Richland 1 board addresses payroll errors after first teacher paychecks; administration says adjustments underway

Public comment and a string of commissioner questions on Sept. 10 forced Richland County School District 1 officials to explain errors tied to the first teacher paychecks under a newly created salary schedule.

Scott Barber, a parent and public commenter, urged the board to "fix the problems" after teachers reported unexpected changes to their pay, saying the district "has been less than forthcoming and being transparent about how it happened." Barber asked how the board was holding the superintendent accountable and called on officials to address the matter so teachers would not be driven to leave.

The board heard a detailed explanation from CFO Sherry Matthews Hazel and Superintendent Dr. Witherspoon. Matthews Hazel said the district implemented a new teacher salary schedule for 2024–25 that raised the starting salary to $50,100 and required alignment to state-provided increments. The first payroll, issued Aug. 30, included about 2,000 of roughly 5,000 payroll transactions totaling about $9,600,000. While most employees were paid correctly, the district identified 232 returning teachers whose pay required a one-time adjustment that averaged about $52 for the year. "It is a one-time adjustment because the next paycheck would be correct," Matthews Hazel said.

Commissioner Lomenac and others pressed administration on why teachers saw larger differences when comparing posted schedules, with Lomenac saying some teachers reported being about $1,100 short compared with prior expectations. Matthews Hazel and Dr. Witherspoon said the district created a brand-new schedule that cannot be compared directly to the old one "like apples and oranges" and that the $52 figure reflects the average one-time correction, not a repeated per-pay discrepancy. The administration said the district sent personalized letters to affected teachers with exact amounts and a hotline for questions.

Board members also asked for documentation the board can review: Lomenac requested the originally posted salary schedule and the updated schedule "so that we can look" and determine which teachers are affected. Dr. Witherspoon agreed to provide comparatives and said internal controls have been implemented "to prevent similar issues in the future when we have to create a whole new salary schedule." The board was told honoring higher starting salaries offered to 134 new hires will cost about $38,000 in the current year; the district said it will reflect those hires' experience levels in the following year.

The district framed the problem as an alignment issue after building a schedule from scratch to reflect state increments and the legislative increase. Commissioners asked for clearer communications and for the district to apologize directly to staff; Weston and others said more personal outreach would be appropriate. Dr. Witherspoon said more detailed information and a job description for the ombudsman (who will receive some hotline calls) will be provided later in the week.

The board did not take formal disciplinary action at the meeting; instead, members requested documents and additional detail and the administration said it would provide updates and individualized notices to affected employees.