FORT MILL, S.C. — Fort Mill Mayor Guynn Savage spoke out against South Carolina’s new school choice law today, which requires school districts statewide to accept interdistrict student transfers.
The recent law has prompted concerns from local leaders about its impact on Fort Mill schools and the taxpayers who have invested in them.
The school choice law allows students to transfer into districts with open seats, a policy that Mayor Savage believes undermines local efforts to improve educational conditions in Fort Mill.
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The Fort Mill City Council expressed its discontent by sending a letter to state leaders, urging modifications to the law and citing the need for local control over school funding.
Mayor Guynn Savage emphasized the law’s potential impact on the growth planning of Fort Mill schools, stating, “Breaking what’s working doesn’t seem to fix the problem.”
She highlighted that the local taxpayers’ financial contributions toward school improvements may be compromised by the influx of students from other districts.
Savage also pointed out that allowing interdistrict transfers without proper planning can lead to overcrowded schools, remarking, “We don’t know if the decision or ruling will say fill all the seats you have...we have to build ahead of those students...or you end up with trailers or mobile units to put students in.”
In contrast, some residents see benefits in the new law. Makenzie Jackson, a student from Lancaster, shared her positive experience with school choice after attending high school in Kershaw County.
She stated, “I think it’s great for kids who may live in an area where they can’t get the education they deserve.”
Her mother, Beth Jackson, added that the smaller school environment provided her daughter with more one-on-one attention, saying, “Mostly for the more one-on-one she would get...let’s just face it, there’s less violence, less everything when you have a smaller school and more one-on-one focus on the student.”
Currently, S.C. education officials are working out the details of the new law.
Local school districts, including Fort Mill, were given a chance to provide feedback last month, and leaders are hoping that state authorities will take their concerns into account during this process.
As of now, there are no established timelines for potential revisions to the school choice law from state education leaders.
Fort Mill officials are advocating for further discussions to address their concerns effectively.
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