-tested; were
approved without a cost analysis; remove parental and local control; contain
academically inferior content; include massive unfunded mandates and will lead
to significant threats to student and family privacy. More than twenty states
have legislation pending to repeal Common Core. This is the definition of
Common Core from South Carolina Parents Involved in Education. What is your
position on Common Core? Are you for or
against it?
At the 22:35 mark on the YouTube video.
Spearman’s answer- “I’m supporting Sen. Mike Fair’s
compromise bill S300, I know some folks believe Common Core should be replace
immediately. The fact is you have to govern and we have many school districts,
my own school district has already implemented common core and in order to keep
learning going on in the classroom, I think Sen. Fair has come up with a good
solution. His amendment would, does say that no data would be sent back to
Washington, that should not be sent. It
calls for the test to be changed and that decision to be opened up. I support that and the decision to use ACD
and it gives better education and it also calls for a review for the standards
every 5 years, it currently being 10. I
believe that SC teachers should review the standards and we could go from there
with those.
Question- Mrs Spearman- You served as a Democrat in the
state house before you switched to the Republican Party and then served in the
SC Dept. of Education under Democrat Superintendent of Education Inez
Tennenbaum. You now serve as the
Director of the SC Association of School Administrators, which some would argue
is in affect a teachers union. With that
background how do you expect to convince Republicans and especially
conservatives to vote for you in the Republican Primary in June?
At the 30:37 mark on the YouTube video.
Spearman’s answer- “Well I grew up in Saluda County and I
don’t know about you folks in the audience, back then, if you lived in South
Carolina back them, Governor Edwards was our first Republican Governor, followed
by Carol Campbell and even Strom Thurmond was a Democrat. That was what
happened in my family, we were democrats.
I was elected, went to the statehouse and I saw that as things worked
out, I aligned more closely with the Republican Party and I was very welcomed
and encouraged to switch and I did that. Speaker David Wilkens, Lt. Gov Bob
Peeler and a number of great republicans were there to welcome me into the
party that day and many others have switched since then and I am more aligned
with them. In ’98 I rode the bus with
Gov. David Beasley all across the state introducing candidates and I introduced
David Eckstrom who was a Republican candidate for Superintendent of Education
at the time, he did not win. I got a
phone call from Inez Tennebaum who did win.
She was a Democrat, she said I want you to come work for me, I said Inez
I didn’t even vote for you, I don’t know you. But she asked me to come and work for her,
just like of the President of the United States I think invites someone to work
on their staff, it’s our call to duty, so I did.”
When legislation was proposed to limit severance packages
for district superintendents of education to one year she objected. Here is the story http://earlcapps.blogspot.com/2011/02/reining-in-school-superintendent.html
Please forward this out to every Republican voter you know.
If Molly Spearman wins the Republican primary we will have a liberal Democrat
running the SC Department of Education.
Here are the links with the google docs to back up these
claims
https://drive.google.com/file/d/0Bz_wzuVtPYRpWmRXZE9kQW00cGM/edit?usp=sharing
https://drive.google.com/file/d/0Bz_wzuVtPYRpSXlJeVZzbUpFb2c/edit?usp=sharing
I am not endorsing anyone in this race, but I cannot stand
by and let the democratic practices and history of a phony Republican go
unnoticed by the Republican voters.
Kevin S Thomas
Chairman
Fairfield County Republican Party
fairfieldcountygop@gmail.com
Thank You Kevin. When I first heard her speak, my first reaction was,: she is part of the problem not part of the solution.
“2. Individualize Education: When we give parents a choice in where and how their children are educated, we give kids a chance for a bright future. I support advancing educational freedom through school choice. Parents must be empowered to make effective educational decisions for their children, whether it be traditional, private, charter, magnet, Montessori, single-gender, homeschool, virtual, apprenticeship programs, or one of the many other options we must be willing to consider. Our children’s futures are too important to take any reasonable options off the table.”
Candidate Bosket,
The most important factor in school choice is transportation to the school of choice. So, what is your school choice plan for bus riders?
School choice works great for home schooled children, and car riders who are driven to school by parents or others. For the almost half of SC Public school children who ride the bus, choice is moot point if there is only one bus route from the child’s home to school.
Just out of curiosity, I inquired of the SCDE about how many students ride the bus. Below is their response and my two follow up questions.
“In school year 2011, the fleet of 5630 buses traveled nearly 81 million miles using over 12 million gallons of diesel fuel to transport over 647,000 students daily.”
Follow up questions:
Q: Does “students daily” mean two trips per day for each student, to and from school?
A: Yes, 343,000 is the number.
Q: What is the approximate percentage of students who ride the bus?
A; With 706,000 students, the approximate percentage of students who ride the bus is 48.5 percent.
So, Candidate Bosket, are you willing to spend the additional $millions to double the public school transportation system by purchasing an additional 5,000 buses to drive an additional 50 million miles, hire an additional 5,000 bus drivers and other support staff, and burn an additional 10 million gallons of bus fuel so that 100,000 students or more can be transported to their school of choice?
If not, then who does “choice” really benefit?
So, overall, how does everybody think integration has out worked for the last fifty years? I mean, is anybody measurable better off………..? Except politically, of course.
Meka is far and away the best candidate for this office. Knowledge, experience and most of all a conservative attitude. Just what SC needs for Superintendent of Ed.