By Skylar Laird
COLUMBIA — Students in rural South Carolina could learn practical skills from the back of a truck if the state Education Department gets its $10 million request.
State Superintendent Ellen Weaver asked legislators for the money to take instruction for career and technical classes on the road — bringing skill-building opportunities to sixth- through 12-graders in rural school districts that can’t afford to offer them.
Programs include training in agriculture, finance, and information technology, often through hands-on experience, according to the department’s website.
The proposal involves an 18-wheeler toting equipment from district to district, and Weaver’s agency partnering with the state’s technical colleges for instruction, she told a House budget-writing panel Tuesday, without giving specifics.
“If you can’t afford to build a state-of-the-art facility in a rural district, you have a mobile lab that can be moved around in partnership with local industry,” Weaver said.
Providing students the opportunity to learn a skill can help them find jobs after high school, often in high-paying fields where workers are in high demand. In turn, that will help employers find workers for the more than 160,000 open jobs across the state, she told lawmakers.
“Obviously, we know that career and technical education is a vital component of ensuring that our high school students graduate with the skills that they need” to either go directly to work after graduation or go on to college, Weaver said.
In the coming year, that could include skills in computer science, artificial intelligence and advanced manufacturing, as the department develops curriculums for classes on those topics, Weaver said.
Legislators are just starting the budget process for the fiscal year starting July 1.
Pay raise proposal
Weaver called the rolling classroom her third priority request of the year.
At the top of her list is $273 million to increase teacher salaries by $3,000 if school districts add five “professional learning days” to their calendar. Weaver says that will allow for more high-quality professional development and planning time.
State law requires districts to designate three days annually for teacher training. Weaver’s proposal would increase minimum pay by $1,500 across the state salary schedule and provide a way to double that boost. But teachers oppose the idea of a $1,500 stipend for five more work days scheduled by their district.
The combined $3,000 increase would bring the starting minimum salary for first-year teachers to $45,500.
Gov. Henry McMaster has proposed a different plan for teacher salaries that would increase the floor to $45,000 and collectively cost $250 million.
Skylar Laird covers the South Carolina Legislature and criminal justice issues. Originally from Missouri, she previously worked for The Post and Courier’s Columbia bureau.
