Horry school board wants to be No. 1 in pay; it’s No. 63 in graduation rates

The Horry County Schools Board of Education members plan to vote on linking their pay to county council, which would make them the highest-paid school board in the state at $15,966 per year.

Some members argue that their work and county council work are similar, thus pay should be similar. But, would the board’s pay reflect academic performance?

Horry County Schools spokeswoman Teal Britton says the district measures success through a number of different factors including the ACT test, SCREADY and SCPASS tests, graduations rates and growth.

The Sun News did an analysis of the top 10 districts in the state based on graduation rates and ACT scores and compared the pay of every school board. There is very little, if any, correlation.

Top 10 district graduation rates, board pay

With 43,101 students in 2016, Horry County is the third-largest district in the state. However, it’s ranked 63 out of 81 districts with a graduation rate at 80.51 percent, according to a South Carolina Department of Education datasheet for overall graduation rates. The statewide average is 82.6 percent, and the data used for these graduation rates includes charter schools.

None of the schools that made the top 10 have more than 17,000 students, according to the SCDOE’s 2016 report card. However, Greenville (76,153 students) and Charleston (48,147 students) both performed better than Horry with 87.51 and 83.02 graduation rates, respectively.

1. Darlington: 94.54 percent graduation rate. Board pay: $7,000 per year.

2. York 4 / Fort Mill: 94.01 percent graduation rate. Board pay: None.

3. Barnwell / Williston 29: 93.75 percent graduation rate. Board pay: $1,200 per year.

4. Anderson 1: 93.06 percent graduation rate. Board pay: None.

5. Calhoun: 91.89 percent graduation rate. Board pay: $100 per meeting

6. Lee: 91.27 percent graduation rate. Board pay: $3,600 per year.

7. Spartanburg 1: 91.15 percent graduation rate. Board pay: None.

8. Lexington/Richland 5: 90.33 percent graduation rate. Board pay: $9,600 per year.

9. York 1: 90.23 percent graduation rate. Board pay: None.

10. Georgetown: 90.23 percent graduation rate. Board pay: $6,719 per year.

Top 10 district ACT scores, board pay

Horry County students have the 13th highest average ACT composite score in the state, at 18.6. The state average is 18.2 and the maximum score possible is 36.

1. York 4: 21.6. Board pay: None.

2. Lexington/Richland 5: 20.5. Board pay: $9,600 per year.

3. York 2 / Clover: 19.9. Board pay: None.

4. Lexington 1: 19.6. Board pay: None.

5. Charleston: 19.5. Board pay: $25 per meeting.

6. Greenville: 19.3. Board pay: $10,749 per year.

7. Anderson 1: 19.2. Board pay: None.

8. Dorchester 2: 19.2. Board pay: $1,200 per year.

9. Anderson 4: 18.9. Board pay: None.

10. Pickens: 18.9. Board pay: $3,000 per year.

Data for the lists are sourced from the South Carolina Department of Education 2016 state report cards and the latest South Carolina School Boards Association board pay data from August 2016.

This story was originally published February 15, 2017 at 7:33 PM with the headline "Horry school board wants to be No. 1 in pay; it’s No. 63 in graduation rates."