Archives > 1976 South Carolina Code of Laws - Previous Versions > 2003 Session > Title 59

This statutory database is current through the 2003 Regular Session of the South Carolina General Assembly. Changes to the statutes enacted by the 2004 General Assembly, which will convene in January 2004, will be incorporated as soon as possible. Some changes enacted by the 2004 General Assembly may take immediate effect. The State of South Carolina and the South Carolina Legislative Council make no warranty as to the accuracy of the data, and users rely on the data entirely at their own risk.




SECTION 59-3-10. Election, bond and compensation of State Superintendent of Education.

The State Superintendent of Education shall be elected at each general election in the same manner as other State officers and shall enter upon the duties of his office at the time prescribed by law. Before entering upon the duties of his office he shall give bond for the use of the State in the penal sum of five thousand dollars, with good and sufficient sureties, to be approved by the Governor, conditioned for the faithful and impartial performance of the duties of his office, and he shall also, at the time of giving bond, take and subscribe the oath prescribed in Section 26 of Article III of the Constitution of the State, which shall be endorsed upon the back of the bond. The bond shall be filed with the Secretary of State, and by him recorded and, when so recorded, shall be filed with the State Treasurer. The Superintendent of Education shall receive as compensation for his services such sum as the General Assembly shall by law provide, payable monthly out of the State Treasury, and his traveling expenses, not exceeding three hundred dollars, shall be paid out of the State Treasury upon duly itemized accounts rendered by him.

SECTION 59-3-20. Vacancy in office.

In case a vacancy occurs in the office of State Superintendent of Education, from any cause, such vacancy shall be filled by the Governor, by and with the advice and consent of the Senate, and the person so appointed shall qualify within fifteen days from the date of such appointment or else the office shall be deemed vacant. If the vacancy occur during the recess of the Senate, the Governor shall fill the same by appointment until the Senate can act thereon.

SECTION 59-3-30. General duties.

The State Superintendent of Education shall:

(1) Serve as secretary and administrative officer to the State Board of Education.

(2) Have general supervision over and management of all public school funds provided by the State and Federal Governments.

(3) Organize, staff and administer a State Department of Education which shall include such division and departments as are necessary to render the maximum service to public education in the State.

(4) Keep the public informed as to the problems and needs of the public schools by constant contact with all school administrators and teachers, by his personal appearances at public gatherings and by information furnished to the various news media of the State.

(5) Have printed and distributed such bulletins, manuals, and circulars as he may deem necessary for the professional improvement of teachers and for the cultivation of public sentiment for public education, and have printed all forms necessary and proper for the administration of the State Department of Education.

(6) Administer, through the State Department of Education, all policies and procedures adopted by the State Board of Education.

(7) Assume such other responsibilities and perform such other duties as may be prescribed by law or as may be assigned by the State Board of Education.

SECTION 59-3-40. Delivery of property to successor.

The State Superintendent of Education shall deliver to his successor, within ten days after the expiration of his term of office, all books, papers, documents and other property belonging to his office.

SECTION 59-3-50. Statistical reports required by State Superintendent.

The trustees, officers or persons in charge of all literary, scientific or professional institutions of learning incorporated, supported or aided by the State and of all schools or private educational institutions shall, on or before the fifteenth day of July in each year, make a report in writing to the State Superintendent of Education of such statistics as the Superintendent shall prescribe relating to the number of pupils and instructors, courses of study, cost of tuition and the general condition of the institution or school under their charge. The Superintendent shall prepare blank forms of inquiry for such statistics and shall send the same to every such institution or school on or before the tenth day of May in each year. So much of such information as he may deem proper shall be incorporated in his annual report.

SECTION 59-3-60. Report to General Assembly.

The State Superintendent of Education shall make a report, through the Governor, to the General Assembly at each regular session thereof, showing:

(1) The whole number of pupils registered and the number enrolled as defined in Section 59-63-450 in the free common schools of this State during the year ending the thirtieth day of the last preceding June and the number in each county registered and the number enrolled as defined in said section during the same period;

(2) The number of whites and the number of colored, of each sex, attending the schools;

(3) The number of free schools in the State;

(4) The number of pupils studying each of the branches taught;

(5) The average wages paid to teachers of each sex, and to the principals of schools and departments in the schools;

(6) The number of schoolhouses erected during the year and the location, material and cost thereof;

(7) The number previously erected, the material of their construction, their condition and value and the number with the grounds enclosed;

(8) The counties in which teachers' institutes were held, and the number attending the institutes in each county; and

(9) Such other statistical information as he may deem important, together with such plans as he may have matured and the State Board of Education may have recommended for the management and improvement of the school fund and for the more perfect organization and efficiency of the free public schools.

All State institutions of higher learning shall make an annual report on or before the first day of September of each year to the State Superintendent of Education, embracing a detailed account of the operations of such institutions, including the expenditure of the public moneys for the current scholastic year. The State Superintendent of Education shall include such reports in his annual report to the General Assembly.

SECTION 59-3-70. Consolidated county superintendents' reports forwarded to General Assembly.

The State Superintendent of Education shall consolidate the reports received from the county superintendents of education and shall forward them to the General Assembly at its next regular session.

SECTION 59-3-80. Cooperation with Federal Government in program for children of working mothers.

The State Department of Education shall have the power to cooperate with the Federal Government, its agencies or instrumentalities, in the administration of an educational program for the care of pre-school children, ages two to six, and children of school age who are without home care during the day before and after school hours due to employment of their mothers. The State Department of Education shall receive and expend all funds made available to the Department by the Federal Government for administration, supervision and coordination of state and local programs to meet such needs.

SECTION 59-3-90. In-service training programs for teachers.

The State Department of Education shall provide recommendations and assist districts in conducting in-service training programs for teachers based on the findings and research it derives from the study of effective schools and classrooms and from district plans developed in accordance with Section 59-139-10. All of the school districts of this State must have implemented an on-going, long-range professional development training program in support of effective schools and classrooms and as indicated by district plans no later than the 1994-95 school year.