Marlboro County School District gives early approval to massive overhaul as $6.8M budget shortfall looms
With the new fiscal year set to begin July 1, getting a spending plan in place is critical for a number of reasons including grant submissions and contract renewals.
'The longer we go without a budget, the more we're going to have to continue to lose teachers, because that's what's happening,' Superintendent Helena Tillar said during a nearly two-hour board meeting. 'We don't have a budget, and they don't feel secure.'
Officials last week spent hours reviewing and eventually rejecting three options, so district leaders came back with a fourth on Tuesday that would trim the deficit to $691,000.
Here's what it includes:
Reducing service days from 240 to between 220 and 210 for assistant principals, bookkeepers, elementary and middle school guidance counselors and receptionists
Consolidating schools to include Bennettsville Elementary, Blenheim Elementary, Wallace Elementary Middle and McColl Middle
Reallocation of 14 positions from general fund money to federal funds
Closure of Bennettsville Intermediate and Clio Elementary
Relocation of pre-kindergarten to second graders from Clio Elementary to Bennettsville Primary School by sending Clio third graders to Blenheim Elementary
Relocation of Bennettsville Intermediate fourth and fifth graders to Blenheim
Fill vacancies in-house
Option to move district's alternative program into Bennettsville Intermediate
Closure of AMI center with option for rentals
Salary freezes for all personnel expect teachers
Tillar said deeper reductions such as removing Chromebooks from classrooms would affect curriculum and hinder academic performance in the roughly 4,500-student district.
'To eliminate Chromebooks, we'd be going backwards in our instructional programs,' she said. 'Every district has one-to-one technology that they use with their students, and so for us to take those, we'd be crippling our students.'
Board members were split on the so-called 'Option D,' but approved its first reading to give district leaders a blueprint. The board is set to meet again on June 16 for a public hearing and second vote before final approval sometime later this month.
'I think it would give us stability in the district, because a lot of staff are uneasy,' board member Bryan Sweatt said. 'This is contract time, and I know a lot of them are looking.'
Board members said a tax hike could be possible in the future not only to avoid another budget crisis, but to boost reserve funds and avoid possible layoffs. The district hasn't approved a mill rate increase in more than a decade.
'Since 2014, we've been trying to save taxpayers money, and that's really what got us here,' board member Michael Toms said.
Board member Danny Driggers agreed.
'We either get rid of the people that we want to lead our education forward, or we tax the people that's paying them. That's a tough decision,' he said.
* * *
Adam Benson joined the News13 digital team in January 2024. He is a veteran South Carolina reporter with previous stops at the Greenwood Index-Journal, Post & Courier and The Sun News in Myrtle Beach. Adam is a Boston native and University of Utah graduate. Follow Adam on X, formerly Twitter, at @AdamNewshound12. See more of his work here.
Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
CNBC
4 days ago
- CNBC
Google faces loss of Chrome as Perplexity bid adds drama to looming breakup decision
Perplexity AI's bid on Tuesday to buy Google's Chrome browser for $34.5 billion represents a dramatic moment for the internet search giant, a week before it celebrates the 20th anniversary of its IPO. Even if analysts aren't taking the offer very seriously, Perplexity's move marks a turning point. It's the first time an outside party has made such a public and specific effort to strip out a key piece of Google, which is currently awaiting a judge's decision on whether it must take significant divestiture steps following a ruling last year that the company has held a monopoly in its core search market. The ruling was widely viewed as the most important antitrust decision in the tech industry since the case against Microsoft more than two decades ago. The U.S. Department of Justice, which filed the landmark case against Google in 2020, indicated after its victory in court that it was considering a possible breakup of Google as an antitrust remedy. Soon after that, the DOJ explicitly called for Google to divest Chrome to create a more equal playing field for search competitors. As is, Google bundles search and other services into Chrome and preinstalls the browser on Chromebooks. Google Legal Chief Kent Walker said in response to the DOJ that its "approach would result in unprecedented government overreach" and would harm the country's effort to maintain economic and tech leadership. With the remedies decision expected this month, investors have a lot to consider regarding the future value of Google and parent Alphabet. The company is shelling out tens of billions of dollars a year on artificial intelligence infrastructure and AI services while facing the risk that consumers will be spending a lot less time on traditional search as ChatGPT and other AI-powered alternatives provide new ways to access information. But while Alphabet still counts on search-related ads for the majority of its revenue, the company