3lm0r3

About 3lm0r3

The South Carolina School Boards Insurance Trust (SCSBIT) provides a variety of risk management services for member districts. These services include self-insured workers’ compensation and property and casualty programs, with accompanying risk control and safety services. A seven-member board governs each program. Five school board members, a school superintendent and a school finance officer comprise each board.

Posts by :

TABITHA KEITT

Laurens 55’s Tabitha Keitt and a family rooted and grounded

Tabitha Keitt, Seat 1 representative on the Laurens School District 55 Board of Trustees
Tabitha Keitt, Seat 1 representative on the Laurens School District 55 Board of Trustees

Hailing from the small town of Gray Court in northern Laurens County, Tabitha Keitt is now the Seat 1 representative on the Laurens School District 55 Board of Trustees, the very area and district where she was born and raised.

Keitt, who never really left the county, except to attend college, said her family is deeply rooted in Laurens.

“My parents, Tommy and Tina Crowder, were also born and raised in Laurens County. They raised my brother, Todd Crowder, and I (here),” she said. “We are all graduates of Laurens District 55 High School along with many other members of my family over the past years.” 

Upon graduating from high school, Keitt’s higher education pursuits took her from Greenville Technical College to Lander University and then to the University of South Carolina Upstate to obtain a nursing degree, where Keitt faced one of the grimmest times in her life.

“In November of 2006, I had just begun my last year of nursing school when I had a motor vehicle accident that resulted in a spinal cord injury (which) caused me to be paralyzed from the chest down,” said Keitt. “I went through many struggles, emotions and physical therapies during my recovery. I would not have made it through without the support and love from my family, church and friends.” 

After extensive recovery, Keitt went on to earn a bachelor’s degree in human service management in 2011, about the same time she and her husband Carson, also a graduate of Laurens 55, found out they would soon become parents.

“I knew I wanted to be a stay-at-home mom and did not pursue (a) career in my area of study at that time,” she said.

Keitt describes being a stay-at-home mom as being the most rewarding part of her life, citing her angst with having to see daughter, Leila, start school.

“From birth to school age, we were able to play and learn together everyday,” said Keitt. “Starting school was hard on both of us. I think we both cried every morning for a week.

Keitt said being a parent with a child in the school district allows her to relate to what other parents are going through when it comes to frustrations and successes with the school system.

It wasn’t long after enrolling Leila in Laurens 55 schools that Keitt began volunteering at the church she’s attended her entire life – Bramlett Methodist Church in Gray Court. One conversation with the pastor resulted in her becoming the director of the Children’s Ministry while also serving as treasurer. She was immediately charged with creating a new Children’s Program, which has experienced exponential growth.

“At the time, we only had two children, but we have grown since, and have about 20 today,” said Keitt. “I have truly enjoyed being part of the Children’s Department over the last five years.”

With the coming of the new year, Keitt will assist her sister-in-law, who is a Laurens 55 special education teacher, in the Youth Department at church. Keitt said her previous work in ministry has aptly prepared her to assist with the youth there and as a school board member.

“I get to be a part of hopefully many different successful changes, improvements or creations of ways to improve the safety and learning of children and youth in education and faith,” said Keitt.

JOHN BRADLEY

Aiken’s Dr. John Bradley: It Took a Village

Dr. John Bradley, vice-chairman of the Aiken County School District Board of Trustees
Dr. John Bradley, vice-chairman of the Aiken County School District Board of Trustees

The notion of teacher villages, widely embraced by the education community in recent years, is a familiar concept to Dr. John Bradley, the newly elected vice-chairman of the Aiken County School District Board of Trustees, who lived in a teacherage during some of his formative years.

Between the ages of four and eight, his mother, a first and second grade public school teacher, taught in neighboring counties. Since daycare did not exist, school officials suggested his mother allow him to sit in her classroom as she taught.

“(I) was treated as if I was a student,” said Dr. Bradley. “My mother and I lived in a building with other teachers during the week and returned home on the weekend.”

