BENNETTSVILLE — The Marlboro County School District Board convened Monday night to confront a staggering $6.8 million budget shortfall, a crisis that has placed the district under heightened financial scrutiny.
Facing three potential options to address the deficit, the board ultimately failed to reach consensus on any of them. Instead, in a controversial move, the board voted to rescind bonuses previously awarded to district staff members.
The decision was met with visible frustration from educators and community members in attendance.
“We’ve been working tirelessly for our students, and this feels like a step backward,” said one teacher, who asked to remain anonymous.
Throughout the meeting, board members and Superintendent Dr. Helena Tiller fielded pointed questions regarding the district’s financial transparency. Officials clarified that the district has been under a fiscal watch from the South Carolina Department of Education — a designation prompted by decisions made under the former administration.
“People deserve to know the truth,” Tiller stated. “Yes, we are under fiscal emergency status, but we’ve made progress. Our audits have come back clean for the past two years.”
Despite that progress, the district remains in a fragile financial state. The board acknowledged that continued oversight and difficult decisions will be necessary to stabilize operations and restore trust among staff and the community.
The board is scheduled to reconvene next week to revisit budget solutions and further discuss how to move the district forward.
Editor’s note: A previous version of this article misidentified the superintendant as Dr. Andrews, the previous imterim superintendant.