has been diversifying over the past decade. October will mark 10 years since the creation of Alphabet as a holding company, with Google as its prime subsidiary. "This new structure will allow us to keep tremendous focus on the extraordinary opportunities we have inside of Google," co-founder Larry Page said in a blog post at the time. Page moved from CEO of Google to become chief executive of Alphabet, promoting Sundar Pichai, who had been a senior vice president in charge of internet businesses, to run Google. Four years later, Pichai replaced page as Alphabet CEO. On Pichai's watch, Alphabet's market cap has jumped more than 150% to $2.5 trillion. With an increasingly dominant position on the internet, Pichai and team have had to continue looking for growth areas, particularly in AI, while simultaneously fending off an aggressive set of regulators in the U.S. and Europe. Analysts have taken the opportunity to place estimated values on Alphabet's various businesses, partly in the event that the company is ever forced into drastic measures. Some have even suggested it could be a good thing for shareholders. "We believe the only way forward for Alphabet is a complete breakup that would allow investors to own the business they actually want," analysts at D.A. Davidson have written in a series of notes this year. Alphabet didn't respond to a request for comment. Here's a breakdown of how some analysts value Alphabet's top non-search assets: The browser is key to Alphabet's ad business, which uses data from Chrome to help with targeted advertisements. Google originally launched Chrome in 2008 as an effort to "add value for users and, at the same time, help drive innovation on the web." Perplexity's offer doesn't stack up to analyst estimates, but it's still much higher than Perplexity's own valuation, which reached $18 billion in July. Perplexity, which is best known for its AI-powered search engine that gives users simple answers to inquiries, said investors are on board to foot the bill. However, the company didn't name the prospective backers. Barclays analysts called the possibility of a Chrome divestiture a "black swan" risk, warning of a potential 15% to 25% drop in Alphabet's stock should it occur. They estimate that Chrome drives around 35% of Google's search revenue. If a deal for Chrome is on the table, analysts at Raymond James value the browser at $50 billion, based on 2.25 billion users and Google's revenue share agreements with phone manufacturers that preinstall Chrome on devices. That's inline with where Gabriel Weinberg, CEO of rival search company DuckDuckGo, values Chrome. Weinberg, who testified in the antitrust trial, said in April that Chrome could be sold for up to $50 billion if a spinout was required. Weinberg said his estimate was based on "back-of-the-envelope" math, looking at Chrome's user base. Bob O'Donnell of market research firm TECHnalysis Research, cautioned that Chrome is "not directly monetizable," because it serves as a gateway and that it's "not clear how you measure that from a pure revenue-generating perspective." Google's cloud unit, which is third in the cloud infrastructure market behind Amazon Web Services and Microsoft Azure, is one of Alphabet's key growth engines and its biggest business outside of digital advertising. Google began its big push into the market about a decade ago, even though it officially launched what was called the Google Cloud Platform (GCP) in 2011. The unit was rebranded as just Google Cloud in 2016. Like AWS and Azure, Google Cloud generates revenue from businesses ranging from startups to large enterprises that run workloads on the company's servers. Additionally, customers pay for products like Google Workspace, the company's suite of productivity apps and collaboration tools. In 2020, Google began breaking out its cloud business in financial statements, starting with revenue. In the fourth quarter of 2020, the first time Google included profit metrics for the unit, it recorded an operating loss of $1.24 billion. The business turned profitable in 2023, and is now generating healthy margins. In the second quarter of 2025, Google reported an operating profit for the cloud business of $2.8 billion on revenue of $13.6 billion. Demand is so high that the company's cloud services now have a backlog, a measure of future committed revenue, of $106 billion, CFO Anat Ashkenazi said on the earnings call. In March, Google agreed to acquire cloud security vendor Wiz for $32 billion, the company's largest deal ever. Analysts at Wedbush Securities value Google's cloud at $602 billion, while TD Cowen in May put the number at about $549 billion. For Raymond James, the valuation is $579 billion. D.A. Davidson analysts, who have the highest ascribed valuation at $682 billion, and TD Cowen analysts note that while Google still trails AWS and Azure, it's growing faster than Amazon's cloud business and has the potential for a premium valuation. That's based on its AI infrastructure, strong data analytics stack, and ability to capture more enterprise business. It would be "one of the best standalone software stocks," D.A. Davidson analysts wrote in July. Google's $1.65 billion purchase of YouTube in 2006 is generally viewed as one of the best acquisitions ever by an internet company, alongside Facebook's $1 billion deal for Instagram in 2012. YouTube is