Issue Position: Issues

Issue Position

Beaufort County, is one of the most prosperous counties in the state. Still, near half of our children qualify for free or reduced lunches at school. Sadly, many of these young folks will join a self-perpetuating cycle of dependency unless we do something to disrupt their descent. Instead of writing these students off, I believe that education is the only way to give them a chance. Given the right tools, I expect these kids to change our community and our country for the better. One of our "free lunch" kids could be the one to cure cancer or invent the next iPhone.

Currently, close to one in four South Carolina students leave high school without graduating. This represents a tremendous waste of billions of our tax dollars and our human capital. To address that, three years ago, we started a program called "GED Camp" here on Hilton Head Island. The "camp," developed with several partners from our faith community helps adults who have not graduated from High School to obtain a General Educational Development or GED Diploma. As part of the camp, each of our students receive individualized instruction from trained volunteers that enables the student to take and pass the test and be awarded a GED diploma.

Many of the business leaders on Hilton Head Island and around Beaufort County would love to expand, but are hamstrung by a lack of qualified workers. A great number of potentially qualified workers lack the requisite education or credentials. Expanding the workforce and uniting newly qualified candidates with employers are the downstream effects of the "GED Camp" program. The ultimate outcome is a lifting of the general prosperity in our area with the chance to disrupt the self-perpetuating cycle of generational dependency. We can then replace it with a virtuous cycle of an ever-expanding job market filled by an ever-more qualified workforce, who, in turn, can better maintain stable families without government assistance and reap the pride that you know comes with making a living.

Interestingly enough, as I speak with members of our current legislative delegation, it seems that their agenda dovetails precisely with my pro- business, pro-education, smaller government stance. For example, as a result of the success of the GED Camp project, the South Carolina Commission on Higher Education has asked me to run a pilot program called "Know2." It is essentially a focused effort to change the view among populations that don't typically participate in post-secondary education or technical training. We are essentially selling the idea of college or technical training like Levi's sells jeans. The big difference is that a pair of cool jeans makes you cool for a week, whereas a college degree makes you prosperous and responsible for a lifetime.

As a small-government conservative, I don't believe that more government, offering more handouts and establishing more departments will disrupt self-perpetuating cycles of dependency. As your state representative, I will work hard to develop our workforce and release the capacity of our citizens to help their neighbors, thus reducing the strain on our state government.

Source