{"id":4370,"date":"2026-08-06T10:07:02","date_gmt":"2026-08-06T10:07:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/usmovingexpertss.com\/?p=4370"},"modified":"2026-08-06T10:07:02","modified_gmt":"2026-08-06T10:07:02","slug":"sc-to-cap-golden-parachutes-for-district-superintendents-after-1-3m-in-payouts","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/usmovingexpertss.com\/?p=4370","title":{"rendered":"SC to cap \u2018golden parachutes\u2019 for district superintendents after $1.3M in payouts"},"content":{"rendered":"<article><!-- --><!-- --><!-- WPS-5038 -- removed the script from WPS and added the placeholder for trinity player --><!-- --><!-- --><!-- --><!-- --><!-- --><!-- CONTENT --><!--[--><!--[--><\/p>\n<p>South Carolina taxpayers have watched more than $1.3 million flow out of Midlands school districts over the past five years \u2014 not to teachers, textbooks or classrooms, but to superintendents paid handsomely to leave jobs before their contracts ended.<\/p>\n<p>Read more <a href=\"https:\/\/usmovingexpertss.com\/?p=4368\">\u2018Haunted\u2019 historic mansion in SC, once a funeral home, up for sale. Take a look<\/a><\/p>\n<p><!-- --><!--]--><!--[--><\/p>\n<p>That\u2019s about to change. The South Carolina General Assembly is poised to pass a state budget containing a measure that would cap what local school boards can pay to buy out a superintendent\u2019s contract. Under the proposal, championed by State Superintendent Ellen Weaver, mutual separation agreements could not exceed one year\u2019s salary or the remainder of the contract value, whichever is less.<\/p>\n<p><!-- --><!--]--><!--[--><\/p>\n<h2>The payouts that prompted the crackdown<\/h2>\n<p><!-- --><!--]--><!--[--><\/p>\n<p>The numbers tell the story lawmakers could no longer ignore.<\/p>\n<p><!--]--><!--[--><\/p>\n<p>In June 2021, <u>Lexington-Richland 5 agreed to pay former Superintendent Christina Melton $226,368<\/u> to resign. The settlement was negotiated behind closed doors without a public vote, prompting a lawsuit from The State Media Co. that ultimately forced the board to approve the agreement publicly. Melton had been <u>named South Carolina superintendent of the year<\/u> just weeks before her resignation.<\/p>\n<p><!-- --><!--]--><!--[--><\/p>\n<p>A year later, <u>Lexington 2 paid Superintendent Nicholas Wade $240,000<\/u> \u2014 $60,000 above his $180,000 base salary \u2014 to end his contract nearly a year early. The district also picked up $10,000 in his attorney\u2019s fees. Wade had served just one year on the job.<\/p>\n<p>Read more <a href=\"https:\/\/usmovingexpertss.com\/?p=4366\">NC GOP Rep. Chuck Edwards ends reelection campaign after sexual harassment report<\/a><\/p>\n<p><!--]--><!--[--><\/p>\n<p>Then came the biggest payout of all. In January 2023, <u>Richland 2 Superintendent Baron Davis resigned<\/u> after a nearly six-hour, closed-door school board meeting. The <u>severance agreement handed Davis $615,000<\/u>: a $415,518.68 lump sum, $124,481.32 for accrued sick and vacation leave and another $75,000 for unspecified \u201cdisputed claims.\u201d Davis had received a contract extension through 2026 just four months before his resignation, at an annual salary of $254,681.<\/p>\n<p><!-- --><!--]--><!--[--><\/p>\n<p>And in November 2024, <u>Richland 1 announced Superintendent Craig Witherspoon would depart in June 2025<\/u> with a full year\u2019s pay \u2014 his salary had been raised to $258,121 \u2014 plus accrued leave and six months of health insurance.<\/p>\n<p><!-- --><!--]--><!--[--><\/p>\n<p><i>The summary above was compiled with the help of AI tools and edited by journalists. The source reporting referenced above was written and edited entirely by journalists.<\/i><\/p>\n<p>Read more <a href=\"https:\/\/usmovingexpertss.com\/?p=4365\">Data center developer wants to build own power plant. Does it need SC\u2019s approval?<\/a><\/p>\n<p><!--]--><!--]--><!-- --><!-- --><!-- --><!-- --><!-- --><\/article>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>SC will soon restrict the amount school boards can pay to buy out superintendent contracts following large payouts to four Midlands district leaders since 2021.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":4369,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-4370","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-interesting"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v27.6 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>SC to cap \u2018golden parachutes\u2019 for district superintendents after $1.3M in payouts - US Moving Experts<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/usmovingexpertss.com\/?p=4370\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"SC to cap \u2018golden parachutes\u2019 for district superintendents after $1.3M in payouts - 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