the largest video site on the web and a big part of Google's ad business. In the second quarter, YouTube ad revenue increased 13% to $9.8 billion, accounting for 14% of Google's total ad sales. Valuation estimates vary tremendously. Dubbing it the "new king of all media," MoffettNathanson values YouTube at between $475 billion and $550 billion, arguing that it's larger and more powerful than any other player in Hollywood. At the top end of that range, YouTube would be worth about 22% of all of Alphabet. YouTube recently overtook Netflix, which has a market cap of $515 billion, as the top streaming platform in terms of audience engagement. TD Cowen analysts ascribe a much lower valuation at $271 billion. The firm notes that it's one of six Google products with more than 2 billion monthly users, along with search, Google Maps, Gmail, Android and Chrome. Raymond James says YouTube is worth $306 billion. For 2024, YouTube was the second-largest media company by revenue at $54.2 billion, trailing only Disney. The platform earns revenue from advertising and subscriptions. The TD Cowen analysts said in May that they expect ad revenue to climb about 14% this year, and they expect the unit to maintain a double-digit growth rate. There's also a fast-growing subscription side that includes YouTube TV, music and NFL Sunday ticket. Alphabet's self-driving car company, Waymo, is by far its most high-profile success so far outside of Google. Waymo currently operates the largest commercial autonomous ride-hailing fleet in the U.S., with more than 1,500 cars and over 100 million fully driverless miles logged. Rivals like Tesla and Amazon's Zoox are still mostly at the testing phase in limited markets. When Alphabet was formed as Google's parent company, it created an "Other Bets" category to include businesses that it liked to call "moonshots," a term that had already made its way into Google lexicon. "We won't become complacent, relying solely on small tweaks as the years wear on," the company wrote in its 2014 annual report, describing its moonshot projects. Waymo was spun out of Google in 2016 to join Other Bets, which on the whole is still losing billions of dollars a year. In the second quarter, Alphabet recorded a loss for the category of $1.2 billion on $373 million in revenue. In its most recent funding round in November, Waymo was valued at $45 billion. The transaction included outside investors Andreessen Horowitz, Tiger Global, Silver Lake, Fidelity and T. Rowe Price. Some analysts see the unit worth many multiples of that now. D.A. Davidson analysts estimated the valuation at $200 billion or more earlier this month. Oppenheimer assigned a base case valuation of $300 billion, on the assumption that it generates $102 billion in adjusted earnings by 2040. Raymond James values Waymo at $150 billion, with a prediction that rides per week will reach 1.4 million in 2027 and climb to 5.8 million by 2030. TD Cowen estimated Waymo's enterprise mid-point value at $60 billion. Waymo says it now conducts more than 250,000 paid weekly trips in the markets where it operates commercially, including Atlanta, Austin, Los Angeles, Phoenix and San Francisco. The company said it would be expanding to Philadelphia, Dallas and elsewhere.
CNET
30-07-2025
- CNET
Best Buy Knocks Up to $150 Off Affordable Chromebooks
If you mostly use your computer for checking emails, streaming shows and browsing the web, you probably don't need to spend hundreds on a pricey laptop. Chromebooks are great for those who only need the basics, and they're significantly more affordable -- especially when you can pick one up on sale. Best Buy is currently offering some great discounts on a handful of excellent models, with prices starting at just $219. But there's no set expiration for these deals, so don't wait too long if you're hoping to save. There are various sizes and specs to choose from at this sale, making it easy to find a Chromebook that fits your needs at a great price. With a 15.6-inch display, 8GB of RAM and 128GB of built-in storage, the Lenovo IdeaPad 3i is a great value and probably the best option for most users. It's currently on sale for a reasonable $319, which is $130 off the usual price. However, if you need a little more power, you could upgrade to the Galaxy Chromebook Plus for $600, which is a $150 discount. It features a vibrant 15.6-inch AMOLED display, as well as some more serious hardware under the hood, including an Intel Core 3 processor, 8GB of RAM and 256GB of storage. This model also comes with one free year of Google One AI Premium. If versatility is a top priority, there's also the Lenovo Chromebook Duet 11 -- one of our favorite Chromebooks this year. This two-in-one model has a detachable keyboard, so you can use it as either a laptop or a tablet. It also features an 11-inch 2K touchscreen display, 4GB of RAM and 128GB of storage. And the device is seriously lightweight at just 1.1 pounds, so it's a great option for working on the go. This model is currently $120 off, reducing the price to $279. Why these deals matter For those who only need the basics, Chromebooks are already some of the most affordable laptops on the market. And with this Best Buy sale, you can grab one for even less with discounts of up to $150 off. There are models from top brands like Lenovo, Acer, Asus and Samsung, and prices start at just $219.