He credits these experiences with establishing his belief in the importance of public education.

“I had a front row seat to the transition of southern rural children from persons who knew only that provided by their early experience on farms to a broader, richer, more exciting world and the beginning of an education that would expand our worlds and give us the tools necessary to negotiate that world,” Dr. Bradley said.

The psychologist never veered far from his humble beginnings in the lower part of Richland County as the only child of a public school teacher and a father who worked as a prison guard and administrator, eventually graduating from Eau Claire High School in Richland School District One (Richland One).

 

His father would give him second-hand accounts of his adventures in the brutal prison world and the biographies of some of the most notable criminals.

“This, I believe, was the genesis of my interest in understanding human behavior and its variations,” said Dr. Bradley.

Having often been the youngest in his class gave rise to Dr. Bradley’s desire to better understand the behavior of his older classmates.

“I frequently was not mature enough to understand why they did what they did, so I became a keen observer of the human experience in order to learn how to fit in,” he said.

His observations coupled with the efforts of a science teacher who helped him navigate his transition from rural South Carolina to the city school proved beneficial to Dr. Bradley.

“She taught me in a way that gave me confidence in myself and showed me how much a teacher can mean to a student trying to get a foothold in life,” he said. “Although she taught me science classes in high school, she was one of the best psychologists I have ever known.”

Dr. Bradley earned a bachelor’s, master’s and Ph.D. in psychology from the University of South Carolina. While working on his doctorate, Dr. Bradley worked at the South Carolina State Hospital for four years and the South Carolina Department of Corrections for one year before working as a school psychologist in Richland One.

“I saw working in schools was a better way to help people – identify the problem early and bring resources to bear before the problem became deep-rooted,” said Dr. Bradley.

He and his wife, Sally, (a former public school English teacher) eventually moved to Aiken where he was employed as the director of Special Programs, serving in various capacities as an assistant superintendent for the school district before retiring in 1990. He also worked as an adjunct professor for the University of South Carolina – Aiken.

A few years into retirement, Dr. Bradley ran for the school board and served 16 consecutive years, 13 of which he served as chairman. During this time, Dr. Bradley was working as the clinical psychologist in the Savannah River Site’s medical department, a position he held for 21 years in conjunction with a private practice.

Dr. Bradley left the board for 11 years before returning in 2019.

“(I) missed it. Following some problems that led to three of the board’s members resigning before their terms ended, I decided to run again and was elected,” said Dr. Bradley. “Being involved in education has become a way of life for me and I never want to quit, even though I know the time will come.”

Just as he followed in his parent’s footsteps, the Bradley’s only son, Dr. J. Michael Bradley, who is a product of Aiken County School District, is a practicing clinical psychologist in New Orleans and is married to a commercial photographer.

PAULETTE GRATE

Anderson’s Grate: Generations of nursing a community

Vice Chairperson of the Anderson School District Four Board of Trustees, Paulette Grate
Vice Chairperson of the Anderson School District Four Board of Trustees, Paulette Grate

One might think with 12 years of school board experience, the Vice Chairperson of the Anderson School District Four Board of Trustees, Paulette Grate, would be most known for her service in education. Though she is a well-respected educator, it is nursing which makes “Grate” a household name.

The now retired Grate knew from as early as age 12 she wanted to help people. For better than 44 years, she did so, either as a director of nursing for a long-term care facility, a nursing instructor for the local technical college, a nurse consultant or just at the request of those in the Pendleton area where she was born and reared.

“I wanted to care for people. I used to care for my grandmother,” said Grate. “She was diabetic, so she was on insulin, and I would help care for her and give her insulin.”

Grate’s service became even more widespread as her passion for the profession grew.

“Then, there were other older ladies in our church that would need help, and I would go help clean their homes and go to the grocery store with them, whatever they needed,” said Grate.

In 1978, Grate earned her nursing degree from Clemson University and from there, whether at home or at work, she slowly became the community’s on-call nurse.

