kitchen countertopsIn North Charleston, SC

CHARLESTON, SC (WCIV) — A bill filed on Feb. 23 by state Rep. Marvin Pendarvis would allow North Charleston to leave the Charleston County School District (CCSD) and establish a separate one.

The CCSD responded the same day. Superintendent Don Kennedy, surrounded by North Charleston school principals, talked about the bill filed and another bill that would consolidate the Tri-County school districts. He stated he has no expectations for what will happen, but deliberation is needed.

Read more: Bill filed Thursday would allow North Charleston schools to establish their own district

"I'm not here to refute everything that the mayor in North Charleston (Keith Summey) said," Kennedy said. "My approach is to collaborate."

Kennedy stated the financial resources the district allocates to North Charleston schools are equitable, with $622 million allocated to all schools in the district and a little more than a third / $222 million went directly to North Charleston schools.

"I too notice that there are some disparities," the superintendent said. "I don't know why those disparities, how they got created, but I do know that they do exist. And I know my staff is now working to try and figure out how to resolve those."

Superintendent Don Kennedy responded to North Charleston's proposal to leave the Charleston County School District. (WCIV)

Pendarvis said separation would be a good thing. However, Kennedy stated about 30% of the district's students are in North Charleston schools and believes splitting the district apart will cause North Charleston students to suffer.

Kennedy says his intent is to collaborate with Summey.

“We will get together and figure out how we can collaborate and make sure that we do process the best way that we can in terms of support for kids," Kennedy said. "And so in, in fashioning a bill and moving forward. Perhaps there's a feasibility study that needs to be done to figure out exactly how to, to make any kind of move without negatively impacting our schools."

Read more: City officials exploring possible removal of North Charleston from CCSD

The South Department of Education did not immediately respond to a request on what would happen if North Charleston's approval goes through.

Several dozen acres north of Riverfront Park on the grounds of the old Navy base in North Charleston are being looked at to be redeveloped for mixed-use.

NORTH CHARLESTON, S.C. (WCSC) - Several dozen acres north of Riverfront Park on the grounds of the old Navy base in North Charleston are being looked at to be redeveloped for mixed-use.

The city of North Charleston said 70 acres of land could soon be the site of a high-density development that would connect to the park.

“I’m looking as though you have a master developer who will take on quite a bit of this project, sure we’ll be looking at how some of the small businesses can possibly participate in it also,” Councilmember Michael Brown said. “That would be some of the thoughts I would be thinking of myself, and that hasn’t been something that has been discussed at all.”

The proposed development area runs from the Noisette Boulevard entrance off Virginia Avenue down to the end of the pedestrian bridge to the south, off Second Street North.

The city owns most of the properties in the area, but they are looking for a developer to help acquire some federal land that remains, which is used for storage and upkeep of military vehicles.

Leaders envision these 70 acres would be a walkable, mixed-use area filled with commercial business, apartments and more amenities.

“How do you put together not only business; you’re looking at putting in housing; you’re looking at putting in commercial property, all of those within that area,” Brown said. “That’s going to be part of the plans itself.”

Coast Brewing Company owner Jaime Tenny said she welcomes the idea and hopes the emphasis is put more on pedestrians than vehicles.

“To have something develop around you, that doesn’t happen often, so that’s a pretty unique spot to be in and to be here so long and to see it kind of evolve,” Tenny said.

The brewery and Water Mission are the two businesses that currently operate out of the project site.

“You didn’t come here unless there was a reason, either coming to us or going to do your recycling or something like that, but you didn’t have pedestrians jogging by to the new bridge,” Tenny said.

The city is looking to create a committee to help evaluate and choose a potential developer for the site.

Brown said there is no announced costs as of yet for the project, but there are some areas he will be looking at as part of the committee…

“I think one part we need to look at more is what is the economic impact and could some of not only the local people can be part of this development also and profit from itself,” Brown said.

Developers have until March 17 to submit their bids for the site, but construction is still at least a few years away.

Copyright 2023 WCSC. All rights reserved.

A day after North Charleston leaders expressed a desire to start their own district, the Charleston County School District superintendent is addressing it.

CHARLESTON COUNTY, S.C. (WCSC) - A day after North Charleston leaders expressed a desire to start their own district, the Charleston County School District superintendent is addressing the situation.

North Charleston Mayor Keith Summey and others discussed on Wednesday the possibility of removing North Charleston schools from the Charleston County School District.

Superintendent Don Kennedy, surrounded by North Charleston principals on Thursday, began saying he hopes to collaborate for the benefit of the students.

“I’m not here to refute everything that the Mayor and North Charleston said; again, my approach is to collaborate,” Superintendent Don Kennedy said.

District 113 Rep. Marvin Pendarvis drafted and submitted a bill at the state house that would create a North Charleston School District.

