Letter to the Editor: "Acting on Wrongs"

I now fully understand why parents, teachers, future, current and former employees, and sadly even board members associated with the Cherokee County School District tremble with such fear when challenging the status quo. If you have followed this situation, you have witnessed a clear, calculated and unprecedented smear campaign. Fortunately, the majority of citizens of this County, are not easily fooled by manipulative accounting practices, unfounded complaints, biased media reporting and fear mongering set forth from this administration and carried out by minions of the monopoly.

It is precisely the fear tactics used by this administration and the Board’s willingness to tolerate them that led to my letter to SACS. The letter addressed leadership and transparency, not academics. I repeat, I have not questioned the academic success our district has earned; however, the means to that end have been riddled with intimidation and a lack of separation on the part of elected officials and administration. I appreciate that my questions have motivated parents and teachers to action. I ran for office on a platform of open and honest communication and this is about doing what I was elected to do. It is about our children, who deserve better. I do not believe in leadership by intimidation and I will not surrender to fear. We have seen this tactic used repeatedly in this county in attempts to scare citizens into opposing reapportionment, the debt building E-SPLOST taxation and to make parents question their decision to choose the best education for their child. These tactics only serve to divide our community and stifle growth.

I do not dread SACS, nor should the citizens of Cherokee County, and I vehemently oppose the use of SACS as a tool to intimidate elected officials into constant state of deference to the unelected Superintendents. If the practice of obtaining accreditation by SACS is truly a process that “yields the best results for schools and school systems, and ultimately for students, by uniting community stakeholders, including education experts who provide personalized assistance to institutions and educational systems,” then they are the perfect vehicle for righting this ship. My hope, which mirrors that of many of your fellow citizens, is that SACS will come, give guidance and help make it possible for the duly elected officials to have access to the information necessary to make educated decisions for the best interest of the students and staff.

Nothing I have done has been done in haste. I certainly have made mistakes, but I have owned them and tried to remedy them. I am humbled by the outpouring of support I receive daily from community members, the majority of which sadly fear the repercussion of speaking out in opposition to the wrongs they witness.Sadly, I see many directing their frustration at me personally, rather than taking an opportunity to help improve CCSD, by focusing on the issues. 

I have invited the Superintendent to meet with me personally. I have asked our Board Attorney to schedule a Board Retreat to resolve communication issues and to help this board find common ground to move past our differences. I have pleaded with the Board Chairman to conduct public hearings on the audit, the budget and the implementation of Common Core. It is unfortunate that the last response to my request was that she would not direct the Superintendent and his staff to answer my direct questions. I feel that this behavior has been a hindrance to the Board's ability to make good sound choices that we were elected by the people to do.

The clock is ticking for the taxpayers. The budget vote is on the July 24th agenda. I felt that I was forced to act swiftly because the inaction of this governing body has left me no other path. As said in the poem Freedom in America by Joanna Fuchs, “Complacency is weakness, patriots can't afford; we have to act on wrongs that cannot be ignored.

I remain your humble and duly elected servant,

-Kelly Marlow