“If anybody got sick in the middle of the night because we’re out in the rural area, they would pick up the phone and call me,” she said. “They knew they could pick up the phone anytime, day or night. I always left clothes out at night so if anybody in the community got sick, I can get there before the rescue squad.”

These and other experiences are a constant reminder of her purpose in life, said Grate.

“I had a good friend from high school that had Crohn’s disease, and she was always in and out of the hospital. I helped care for her,” she said.

Grate, after working a full shift, would go to the hospital to sit with her friend.

“We’re still good friends and that’s been 50 years ago,” she said.

Grate also recalls an incident early in her career involving her then, 20-year-old niece who suffered from lupus.

“She started having seizures right in the middle of the storm and I had to get with her dad and get her to the emergency room, which was about 15, 16 miles away. It took over an hour to go about 15 miles,” Grate said. “That one made me know that this was where I needed to be within caring for people.”

The incident not only helped solidify Grate’s desire to serve, but her daughter was so inspired, she serves as a nurse today. Grate even has a granddaughter who earned a degree in healthcare management from Lander University.

In many regards, Grate has not fully retired. Her work continues at the church where her family has held a membership for at least four generations – New Holly Light Missionary Baptist Church.

Grate is the administrative assistant to pastor and is even working to produce a new crop of nurses through the health ministry she founded at the church in 1980.

“Now, we have 10 RNs (registered nurses), probably 10 or 12 sitters (and) 35 medical assistants and EKG (electrocardiogram) technicians,” said Grate.

As for the future, Grate, her husband David, their four daughters and eight grandchildren plan to continue a legacy of caring for others at home, through the church or wherever else they are called upon to serve.

DARIN COLEMAN

Chesterfield’s Dr. Darin Coleman: A Marriage of Professions

Chesterfield County School District Board of Trustees vice chairman Dr. Darin Coleman
Chesterfield County School District Board of Trustees vice chairman Dr. Darin Coleman

The full measure of who Dr. Darin Coleman is could never be described without expressing his educational values and love for mankind, as is evidenced by the varied positions he holds within his community.

For nearly 15 years, Coleman has served on the Chesterfield County School District Board of Trustees, where he is now vice chairman. As district 2 representative, Coleman’s coverage includes Petersburg Primary, Pageland and Jefferson Elementary, New Heights Middle and Central High schools.

During the same 15-year span, he has risen through the ranks at Northeastern Technical College from director of Student Support Services to Student Services manager and now dean of Student Engagement. Since November of 1996, he has served as pastor and is now the senior pastor of New Bethel A.M.E. Zion Church in Fayetteville, N.C., during which time he and his family also founded Charity Community Church of Christ in Cheraw, S.C.

His wholistic approach to life and his assignments has led Coleman to his most rewarding achievements.

“My goal is to work in education and community by using my knowledge and expertise to help people succeed,” said Coleman. “I continue to work hard to develop leadership skills in communication, sound judgment, delegation and interacting with people to motivate their potential to excel in life.”

To that end, Coleman recently earned a doctorate in ministerial leadership from Columbia International University (CIU). He also holds a master’s degree in theological studies and organizational leadership from Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary and a bachelor’s in sociology from Coker University.

The term “It just so happened…” is likely the best way to describe the road to his profession and service to students from kindergarten through college.

“I never thought of this in any way early on. I am a first-generation college student,” said Coleman. “However, I believe it was divinely orchestrated by God that set me on this journey, and when I reflect upon both, they intersected when I started my career in higher education (in) 2009 and was elected to the school board (in) 2010.”

Coleman supervises student life at four of Northeastern Technical College’s campuses – Bennettsville, Cheraw, Dillon and Pageland.

His responsibilities include assisting students with admissions and financial aid; creating programs to enhance student life; and handling disciplinary issues.

“I was given opportunity to work on a temporary grant to mentor African American males, (which) turned into a full-time (position),” said Coleman.

As for his role as a minister, Coleman’s recollection is much like others who serve as senior pastors.

