Tag: David Cox

Katrina Morrison Endorses Johnny Gardner for County Chairman

Local activist and former county council chairman candidate Katrina Morrison announced yesterday that she is endorsing incumbent county council Chairman Johnny Gardner in the June 28th Republican Primary runoff election.
“There is no question Johnny Gardner is a much better choice for county council chairman than Mark Lazarus,” Morrison said. “I intend to do everything I can to see Gardner is reelected.”
One of the four candidates who initially filed in the county council chairman primary, Morrison has been a vocal critic of the virtually unrestrained development, especially in or near wetlands, that has gone on in the county in recent years.
Morrison received over 6,000 votes in the first round of the primary virtually all of which would have gone to Gardner had Morrison not been in the race, leaving Gardner and Lazarus in a virtual tie in the first round of voting.
Lazarus outspent Gardner nearly 10 to 1 in the first round of the primary with virtually all of his campaign contributions coming from the development and tourism cabal. The Lazarus campaign was also the beneficiary of four mailers paid for by the S. C. Association of Realtors PAC, which added approximately $80,000 more to the elect Lazarus effort.
The cabal’s goal is to elect candidates who will remove all restrictions on development and who will vote to use county tax dollars to fund Interstate 73 construction.

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Update on School Board Chairman Race

Voters will be voting Tuesday for which of three candidates they want to lead the policy making board of Horry County Schools for the next four years.
Two of those candidates, David Cox and Helen Smith, are currently serving members of the school board. The third candidate is retiring teacher Darrell Ricketts. Smith, in fact, has prior service as school board chairman, although Smith’s six-year tenure as chairman ended 20 years ago.
Ricketts presents an interesting question about his qualifications to lead the school board.
I researched old files to review the reasons for Ricketts dismissal as principal from Aynor High School in summer 2004.
Ricketts served as principal of Aynor High School from 1994-2004 until he was removed from that position after an independent investigation, ordered by the school district, concluded in its report that Ricketts improperly altered transcripts and tampered with grades and credits in an attempt to manipulate the school’s state report card rating.
In an initial response to the investigative findings in the report, Ricketts called them one opinion that he disputed.
Later media reports quoted Ricketts as saying his actions were civil disobedience (the refusal to comply with certain laws as an act of protest) to keep marginal students in school.
However, his actions were also apparently taken to get around exit exam requirements established by state legislation.
A Sun News editorial of November 18, 2004 stated, “Ricketts gave up on the youngsters for whose benefit he manipulated the testing system. In doing so, he effectively denied them their last chance to learn critical skills they need to be successful as adults. For that reason, especially, he deserves the punishment that the Horry County Schools bestowed upon him.”
It is now up to voters to decide if those past actions are acceptable in someone who is a candidate for the chair of the policy making body of Horry County Schools.

Which Candidate is Best Qualified to Lead Horry County School Board?

The race for the Republican nomination for Horry County School Board Chairman has contrasts among the candidates that should be looked at.
School boards are under attack nationwide in a concerted effort by the Club for Growth to change the makeup of school boards throughout the country for its own goals. Unfortunately, that effort has little to do with what is best for students.
Current school board member David Cox brings 14 years serving on the board, eight years as the member for District 9 and six as the current member for District 4. Cox has the overwhelming support of current board members in his run for chairman. Cox has the longest current continuous service on the school board.
Current school board member for District 6, Helen Smith, returned to the board in 2018 after a 16-year hiatus. Smith previously served as District 6 member from 1982-1996 and as board chairman from 1996-2002. Needless to say, much has changed in Horry County schools since she ended her term as chairman 20 years ago.
The third candidate for school board chairman, Darrell Ricketts, brings the most interesting curriculum vitae to the race.
Ricketts is retiring as a teacher at Socastee High School this year. However, his tenure in Horry County Schools is checkered.
Ricketts was once the principal at Aynor High School until he was caught changing the grades of over 20 students in order to make school performance look better. When that issue came to light, Ricketts was fired from his principal position and his principal certification by the S. C. Department of Education was terminated. The state left his teacher certification in place allowing him to serve as an agricultural education teacher at Socastee High School.

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David Cox and Shanda Allen for Horry County School Board

When Horry County voters go to the polls for primary balloting next week, two candidates for Horry County School Board, David Cox and Shanda Allen, stand out in their respective races.

David Cox is currently the school board vice chairman. He has represented Horry County District 9 for two terms. Having recently moved to Market Common, Cox is a candidate for the Horry County School Board District 4 Republican nomination.

Cox has gained valuable experience during his two terms on the school board. He wants to bring that experience to the citizens of District 4.

“Four out of the five new schools we contracted for last fall will be built in District 4,” Cox said. “I believe my experience on the school board can be valuable to the parents and students of District 4 as it goes through significant change in the next 12-18 months.”

Cox is a fiscal conservative who has helped hold the line on tax rates for Horry County residents. During his eight years of service, the school board has reduced tax rates by 18 mils while maintaining the building and maintenance requirements of one of the fastest growing school districts in the state.

In addition, Horry County high school students have continued to increase their SAT and ACT scores, as well as earning tens of millions of dollars of scholarships to colleges.

“I am proud of my eight years of service on the school board and hope the citizens of District Four will vote to allow me to continue to bring my experience to board decisions for the benefit of all the students in Horry County,” Cox said.

Shanda Allen brings considerable experience to her candidacy for the Horry County School Board District 11 Republican nomination.

She was a substitute teacher in Horry County Schools for 10 years, giving her significant knowledge of the classroom needs of both teachers and students.

David Cox in School Board District Four Race

David Cox, a veteran of two terms of service on the Horry County School Board, is seeking to represent a new district in the upcoming general election.

Cox was first elected to the school board by the citizens of District Nine in 2008 and was reelected in 2012.

Recently, however, Cox and his family moved to a new home in District Four.

“We took advantage of an opportunity to purchase property at a good price,” said Cox. “I expected to complete my second term and that would be all I would serve.”

After Kay Loftus, the school board member for District Four, passed away several months ago, Cox decided to run for the vacant seat.

“I felt I could bring my experience to the citizens as District Four goes through some significant changes in the next several years,” said Cox. “Four of the five new schools we recently contracted to build will be in District Four.”

Currently serving as Vice Chairman of the school board, Cox listed several of the initiatives he is proud of over his two terms of service:

Lowered the tax millage rate by 18 mils
Continuing improvement SAT and ACT scores among high school students
Implemented Professional Device 4 Learning for students Grade 3 and up
Continuing increase of college scholarship money earned by Horry County high school seniors ($67 million total by 2015 Horry County Schools graduates)

The Professional Device 4 Learning initiative gives each child their own I Pod linked to a central I Pod so the teacher can monitor the work of each individual child.

“I believe it gives every student a level playing field by allowing each student to learn at his or her own pace,” said Cox. “We all know that no two students learn in exactly the same way. This allows each student to learn at their own pace, yet still reach the final learning goals for the year.”