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Parent Yolanda Sumpter says Kershaw County schools denied IEP services and raised civil-rights concerns
Summary
At the May 5 school board meeting, parent Yolanda Sumpter said her son was repeatedly denied special-education services and described an August incident where she was blocked from entering a school and told her children could be removed from the district; she asked the board to investigate.
Yolanda Sumpter identified herself during the Kershaw County School Board’s public forum and told trustees she has spent four years seeking special-education services for her son, Logan, and believes the district unlawfully denied him support.
Sumpter said classroom teachers flagged academic concerns and that school staff “unequivocally denied” services during the IEP process. She said outside evaluations show Logan has dyslexia and that he is being reevaluated for dysgraphia and fine-motor deficits. “Logan was denied occupational services here at Kershaw County,” Sumpter said. She told the board she paid about $2,500 to bring him for assessment and that, under “child find and IDEA,” he should have received services earlier.
Sumpter also described an incident she said occurred on Aug. 20 when, after parking in a handicapped space, she was told she could not enter the school and that police, alongside a school administrator, warned her her children “would no longer be allowed to be served within the Kershaw County School District.” She called that treatment a civil-rights violation and said the treatment worsened her family’s situation.
The parent said she ultimately hired a team that included a psychologist, a speech pathologist and an educational consultant-turned-lawyer, and that only after advocating with that team did school staff begin to listen. She asked the board to investigate her claims, speak with the school team, and follow up with her directly.
Chair Carla Creswell said the board could not answer questions during public forum but that “someone will be in touch with you.” No district response or corrective action was recorded on the meeting record during the forum; Sumpter’s request for an investigation remained unresolved by the end of the session.
Why it matters: Sumpter invoked federal special-education protections and alleged both denial of services under the district’s IEP process and discriminatory treatment related to disability accommodations. The board’s follow-up and any staff findings would determine whether procedural or legal remedies are required.
What’s next: The chair said district staff would contact Sumpter; the transcript records no subsequent public action or board vote to initiate an investigation.