The bill says election of board members would be in the general election in 2024, and the assets would transfer on July 1, 2024. North Charleston officials also announced efforts to research what it would take legally to remove schools within the city from the Charleston County School District.

READ MORE: SC lawmaker files bill to establish North Charleston School District

North Charleston officials say concerns that students are not getting their educational needs met prompted the announcement. The Charleston County School District is pushing back against some of the city’s claims.

In a statement Wednesday, the district provided statistics about the student population and per-pupil funding. To read the entire statement, click here.

Kennedy called the distribution of financial resources equitable but acknowledged some of the city’s concerns.

“I too notice that there are some disparities, and I don’t know how they got created, but I do know that they do exist, and I know that my staff and I are working to resolve those,” Kennedy says.

Kennedy went on to explain how if the North Charleston schools were to leave, funding would change. Across the state, sales tax revenue goes to the state and is given back to districts based on need.

“So every dollar we send up to Columbia from Charleston County, we only get about 30 cents back from that,” Kennedy explains. “So the other 70 cents from that go to support places like Colleton County where the tax base does not exist.”

He predicts that if North Charleston established its own district, their tremendous tax base would be affected.

“I would predict the parts of the county, especially the rural parts of the county, where those tax bases do not exist, then those students are going to suffer,” Kennedy says.

Kennedy says just before 2:30 p.m., he heard that his staff and Mayor Summey’s team were in contact about setting up a time to talk.

“And so we will get together and collaborate and make sure that we do approach this the best way that we can in terms of support for kids,” Kennedy says. “So in fashioning a bill and moving forward perhaps there is a feasibility study that needs to be done to figure out exactly how to make any kind of move without negatively impacting our students.”

Kennedy wrapped up his remarks by saying he heard the concerns and acknowledged them. But he also dove into the statistics of support and success and detailed his concerns about the negative impacts a rift could cause financially and in learning for students.

“At this point, I don’t have any expectations one way or the other in terms of the success or lack thereof,” the superintendent says. “My position is that collaboration is needed. Not necessarily collaboration initially about how do we dismantle, it’s a collaboration as how do we come together to continue the academic gains that we continue to see.”

City of North Charleston spokesperson Ryan Johnson and city of North Charleston School Liaison Shannon Praete each say they have not been a part of organizing a meeting or conversation. But Johnson says the city is certainly always open to meeting.

Copyright 2023 WCSC. All rights reserved.

NORTH CHARLESTON, S.C. (WCIV) — The City of North Charleston is looking into the possibility of pulling its schools from the Charleston County School District.

Representative Marvin Pendarvis is filing a bill Thursday morning.

He says he felt responsible as a legislator to do what's best for students in the area and drafted the bill.

RELATED: City officials exploring possible removal of North Charleston from CCSD

"The bill removes the North Charleston schools from the Charleston County School District and establishes a separate district for North Charleston schools, so it will be entitled the North Charleston School District," Pendarvis said.

Pendarvis says he feels North Charleston schools are not providing a quality education for their students.

"If you look at the underperforming schools in the district, a large portion of those lie within North Charleston, and so the question we have to ask ourselves is why, you know, why the 29406, 29405 zip code, much of which lies in North Charleston, why are these kids not being serviced to the level that we know they can be?" Pendarvis said.

Mayor Keith Summey, who has met with Pendarvis, has requested city legal counsel to explore the idea of North Charleston taking over their own schools.

He is unable to comment on the matter; However, he shared his concerns with the district in February of last year.

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"Charleston County School District receives approximately 21% of its property tax revenue from properties located within the City of North Charleston. However, North Charleston schools and students are treated as second best," Summey said.

Last year Mayor Summey met with district leaders and discussed ways in which CCSD and North Charleston can work together.

A year later, Mayor Summey is still pushing it forward.

"Many of our school facilities are in shambles, enjoying few of the upgrades seen at schools in our neighboring municipalities. The city, as citizens and as businesses, bear the brunt of financially supporting Charleston County School District, all while being shortchanged. North Charleston schools are some of the most underperforming struggling schools in the district," Summey said.

READ MORE: Possible threat toward Goose Creek HS initiated school lockdowns, district says

In response, CCSD provided a statement that said the mayor's proposal to withdraw North Charleston schools would fail their students.

It also said the decision would duplicate administrative costs and result in less funding per pupil for both academic support and capital improvement.

We reached out to CCSD Board Chair Pamela McKinney, who says the North Charleston students deserve a great education, and the board is working to provide that.

A spokesperson for CCSD says the mayor has not reached out to the district directly since that meeting last February.

A state lawmaker is proposing a bill that would remove North Charleston from the Charleston County School District and create a new district.

NORTH CHARLESTON, S.C. (WCSC) - A state lawmaker is proposing a bill that would remove North Charleston from the Charleston County School District and create a new district.

