Berkeley County Schools to consider eliminating child-nutrition coordinator position; hearing draws staff pleas

Berkeley County Schools administrators presented a proposed reduction in force at a public hearing that would eliminate the child-nutrition system coordinator position held by Lewis Harden, and the board scheduled a vote for April 30.

The administration’s representative said the central-office “phase 2” reorganization is intended to realign people and federal funds “to where they have the greatest impact,” and that the combined phase 1 and 2 restructures would save the district “nearly $1,500,000 annually.” Superintendent Ryan Sachs described the plan as a way to concentrate support at schools. "We are aligning people, resources as well as our federal funds to where they have the greatest impact and that is at the point of teaching and learning," Sachs said.

But Harden and multiple child-nutrition staff told the board the coordinator role includes both technology and operational duties that they said are essential to daily meal service across the county’s 32 schools. "My technology counts for maybe 15% of my position," Lewis Harden said,…