Posted on August 4, 2018
By Greg Oliver
The Journal
SENECA — With a mother and grandmother who worked as teachers, Sandra Sloan grew up in a family of educators.
She has been involved in education for most of her professional life and currently serves as counselor for South Carolina Vocational Rehabilitation on Wells Highway.
But Sloan wants to go one step further. She filed this week to run for the Oconee County School Board District 3 seat. That seat, which represents the Seneca area, has long been held by school board chairman Andy Inabinet.
“I just made the decision (to run) because, as an educator, I am concerned as well as interested in our school system and would just like to be part of the decision-making and help be part of the process in guiding our schools as they move forward,” Sloan said Thursday afternoon. “It’s about being another voice in looking at our school system and our children and doing the right thing for our students as they pursue their career and technical objectives.
“Today, many students in technical and career markets have a higher salary than bachelor or graduate students or Ph.D.s,” she added. “I just want students to understand and be aware of all the opportunities for certification in career and technical aspects.”
A 1979 graduate of Seneca High School, Sloan earned her associate of arts degree in business education from Anderson College, which was a two-year junior college at the time before becoming Anderson University. Sloan then went on to receive her bachelor’s degree in human resource management from Southern Wesleyan University and two masters degrees — in school leadership and community counseling, as well as a Ph.D. in school leadership with a focus on secondary education at Capella University.
Sloan taught in high schools for 17 years, focusing on business education, and has also taught at Tri-County Technical College. She also worked at Duke Energy for 13 years.
For the past year and a half, Sloan has worked at Vocational Rehabilitation — an agency that serves 100 high school students from Oconee and Pickens counties.
Sloan also wants to see the School District of Oconee County become more diversified in its employee pool.
“I feel Oconee needs to look at diversifying our school staff more,” Sloan said. “This will allow us, as a society, to respect and value diverse backgrounds, world views and overall gain an appreciation for diversity. Our world is suffering today from a lack of diverse understandings about our fellow man. I believe that diversity education should begin in our homes and continue into our schools.”
She said she also wants to hear from residents.
“I would love to hear the concerns from residents of Oconee County in regards to our school system — the things they’re proud of and the things they have concerns about,” she said. “I’m just happy to have an opportunity to run in this position on the school board.”
The school board election will be part of the Nov. 6 general election. Candidate filings will continue through noon Thursday at the School District of Oconee County office on Pine Street in Walhalla.
goliver@upstatetoday.com | (864) 973-6687
Follow on Twitter @JournalGO
