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Horry County School District work session, Aug 10, 2026

2 h 00 min · 0 public speakers

This board doesn’t post agenda times. Click a board member to jump to where they first speak; we list only members whose voice our check named. Video length 2 h 00 min.

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What happened

What happened at this meeting

Horry County Schools staff say student meals will be provided at no cost 1:32:06

  • Board members asked about vape alarms in high school bathrooms and a vape task force. 10:43
  • District staff presented state assessment results, a summer learning update and back-to-school updates on registration, attendance and technology. 32:24
  • The board then moved into a special called meeting to consider ratification of summer employment contracts and appointments to area advisory boards. 1:49:23

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Item by item (15)
  1. Opening and agenda 0:02
    • Tracy Winters gave the invocation, followed by the Pledge of Allegiance. ~0:35
    • The chair called for approval of the agenda and of the minutes. 1:25
  2. Board meeting schedule 2:11
    • A staff member said the proposed board meeting schedule reflected meeting twice monthly, with adjustments for 2 possible retreats in March and April. 2:11
    • Melanie Wellons asked whether a September 30th retreat had an agenda and, if not, whether it was needed. 3:10
    • A staff member said nothing was pending for September 30th and that the date was a placeholder that could be removed. 3:26
  3. Annual work plan and succession designee 4:03
    • A staff member said the annual work plan outlines all of the board's required monitoring for the 26⁠-⁠27 school year. 4:09
    • Under the emergency superintendent succession policy, the superintendent recommended a district staff member as designee for the 26⁠-⁠27 school year. 5:03
  4. Monitoring report OE11 5:15
    • A staff member said the district was seeing an increase in vaping and had developed a vape task force that had already been meeting. 7:56
    • Debbie Edmonds asked whether high school bathrooms have vape alarms, and a staff member said 3 high schools have them in some bathrooms. 10:43
  5. Facilities monitoring report 19:14
    • A staff member said there were 20 quarter 2 reports and no final reports. 19:26
    • Neil James asked whether any projects would delay the start of school, and the staff member said there were no issues. 20:31
  6. Constitution Week proclamation 20:50
    • A staff member said a proclamation recognizing Constitution Week, September 17th through September 23rd, would be brought for approval at the next meeting. 21:01
  7. Legislative consultant services 21:47
    • The superintendent recommended a 1-year agreement with McGuire Woods Consulting for legislative representation, with the value evaluated at the end of the legislative cycle. 21:47
    • One board member said it would be good for the district to have someone help with complicated state legislative issues and asked about the cost; a staff member said it was in the budget. 23:30
    • James Edwards asked whether the 3 team members listed in the packet would be the only contacts, and a staff member said they were the primary ones. 24:50
  8. Superintendent report and state test results 25:17
    • The superintendent asked families to discuss cell phone use, the ban on vapes and bus stop arm safety before school begins. 25:17
    • A staff member said 67% of students in grades 3 through 8 performed at or above grade level in English language arts, 52.5% scored meets or exceeds in math and 80% earned a career-ready credential. 32:24
    • Tracy Winters asked about OGAP for lower 4th, 5th and 6th grade math results, and a staff member said the team has doubled down on fractions in 4th grade. 47:08
  9. Summer learning update 48:48
    • The staff member said 720 3rd grade students were at risk of retention in February and only 3 faced retention after summer reading camp. 50:00
    • A staff member said 573 students were served by 68 teachers across 4 sites in summer reading camp. 50:56
    • One board member said expanded summer offerings help the district stay competitive with school choice. 1:01:39
  10. Back-to-school updates 1:02:40
    • A staff member reported 4,893 new student registration entries and said parents may submit up to 10 medical notes before students must make up seat time. 1:03:45
    • A human resources staff member reported a 98.8% teacher fill rate, and an operations staff member reported 42 bus driver vacancies and meals at no cost for the 2026⁠-⁠2027 school year. 1:20:33
    • Matthew Robinson asked whether the allowed absences were the ceiling, and a staff member said they were. 1:27:34
  11. Strategic plan process 1:36:16
    • A staff member outlined the process for a 2027 through 2032 strategic plan, with the goal of bringing the final plan for approval in April 2027. 1:36:58
    • Janet Graham asked about lunch and learn sessions, and the staff member said they would be for district employees. 1:45:08
    • Pam Dawson asked for details of a communications plan to engage stakeholders. 1:46:41
  12. Financial reporting recognition 1:48:14
    • A staff member said the Government Finance Officers Association awarded the district its Certificate of Achievement for Excellence in Financial Reporting for the fiscal year ended June 30th, 2025. 1:48:14
  13. Employment ratification and monitoring reports 1:49:23
    • The board moved to convene a special called meeting. 1:49:23
    • A staff member asked the board to ratify professional contracts approved by the superintendent from June 8th, 2026 to August 10th, 2026. 1:49:47
    • Staff said there were no changes to the OE 12 and R6 monitoring reports since they were presented, and motions to approve were made. 1:50:33
  14. Advisory board and foundation appointments 1:51:08
    • One board member nominated replacements for the inter-area advisory board. 1:51:33
    • James Edwards offered 2 reappointments to the Loris Area Advisory Board of Trustees, and Neil James offered 2 reappointments to the Green Sea Floyd Advisory Committee. 1:52:18
    • Pam Dawson moved to nominate a District Six member of the Horry County Schools Foundation. 1:54:51
  15. Consent agenda and adjournment 1:55:02
    • The chair called for action on a consent form, and a motion to approve was made and seconded. 1:55:02
    • The chair announced the meeting was adjourned. 1:59:34

Written by software from the meeting's transcript and checked sentence by sentence against it.

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Video: posted by the district as “Board Work Session 08-10-2026”