Charleston Co. Schools Employee Claims Retaliation Amid $3M Investigation

Charleston Co. Schools Employee Claims Retaliation Amid $3M Investigation

CHARLESTON, S.C. (WCSC) – Less than a year after a Charleston County School District employee complaint led to the investigation and ultimately the exit of the former superintendent, a new complaint against the replacement superintendent is threatening to do the same. However, there are notable differences surrounding the circumstances in which the complaints were filed that will likely spare Superintendent Anita Huggins from being fired- or even placed on administrative leave.

New Complaint Emerges

On Monday, the Charleston County School Board of Trustees received a letter from John Cobb, executive director of federal programs. Cobb’s main responsibilities revolve around approving expenses for programs that use federal funds from the American Rescue Plan Emergency Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief Fund. He’s part of a two-person team managing $163 million meant for use in 87 schools. In the letter dated June 9, Cobb says Huggins and Chief Human Resources Officer Bill Briggman created a hostile working environment.

Allegations of Retaliation

Cobb claims Huggins retaliated against him after he raised concerns about ARP ESSER activities Huggins approved. He says he was pressured to approve proposals for which he had no prior authorization. In one instance, he says he pushed for documentation before signing off on hiring an employee. He says Huggins gave that task to another employee and instructed them to forge Cobb’s signature. In another, he says he was pressured to approve $800,000 in ESSER Funds to construct an artificial turf field at North Charleston High School, something Cobb did not believe was covered by ESSER.

Investigation Underway

The letter to the board comes nearly a month after the district launched an independent investigation by an outside firm into issues with processing ESSER funds. Those issues were first discovered when vendors reported not receiving payment for their services. The full results of the investigation have not yet been released, but officials say fixing the problems will cost the district more than $3 million.

District Response

“The district strongly refutes the allegations of a hostile work environment created by the Superintendent or Chief of Human Resources,” a statement from CCSD reads. District officials stopped short of saying directly that Cobb was the subject of the investigation but said the ESSER investigation has been going on “for some time.”