“I was made aware in 1993 and accepted this call in 1994 at St. James A.M.E. Zion Church, in Chesterfield, S.C.,” said Coleman, who calls his journey in every realm amazing and full of challenges and rewards. “When I look back, ‘if it had not been for the Lord on my side,’ none of this would have been possible. So, I see myself as a minister of education.”

His education ministry of great height and depth in the community also permeates the home of him and his wife of 34 years, Amy.

“My wife and I made it our goal to make college a reality for our children,” said Coleman. “Now, all five of us have master’s degrees and I complete(d) my doctorate in May 2024.”

Whether in the board room, on the college campus, the pulpit or at home, Coleman counts himself fortunate to mentor students, serve constituents and guide and guard his family and the flock.

“I am always concerned about being an advocate for people to have access to better themselves,” Coleman said. “As a leader in the church and community, it has afforded me the privilege to use my leadership (skills) as a member and vice chair of my local school board.”

BILL GASKINS

GCSD’s Gaskins: The Mill Village, The School House and The Helping Hands

Georgetown County School District (GCSD) Board Chair William “Bill” Gaskins
Georgetown County School District (GCSD) Board Chair William “Bill” Gaskins

Clinton, S.C. natives, including Georgetown County School District (GCSD) Board Chair William “Bill” Gaskins, pronounce the name of the town “Klin-non.” The “t” remained silent until Gaskins made his way to the College of Charleston where he earned a bachelor’s degree in business administration.

Upon graduation, Gaskins returned to the textile mill in Clinton, where he was employed for five years. Having been reared in a mill village, Gaskins found it to be the best place for helping him determine the next steps.

“It was a tough time to find a job, so I chose the path of working a mill. I was trained to manage a supply room,” said Gaskins. “I worked the second shift.

“After about two years, I started substituting in Lauren District 56. In (those) years, I discovered my calling.”

Gaskins immediately enrolled in Converse College, where he earned a master’s in elementary education, a teaching certificate and met his wife of now 35 years. He got his start in teaching in Spartanburg and Greenwood counties. His first teaching job in GCSD was at Rosemary Middle School. He invested eight years teaching sixth grade English/Language Arts (ELA), Social Studies and as a reading interventionist before another 8-year stint teaching fourth and fifth grade. Gaskins also worked as a technology coach at Carvers Bay Middle School.

“Having this experience has helped me with (the) decision-making our district faces,” said Gaskins. “I have a big heart for every student, staff member, teacher and administrator. All staff members have a special role in making sure our students have a great Pre-K through 12 experience. 

“Our focus has to center around the student.”

By the time he became employed in Berkeley County School District (BCSD), Gaskins could be found wearing many hats. He began working there as a Teaching American History grant facilitator and was then promoted to ELA coordinator. He became known for his technological skills, which led to yet another promotion.

“With my tech and literacy background, I led a virtual learning initiative for the district,” said Gaskins. “Before retiring in 2018, I developed a virtual learning program for high school students that included homebound instruction, make-up credits (and) students who transfer in from other states or countries.”

In 2015, Gaskins joined the board of directors for Helping Hands of Georgetown County, Inc. After retirement from BCSD, he became an active volunteer with Helping Hands. In 2019, Gaskins was named the assistant director, where his responsibilities included the day-to-day operations of the food pantry, dental clinic, job program and youth empowerment program.

“So many of the clients I encountered have lost hope and the ability to dream (of) a better life,” he said. “Many got to this place with circumstances that they were not able to control. I have always seen myself as a person who tries to instill hope in others, to provide help with the circumstances they live in and provide ways for change.”

In 2020, he was elected to the GCSD board. In his work as a school and non-profit board member, employee and as a volunteer at the Caring and Sharing Food Pantry in Hemingway, S.C., Gaskins intimates God has always been at the center.

“My strong Christian beliefs have taught me to live a life with a servant’s heart,” said Gaskins. “I believe in servant leadership. God has been so good to me and blessed me in so many ways that I am constantly looking for ways to give back and be a servant to others.”

