Richland 1 chief admits $3.1 million mistake, skirts parents’ questions

Richland 1 school district officials are working through a “personnel matter,” the district’s chief said, after missing a deadline to be reimbursed $3.1 million in federal funding for impoverished schools.

Superintendent Craig Witherspoon was grilled about the issue at a town hall-style meeting last week in which Witherspoon acknowledged the deadline was missed to receive federal Title I reimbursement money but refused to say the funds had been “wasted.”

“We have to deal with it, which we are,” Witherspoon said at the meeting Thursday at St. Andrews Middle School. “No, we didn’t waste. Those students are getting devices. They’re getting more books and so forth for literacy,” he said, referring to students in the district’s 20 schools that receive Title I funding for disadvantaged students.

The district receives about $9 million in Title I funding each year.

When asked by The State newspaper Wednesday whether any – and specifically which – employees had been disciplined, fired or otherwise held accountable as a result of the missed Title I deadline, district spokeswoman Karen York said, “No personnel information will be released at this time because those matters are confidential. There is an ongoing investigation.”

Witherspoon said at last week’s town hall that the district is “working through” finding other sources to cover the money, which has already been spent but will now not be reimbursed by the federal Title I program.

“It has to come from other funds,” Witherspoon said, without being specific about where the $3.1 million will be drawn from. “But it will not come from anything that was previously allocated to something.”

Some parents in attendance at the meeting pressed Witherspoon on what the district is doing to discipline those responsible for missing the funding deadline and to ensure it doesn’t happen again.

Jennifer Purdy, a Columbia lawyer and Richland 1 parent, told The State she does not have confidence that the district’s leadership could prevent a mistake like this happening again.

“If I lost $3.1million for my employer, I would be fired, no questions asked,” she told Witherspoon at last week’s meeting. “I would also be sued by my client for malpractice.”

When Witherspoon said the district is dealing with “a personnel aspect to this that I can’t talk about,” Purdy bluntly asked Witherspoon if he would be willing to resign over the issue.

“I’ve answered your question,” Witherspoon responded. “Next question, please.”

This story was originally published September 28, 2016 at 6:56 PM with the headline "Richland 1 chief admits $3.1 million mistake, skirts parents’ questions."