District 113 Rep. Marvin Pendarvis filed the bill Wednesday afternoon, saying that needs are not being met in the city of North Charleston.

“We’re here because we care about the quality of education in our schools,” Pendarvis said. “We’re here because the city of North Charleston, there’s a number of underperforming schools that lie within the City of North Charleston. We’re here for good reason, and I hope through collaboration and continuing the conversation we’ll be able to get something done.”

State law lays out how school districts can be formed and broken up.

According to 59-17-20, only an act from the state legislature or by authorization of the county boards of education can break up a district. Even then, the boards of education still need to meet certain conditions.

In a statement from the office of Attorney General Alan Wilson those conditions are as follows:

In (b), both districts involved would have to have a petition signed by at least four-fifths of the registered voters in the district. In (c), the districts would need only one-third of the voters to sign a petition but would then also have to have a vote on it called by the county board of education.

Earlier in the day, North Charleston’s mayor confirmed the city is exploring what would be required to withdraw schools in the city from the Charleston County School District.

Mayor Keith Summey said on Wednesday morning North Charleston City Council will explore breaking away from the school district to create their own.

“I think council is concerned about the number of failing schools that we have and what we can do generate more opportunity for the kids coming up in North Charleston,” he said. “It’s not anything that’s in concrete. It’s something that we’re looking at the possibility of.”

The effort, he says, is in a research phase to determine if the idea of pulling schools from the Charleston County School District is feasible, adding it would not be a “fast-paced” project.

Summey said he believes the city contributes more than what they are getting from the school district. He said the majority of failing schools in the district are in North Charleston.

“A community, at the end of the day, is only as strong as the education we can provide for our children, and we just want to make sure that our kids are getting the top chance that they can to get that education,” he said.

Summey said his vision would be for the schools to become a department within the city. He says he believes it would ultimately take a voter referendum, likely in 2024, for the change to happen.

North Charleston Mayor Pro Tem Jerome Heyward said he does not see one member on council not standing behind mayor in support of this.

“The city of North Charleston has been left out of the equation,” Heyward said. “Academic wise, we suffered over here because 30 of our schools are failing. It’s time for us to fix our schools.”

Summey said he has not yet heard from the school district, adding he would like to sit down with them.

“We’re just interested in making sure that children in North Charleston have the same opportunities as children in the entire county to get the best possible education that they can, and that’s not to say that the school district is not making effort,” Summey said. “It’s saying we don’t believe that effort to date has been successful.”

Charleston County School Board Chair Pam McKinney says she has not heard a single word from Summey or the city since she took office. She claims she learned of the mayor’s plan from news coverage.

“CCSD is proud to serve students from every corner of Charleston County,” McKinney said. “It is a priority for the board to ensure every child has access to a high-quality education. North Charleston students deserve a great education and that is exactly what we are working to deliver.”

The Charleston County School District provided a response to the city’s plans, saying the proposal to withdraw would duplicate administrative costs and result in less funding per pupil.

Mayor Keith Summey’s proposal to withdraw North Charleston schools from the Charleston County School District (CCSD) and instead house them in a department within the City of North Charleston would fail students. Such would duplicate administrative costs and result in less funding per pupil for both academic support and capital improvement.

Mayor Summey’s assertion that the City contributes more than what it receives from CCSD is untrue. In fact, North Charleston has historically received well above the CCSD average funding for construction and facilities maintenance.

North Charleston’s schools currently account for 30.32% of the District’s total student population yet receive approximately 35.6% of funds allocated for schools. In addition, the average budgeted per-pupil allocation in FY2023 for North Charleston schools was $16,645.18 compared to that for all other CCSD schools at $14,171.06; isolating North Charleston’s schools served through Acceleration Schools boasts a $19,532.61 per pupil allocation.

Claims that academic efforts in North Charleston schools have not been successful are also misleading. Most recently, for example, three North Charleston schools were removed from the state improvement designation list while others made significant gains.

Rather than benefiting students, withdrawing schools from CCSD would exacerbate educational disparities between geographic areas that CCSD has worked to address. Likewise, the assertion that creating a smaller district would ensure children in North Charleston have greater opportunities is simply misguided. Smaller schools and smaller districts have historically been less-able to offer such access and opportunity.

The District calls on Mayor Summey to address his concerns directly with CCSD leadership so that adults can avoid negative outcomes for students, parents, and educators. The Mayor has not reached out to the District directly since February 2022, after which he and Superintendent Kennedy met with other District and City officials.

The city refutes this, claiming the mayor reached out in May 2022 about an educational program.

Summey reaffirmed Wednesday morning he has not yet decided if he will seek re-election but expects to do so within the next 30 days.

This is a developing story. Check back for updates.

Copyright 2023 WCSC. All rights reserved.