For the past few years, Gaskins has served on a committee to bring Teach My People, a Christ-centered, academically focused afterschool and summer program, to Andrews Elementary School.

Gaskins and his wife, Martha Lynn, have two children – William C. Gaskins Jr., a corporate tax attorney in Durham, N.C. and Anna Riley Gaskins, a 2022 Clemson University graduate who is pursuing a bachelor’s degree in nursing at the Medical University of South Carolina.

DR. TINA GWOZDZ

Dr. “Tina” Gwozdz and a genealogy to live by

Beaufort County School District’s Board of Trustees Chair Christina S. Gwozdz, M.D.
Beaufort County School District’s Board of Trustees Chair Christina S. Gwozdz, M.D.

There is a maxim of medicine which states, “Before you examine the body of a patient, be patient to learn their story.” In the case of Beaufort County School District’s Board of Trustees Chair Christina S. Gwozdz, M.D., it is a story of a third and soon to be fourth generation of family members working to restore, enhance and prolong the lives of others.

Once upon a time, Harold, M.D. and Elise Brecker Williams (a 1918 graduate of Boston University) begat Anne Williams Van Lonkhuyzen, J.D., who married Maurice Van Lonkhuyzen, M.D., who begat two doctors and two attorneys, one of whom was Christina “Tina” Gwozdz, M.D., who married Glenn Gwozdz, M.D.

From this union came Andrew, Will and Thomas, all of whom graduated from Bluffton High School before earning engineering degrees from Princeton University. Will is now enrolled in medical school.

Dr. Gwozdz hails from a long line of physicians, including general practitioners and an ophthalmologist, while she and her husband serve as an otolaryngologist and a gastroenterologist, respectively. There are also quite a few attorneys in the mix.

“My family, my parents and my grandparents really stressed the importance of education and choosing a profession,” said Dr. Gwozdz. “I was raised to value high-quality education, and I decided at a young age that I wanted to be a physician.”

Riding along with her grandfather on house calls when he was the physician for mill workers in Whitinsville, Mass., further solidified her aspirations, which ultimately led her to Cornell University Medical College. Dr. Gwozdz and her husband met as classmates in medical school and relocated to Hilton Head Island after their nuptials.

“We decided to move South and have been in Hilton Head (since) 1989, after we finished our respective training programs,” said Dr. Gwozdz. “Job opportunity is really why we came here. I went out on my own – solo practice – and he joined a fellow in his specialty.”

For the past 35 years, from 7:30 a.m. until 3 p.m., Gwozdz’s office has served countless patients who live as far away as Florida and Georgia and those who are just a stone’s throw away.

Gwozdz, whose 97-year-old mother lives with her, said just as she enjoys caring for her mother, she enjoys caring for her tenured patients.

“A lot of patients have stayed with me for decades and I still see them as patients,” she said. “Now, I am operating on the next generation or even the grandchildren of somebody I treated in the past.”

Things have come full circle for Dr. Gwozdz in practice and within her family.

“When I was raising my boys, I decided to open my office earlier in the day and close it earlier in the afternoon to avoid the typical commuting hours, allowing me to be home in the afternoon with my kids,” said Dr. Gwozdz.

Her husband made similar concessions for the sake of the family and the dividends have paid off.

“We (she and her husband) kind of balanced it (the responsibilities) out a little bit,” said Gwozdz. “We were very encouraged to get a fine education. We instilled that in our boys and hopefully, they will instill it in their children.”

The couple is expecting their first grandchild this summer.

Dr. Gwozdz credits her service as a physician with shaping who she is as a school board member and having influenced who she is in her personal life.

“Interacting with all walks of life has made (me better) as a school board member and now chair for a number of years. It is good preparation,” she said. “As a physician, you have to be professional, ethical, courteous and respectful.”

