Sunday, Aug

TCL announces new Area Commissioners, officers

From staff reports

The Technical College of the Lowcountry Commis- sion, the College’s governing board, recently elected Wil- liam Small as Chair.

Small represents Hampton County and has an extensive background in higher educa- tion and economic develop- ment.

“Dr. Small’s leadership is evident as he is a passionate advocate for bringing educa- tional and economic devel- opment opportunities to all communities in the Lowcoun- try,” TCL President Dr. Rich- ard Gough said in a release.

Bill Bootle, representing Beaufort County, was re-elect- ed Vice Chair, and Sheree Darien, representing Jasper County, was re-elected Secre- tary/Treasurer. David Smalls, representing Colleton Coun- ty, also continues to serve on the Commission.

Virtual

from page A1

Still, the decision to switch to an online-only model of in- struction had many parents concerned.

“It’s going to be difficult to manage your time and your home,” said Hollingsworth, who considers herself “bless- ed” that she can afford to stay at home with her daughter and two other children, while many working parents can- not.

“I can’t imagine what the other parents are going through who work or who are going to have to go back to work soon,” she said.

After schools shut down in the spring, Hollingsworth heard from some of her daughter’s therapists by phone who made suggestions for things they could work on together. She would upload some of the assignments to Google classroom but says that sort of remote instruction just wasn’t ideal.

She feels her daughter, who thrives on routine, has re- gressed somewhat.

“I would definitely say there’s been regression just in simple things because the routine has been lost,” she said.

It’s been tough trying to find or give her daughter what she needs because she and her husband aren’t trained therapists, she said.

“We’re parents and we can only do so much as parents,” she said, adding that she of- ten worries what the other parents and children in her daughter’s program are going through as well.

“These kids need more than just someone to check on them,” she said.

Jodie Srutek, a single moth- er with two girls in Bluffton schools, can relate.

“One of my children did not do well with virtual learn- ing,” she said, adding that her daughter who has had health issues needs a lot of hands-on, or one-on-one attention.

While she went ahead and signed up for the virtu- al option several weeks ago, Srutek, who does public advo- cacy work and is running for a Beaufort County Council seat,

In addition, three Area Commissioners were recently appointed by S.C. Governor Henry McMaster: – James Boozer represents Beaufort County. After grad- uating from the University of South Carolina and serving six years in the United States Air Force Reserve, Mr. Boozer served 29 years as the Presi- dent/CEO of MCAS Beaufort Federal Credit Union. He cur- rently serves as the Executive Director of Lowcountry Hab- itat for Humanity and has been very active in a number of area non-profits including the Beaufort Regional Cham- ber of Commerce, Beaufort’s Military Enhancement Com- mittee, Beaufort Charities and AMI Kids. – Randy Dolyniuk rep- resents Beaufort County and fills the seat vacated by the retirement of longtime TCL Commission Chair Gener- said the decision wasn’t easy.

“There were drawbacks to both (models of education) but at the end of the day, I had to make a choice,” she said.

For her, it was continuity that pushed her toward the virtual option.

If someone got sick in one of her child’s classrooms or schools, it was highly likely officials would have to close the classroom or school to quarantine those students anyway, she reasoned. So hav- ing the same model of educa- tion all year long would give her children the stability and consistency they needed.

“The reality is, this is the world we live in now, so we’re going to have to do the best with what we’ve been given,” she said.

Still, she remains sensitive to those who are struggling to figure out how they can work and keep their children at home at the same time.

“I’m not flippant about that,” she said. “These are dif- ficult decisions to make, so I am sensitive to people who feel like, ‘How can I do this and keep my job?’”

To address that problem, some parents she knows have formed small groups where each takes a turn in sharing the responsibility of watching children or helping with their work load on different days or at scheduled times so parents in the group can take turns working or tending to other things.

She also encourages par- ents with special needs or who may have a childcare issue, to reach out to their school’s so- cial worker or counselor.

In addition, working par- ents might find help in the form of the family medical leave act which in some cases may cover some of their child care expenses, she said.

The Families First Corona- virus Response Act (FFCRA), passed into law on March 18, requires certain employers to provide employees with paid sick leave or expanded family and medical leave for specified reasons related to COVID-19.

Under the FFCRA, an em- ployee qualifies for expanded family leave if the employee is caring for a child whose school or place of care is closed, or a child care provid- al Art Brown. Dolyniuk is a graduate of the University of Georgia and came to Hil- ton Head Island with Bank- ers Trust in 1981. He is the Founder and former Chair- man, President and CEO of CoastalSouth Bankshares, Inc. Dolyniuk is active in the community and has served and/or chaired the Mitchel- ville Preservation Project, Beaufort County Economic Development Corp., Commu- nity Foundation of the Low- country and the TCL Foun- dation. – Heath Duncan represents Beaufort County. Duncan grew up in Walterboro and graduated from Clemson University with a Bachelor of Science in Civil Engineer- ing. A registered Professional Engineer, Duncan currently serves as a Vice President with Ward Edwards, Inc. in

Introducing . . . Joe Wescott, DDS

Bluffton. er is unavailable, for reasons related to COVID-19.

“People should reach out to their HR (departments) if they’re curious if they qualify if child care is an issue,” she said.

Other parents like Nina Hedlund were happy the school district made the deci- sion to start with virtual edu- cation.

“My main concern was my kids’ health,” said the Beau- fort mother of three.

Though one of her sons does better with one-on-one, in-person instruction, Hed- lund was concerned it wasn’t realistic to send kids back to school with instructions to so- cial distance and wear masks – especially for elementa- ry-age school children.

“They would be more dis- tracted with the mask, I think, or not being able to hug or high-five their friends and having to wash their hands all the time,” she said.

And the burden of making sure children are protected during the day shouldn’t fall exclusively on teachers, she added.

“It’s just too much for them,” she said.

Still, she understands how some parents may want to send kids back saying often it comes down to each fami- ly’s situation. Hedlund has a friend who is a single parent and has three young children.

“So she’s like, ‘How am I going to juggle them at home while I work,” she said.

In the meantime, she thinks her son has actually benefited from virtual instruction since she has been able to spend quality one-on-one time with him at home.

Her only hope is that by the time he graduates in 2021, he will be able to have a “prop- er” graduation ceremony, she said.

“But it’s going to take ev- ery one doing their part,” she said, adding that she has been surprised by the level of outrage some parents have shown on social media over the district’s decision.

“They need to stop the fussing, and keep themselves healthy and start being re- spectful of everyone,” she said. “That shows our chil- dren that we’re better than this Coronavirus.”

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