Stealth Meeting of CCSD School Board Called by Joe Riley

Good thing we have Lowcountry Source around since our local rag has ignored an illegal meeting for days.

Joe Riley is involved.

According to John Steinberger, 

"The Charleston County School Board failed to comply with the South Carolina Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) when it held an unannounced meeting at the Charity Missionary Baptist Church in North Charleston."

"The nine school board members were notified of the event by e-mail from former Charleston Mayor Joe Riley through his e-mail address at The Citadel. School board members were asked to RSVP to Riley’s assistant at The Citadel, where he serves as an Endowed Chair of Government and Public Policy."

"Lowcountry Source has learned that the meeting was attended by six members – Chairwoman Kate Darby, Cindy Coats, Kevin Hollinshead, Priscilla Jeffrey, Eric Mack and Chris Staubes. That's a quorum.

Each of them should know better.

"Mayor Riley urged board members to display unity and to renew the contract of Superintendent Gerrita Postlewait. Postlewait’s contract expired in December 2017 and was not acted upon by the school board, automatically triggering a one-year extension."

Riley has tried--and succeeded--previously to influence the School Board's choices regarding superintendents. As mayor, and certainly as ex-mayor, he has no legal leg to stand on. Interestingly, Charity Missionary Baptist is led by Nelson Rivers III, a long-time organizer for the NAACP and now CAJM. Several black members of the Board have not supported much of Postlewait's agenda.