MANNING JETER

Union’s Manning Jeter: Daughter’s Little Light Lives On

Union County Schools Board of Trustees chair Manning Jeter (right) with his wife, Maretta, hold a portrait of their late daughter, Marisha. Their son, T.J., is with them.
Union County Schools Board of Trustees chair Manning Jeter (right) with his wife, Maretta, hold a portrait of their late daughter, Marisha. Their son, T.J., is with them.

Marisha, the daughter of Manning Jeter, Union County Schools Board of Trustees chair, would have turned 33 years old this week (April 29, 2024). The anniversary of her birth serves as a reminder of the tragedy of her death and the light of it, as 16 young ladies have been recipients of the Marisha Sharay Jeter Scholarship established in her honor.

Ironically enough, at the age of 16, Marisha’s life ended and, almost immediately, her parents (Manning and Maretta) set out to establish a fund to help secure the future of teens like their daughter – on track to becoming.

Marisha was not only scholarly at school, but she was also a cheerleader, served on the marching band, the yearbook staff, the Winter Guard and was a member of the National Honor Society, Beta Club and Quill and Scroll Society. At church, she served as a junior usher, secretary of her Sunday School class and sang in the youth choir, leading her first solo, “This Little Light of Mine”, at the age of two. The memory of her voice and her love of school and life in general, along with the establishment of the scholarship have provided some consolation to the family, according to Manning.

“We wanted to do something to help young ladies who were good in school,” said Manning. “Marisha loved school, and she was very high in academics and ran at her own pace. This was a way to try to keep her name alive as well as help other young ladies like her every year.”

The recipients of the scholarship have gone on to become doctors, teachers, pharmacists, nurses and more. In fact, most of them have become family, even assisting Maretta through her recent bout with cancer. Since their daughter’s death, both Manning and Maretta have battled cancer without missing one fundraising event regarding the scholarship, said Manning, who beat cancer in 2018.

The weight of the tragedies has rightly informed Manning’s 24 years of service on the school board.
“(People have) no clue what it does to me when I feel like a child is not getting what they need to be successful,” he said.

The family is full of educators, with Maretta owning a childcare center prior to Marisha’s death and their son T.J. currently working as a behavior and reading interventionist. The couple have two other older children – Andre’ and Rahim.

Rahim and his father run Jeter’s Collision Repair, a shop Manning began operating in the early ‘80s and maintained while working as a senior claims adjuster for Allstate from 2000 to 2016. As a businessperson, Manning had the flexibility to travel the world as a professional musician, performing with such greats as Dazz, Con Funk Shun, The Soul Children, Mandrill, Brick, Mother’s Finest, Toy Factory, Tyrone Davis, Zapp, Marshall Tucker and other bands.

“I’m a percussionist and lead vocalist,” said Manning. “I’m the one that taught my children.”

Marisha and T.J. followed in Manning’s footsteps with a love of music. Today, T.J. sings and plays lead guitar, piano and drums throughout the nation, in honor of his sister’s life and light.

CATRENA HUGHES-PARKER

Catrena Hughes-Parker: A fountain of wisdom

Catrena Hughes-Parker, the District 6 representative on the Barnwell County Consolidated School District Board of Trustees
Catrena Hughes-Parker, the District 6 representative on the Barnwell County Consolidated School District Board of Trustees

Blackville, S.C., a town of a little more than one thousand residents, has earned national acclaim as the home of Healing Springs, a natural water source believed to be a fountain of health and healing.

Born and reared within a town mostly comprised of her relatives, lives Catrena Hughes-Parker, the District 6 representative on the Barnwell County Consolidated School District Board of Trustees. Hughes-Parker is on the mend from two knee replacements which ended her extensive career as a law enforcement officer and as a soldier in the U.S. Army, where she served in the Gulf War’s Operation Desert Storm. Though she wanted to continue working, the timing of her injury-induced early retirement turned out to be of benefit, according to Hughes-Parker.

“COVID came a few years later,” she said. “It (early retirement) offered me the opportunity to be home with my child at a time when they were doing homeschooling.”

