MARLBORO COUNTY — Marlboro County School Board members met Monday night in a meeting that saw no progress on hiring a superintendent or in advancing Interim Superintendent Michael Thorsland’s plan to consolidate schools.

Thorsland, who is also the state’s technical assistance director, stepped in as interim Superintendent for the district back in November, and has since suggested a plan to move fourth and fifth grade students from Bennettsville Intermediate School to Blenheim Middle School.

He said he feels the move could be beneficial for the district, saying the school system could stand to save nearly half a million dollars by taking this action.

“Not doing this like I said earlier, that means we got to come up with 500,000 dollars somewhere else, and at some point, you run out of places to come up with 500,000 more dollars,” he said.

The proposal isn’t a new one as former Superintendent Dr. Helena Tillar previously made a similar suggestion during her most recent tenure with the district that would have seen more than just Bennettsville Intermediate and Blenheim Middle schools affected.

During the meeting many residents questioned why Bennettsville and Blenheim were being singled out — why not Clio or Wallace?

Residents pointed out Clio is a newer school than the middle school in Blenheim, and said they felt like the district is trying to solve the problem while only focusing on a piece of it.

Blenheim Middle School is one of the district’s lowest-performing schools with only 8% of students testing at or above proficiency in math and only 20% in reading, according to district records.

Thorsland’s plan would also require relocating staff from the district office in downtown Bennettsville to the Bennettsville Intermediate School facility.

Ultimately no action was taken on Monday and board members decided to table voting on the consolidation plan, with some residents asking for a public hearing to be held on the matter.

Despite a lengthy executive session, no decisions were announced in the district’s search for a permanent superintendent.