Palmetto State News

Eleven South Carolina school districts are consolidating into five by next summer, spurred on by the promise of millions of dollars in much-needed cash and the push to merge the districts before the Legislature mandates it. 

The Post and Courier reported that in 2014, the state Supreme Court encouraged consolidation and scolded district leaders for not doing it on their own, as a way to cut overhead costs and divert those dollars to classrooms in poorer, rural districts. 

“I’m tired of looking at counties where one side of the county has the tax base to offer opportunities, and there’s another group of students on the other side neglected. It should not happen in the state. It certainly should not happen in a county,” Molly Spearman, state Superintendent of Education, said in an Aug. 29 Twitter post.

A study by the state Department of Education showed that the state could save $35- to $90 million from consolidating smaller school districts, according to The State.

To encourage school districts to consolidate, Spearman says that the state could take steps to address districts' financial concerns such as paying the difference in teacher salaries between districts.

Consolidation is expected to benefit the school districts. Voice of San Diego reported that larger school districts receive more funding, are more cost-effective when properly managed and have an easier time hiring teachers.

Advocates for smaller school districts such as the Institute for Local Self-Reliance report that studies show that smaller school districts have lower rates of school violence and higher student scores. 

Students from smaller districts are also more likely to attend college.