The time off since has given Hughes-Parker occasion to reflect on how her education and career paths paved the way for her service on the school board.

After graduating from Blackville-Hilda High School, Hughes-Parker enlisted in the U.S. Army Reserves and was soon after deployed to the Persian Gulf. Upon her return to the states, she enrolled at S.C. State University and majored in criminal justice. After graduation, she worked for the S.C. Department of Juvenile Justice (DJJ) as a corrections officer, as a deputy with the Orangeburg County Sheriff’s Office and as a canine officer (explosives and drug dog handler) for Centerra at Savannah River Site until her retirement.

“The comradery dealing with law enforcement – you actually get close with them because you know these (are) people you might need to call for your backup,” said Hughes-Parker. “So, it’s like a family. It was different so I enjoyed it.”

She said one of the keys to her long-term, successful career in law enforcement is found in one word – respect.
“You just have to give everybody respect,” said Hughes-Parker. “I’ve never had an issue.”

Hughes-Parker knew, unlike school board service, if she wanted to make a positive impact as a law enforcement officer, she couldn’t do it in Blackville.

“I told myself I didn’t want to work in the town I grew up in because I knew it would be hard for me to do my job,” she said.
By the time she completed her vast military service abroad and domestically, Hughes-Parker had earned the rank of Captain.
Though her military career ended, the relationships fostered over the years have remained.

“You go many places,” she said. “You meet a lot of people, and they become lifetime friends.”

Her natural inclination toward coalition and consensus building is serving Hughes-Parker in her first term on the school board. She ran on the platform of being a bridge and voice of reason.

She and her husband, Anthony, have a daughter enrolled in the district and two sons attending college. This daughter of a Baptist preacher and a public education support staff worker, said in all of her doing in law enforcement, with her family, in education and in the military, the goal is and has always been to exercise her faith and treat people fair.

“In everything you do, you have to think about (if) it is right or wrong,” she said. “If you have a conscience, I don’t think you can treat somebody badly and then go home, and it not bother you.”

KATHY COLEMAN

Dr. Kathy Coleman: A life of Agriculture + Advocacy = Impact

Dr. Kathy Coleman, chairperson of Saluda County Schools Board of Trustees
Dr. Kathy Coleman, chairperson of Saluda County Schools Board of Trustees

The word which best describes the service of the chairperson of Saluda County Schools Board of Trustees is enduring. Whether it’s her more than 25 years on the local school board, her 13 years on the South Carolina School Boards Association’s (SCSBA) board or her 38 years of employment with Clemson University, when Dr. Kathy Coleman serves, she is typically in it for the long haul.

Coleman first earned two degrees from Clemson University – a bachelor’s in animal science and a master’s in agricultural economics – before earning a Ph.D. in agricultural economics from Texas A&M University.

“I’ve always been interested in agriculture and that was my first love,” said Coleman, who is a first-generation college graduate.

While on a break from school at Texas A&M, Coleman met the lobbyist for Clemson University who would be instrumental in steering her back to Clemson.

“No one ever grows up to be a lobbyist. I was constantly trying to decide what I wanted to do,” said Coleman. “He (Clemson University lobbyist) said, ‘Why don’t you come work for me?’”

It was Coleman’s determination to do the work which would bring about the best outcomes for the most people.

“I figured I could probably do more good by doing that (lobbying), so I decided to do it and have been doing it ever since,” said Coleman.

The one hour and 15 minutes it takes to get from her farm in Saluda to her job gives Coleman time to gather her thoughts regarding the many tasks for the day.

From budgeting and research to agribusiness and irrigation, there are no two days alike at Clemson’s 600-acre Sandhill Research and Education Center (REC), according to Coleman. Additionally, during the legislative session, a bulk of Coleman’s time is devoted to the State House.

The day-to-day lobbying on behalf of Clemson University has yielded great benefit to Coleman.

