After Lexington school data breach, IT director heads to neighboring district
The information technology director at a school district that suffered a debilitating data breach has moved to a similar job in a neighboring school district just weeks later.
Jenny Garris started work this week as the new executive director of information technology with Lexington 1, the school district announced this week. Garris was previously the technology director in Lexington-Richland 5, which a month ago was struck by a data breach that paralyzed schools and disrupted district services.
Although schools in the Chapin-Irmo area were closed for the summer when the district’s systems were hacked, the opening of high school summer classes had to be delayed a week and the payout of a year-end bonus for school staff was also delayed.
Lexington-Richland 5 superintendent Akil Ross said the breach appeared to be the work of “malicious actors outside of the district.” The State Law Enforcement Division is also investigating the incident.
At the last school board meeting in June, Ross told board members the district is still tracking what data the hackers may have accessed.
“Our investigation reveals some data was taken from the district network,” Ross said. “We are still working with third party experts to determine the scope and nature of the impacted data. ... At this time, we have no reason to believe sensitive data is being misused.”
Lexington 1’s school board approved Garris’s hiring at its June 10 board meeting, about a week after the trouble in Lexington-Richland 5 broke out.
“[In Lexington-Richland 5], she leads a 25-member team overseeing IT infrastructure, digital learning environments, and cybersecurity initiatives,” Lexington 1 said in an announcement this week about Garris starting work in the district. “Her work has focused on aligning technology services with instructional priorities and ensuring equitable access to devices and digital tools.”
Garris told The State the data breach “played no part at all” in her departure from Lexington-Richland 5.
“All decisions and timelines were in process before the data breach occurred,” she said. “The implications otherwise have no basis at all.”
Garris previously worked as an assistant principal and academic achievement specialist, “championing the integration of technology to improve learning outcomes,” the news release says. She also oversaw technology-focused initiatives and grant programs as a middle school teacher.
For its part, Lexington-Richland 5 announced June 24 that Kendrick Davis, the district’s current technology infrastructure specialist, would replace Garris as the district’s IT director. A U.S. Army veteran, he has “more than 20 years of experience in network infrastructure design, planning and implementation,” the district said.
The announcement of Davis’ promotion simply said Garris has “taken a new position outside of the district.”
This story was originally published July 3, 2025 at 12:20 PM.
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