“When I think about some of the (research) projects that I’ve worked on and how they have affected students and South Carolina overall, (it’s) amazing (what) our folks at Clemson have done for South Carolina. That’s the rewarding part,” said Coleman. “(When) you get funding for some project like Call Me Mister, and it took off and, you know, that’s like a very rewarding part of my career.”

Coleman cited the 250-acre Clemson University International Center for Automotive Research (ICAR) campus in Greenville; the ClemsonLIFE ™ program, which offers a collegiate experience that prepares young men and women with intellectual disabilities for employment and independent living; the Clemson Precision Agriculture program located in Blackville, S.C. designed to improve agricultural production sustainability; and the various innovation centers as projects well worth the investment.

Both at work and at home in her leisure time, Coleman has found farming and agriculture to be therapeutic, particularly after losing one of her two sons and her husband only a few years apart.

“I had a rough couple of years,” said Coleman. “(It’s) part of God’s plan. I will see them again one day.”

These days she and her son Lewis, daughter-in-law Rachel and grandson Weyman spend as much time together as possible.

As a school board member, as director of Clemson’s Sandhill REC and as a farmer, Coleman said her foremost desire is to, “try to be aware of what God’s plan is and try to do my best not to mess that up.”

DAVID FLOWERS

David Flowers: A life of service to community and country

Marlboro County School District (MCSD) Board Secretary David Flowers
Marlboro County School District (MCSD) Board Secretary David Flowers

Don’t confuse the quiet deportment of Marlboro County School District’s (MCSD) Board Secretary David Flowers with an inability to engage his community. With his service on city council; as chaplain for the local Sheriff’s Department and the Billy Graham Rapid Response Team; in the S.C. Army National Guard (SCANG) for more than 20 years, which included three deployments; and as an emergency medical technician (EMT) of more than 40 years, he has proven nothing can be further from true.

The Marlboro County native began volunteering with his local rescue squad in Feb. 1980, while working at J.P. Stevens textile company.

“I love community work and helping others,” said Flowers, whose life motto is, “Let my light shine, not from talking it but from walking it – to serve others.”

The power of Flowers’ example had such a lasting impact on the former sheriff who happened to be a member of the same SCANG unit, he asked if Flowers would serve as chaplain of the Marlboro County Sheriff’s Department.

“I attended the International Police Chaplain Course and (I) guess the rest is history,” Flowers said.

One service led to another, and Flowers also became a chaplain for the Billy Graham Rapid Response Team.

“I have always respected Billy Graham and applied to help, having deployment experience and (as) a paramedic, figured I would give it a try,” he said.

For many years, Flowers was able to juggle 60- and 70-hour work weeks and all his other activities, but one life-altering experience caused him to slow things down, at least for a while.

Upon retiring from the SCANG, Flowers completed training to become a paramedic. His son, Erick, joined him in the profession.

“I enjoyed being a paramedic, but I really enjoyed doing it with him (Erick),” said Flowers.

Flowers left the house one day for about an hour and returned home to find his son unresponsive.

“At 41 years old, he’d had a cardiac event,” said Flowers, who soon after retired from the profession. “(The hours are) for a young man, plus the passing of Erick.”

He worked as a paramedic for Marlboro County as well as a field supervisor for Emergency Management Services and as a critical care paramedic for Cape Fear Valley Medical Center before diving fully into volunteer services in the county.

He was encouraged by those in his community to serve on city council and the school board. From both he has gleaned basically the same thing – it’s a lot of give and take.

“You have only one vote and to get things accomplished sometimes you got to give,” Flowers said. “The community needs to see unity.”

Flowers, who is raising two of his grandchildren, said he and his wife, Tammy, have learned a great deal about compromise and understanding.

“Raising children in the 1980s was way different than in 2024,” said Flowers. “One of the biggest (differences) is they don’t play outside, ride bikes and do things outside. It’s all about the gaming devices as I call them.”

Tammy is a teacher assistant in MCSD and has been for more than 20 years.

Link to obituary for Erick David Flowers at Burroughs Funeral Home

1 2