Yahoo
18-07-2025
- Yahoo
If You Invested $1000 in Alphabet a Decade Ago, This is How Much It'd Be Worth Now
For most investors, how much a stock's price changes over time is important. Not only can it impact your investment portfolio, but it can also help you compare investment results across sectors and industries. Another factor that can influence investors is FOMO, or the fear of missing out, especially with tech giants and popular consumer-facing stocks. What if you'd invested in Alphabet (GOOGL) ten years ago? It may not have been easy to hold on to GOOGL for all that time, but if you did, how much would your investment be worth today? Alphabet's Business In-Depth With that in mind, let's take a look at Alphabet's main business drivers. Alphabet is one of the most innovative companies in the modern technological age. Over the last few years, the company has evolved from primarily being a search-engine provider to cloud computing, ad-based video and music streaming, autonomous vehicles, healthcare providers and others. In the online search arena, Google has a monopoly with more than 94% of the online search volume and company is gaining market share in the cloud-computing, driven by continued strength in Google Cloud Platform and Google also enjoys a dominant position in the autonomous vehicles market, thanks to Waymo's relentless efforts. In addition, it has bolstered its footprint in the healthcare industry with its life science division, Verily. The company has also become a renowned name in the world of entertainment on the back of is also known as the maker of smartwatches (Pixel Watch), laptops and tablets (Chromebooks), and smart home products (Google Nest).Alphabet, headquartered in Mountain View, CA, runs several businesses, most of which come under Google, which reports under two segments — Google Services and Google Cloud. The non-Google businesses fall under the Other Bets revenues were $350 billion in 2024, up 14% over 2023. Google Services, Google Cloud and Other Bets generated 87.1%, 12.4% and 0.5% of total revenues, Google Services includes products and services such as ads, Android, Chrome, devices, Gmail, Google Drive, Google Maps, Google Photos, Google Play, Search, and YouTube. The segment generates revenues primarily from performance and brand advertising, which remains crucial for the overall business. Ad revenues accounted for 75.6% of the total revenues in Cloud is comprised of Google Cloud Platform and Google Workspace. Its key capabilities include AI infrastructure, database and analytics, collaboration tools, cybersecurity and generative Bets is a combination of multiple businesses, generating revenues primarily from the sale of healthcare-related and internet services. Bottom Line Putting together a successful investment portfolio takes a combination of research, patience, and a little bit of risk. For Alphabet, if you bought shares a decade ago, you're likely feeling really good about your investment today. A $1000 investment made in July 2015 would be worth $5,247.99, or a gain of 424.80%, as of July 18, 2025, according to our calculations. This return excludes dividends but includes price appreciation. Compare this to the S&P 500's rally of 196.12% and gold's return of 183.10% over the same time frame. Analysts are anticipating more upside for GOOGL. Alphabet is riding on strong cloud and search growth. Google Cloud is benefiting from accelerated growth across AI infrastructure, enterprise AI platform Vertex and strong adoption of Generative AI solutions. The company expects capital expenditures in 2025 to be relatively higher than in 2024, aimed at building technical infrastructure, primarily for servers, followed by data centers and networking. Its dominant position in the search engine market is a strong growth driver. In first-quarter 2025, GOOGL saw continued double-digit revenue growth in Search. Alphabet surpassed 270 million paid subscriptions with YouTube and Google One as key drivers. However, increasing litigation issues are a concern. Intensifying competition from Microsoft and Amazon in cloud computing is a headwind. Shares have underperformed its industry year to date. Shares have gained 5.92% over the past four weeks and there have been 4 higher earnings estimate revisions for fiscal 2025 compared to none lower. The consensus estimate has moved up as well. Want the latest recommendations from Zacks Investment Research? Today, you can download 7 Best Stocks for the Next 30 Days. Click to get this free report Alphabet Inc. (GOOGL) : Free Stock Analysis Report This article originally published on Zacks Investment Research ( Zacks Investment Research Errore nel recupero dei dati Effettua l'accesso per consultare il tuo portafoglio Errore nel recupero dei dati Errore nel recupero dei dati Errore nel recupero dei dati Errore nel recupero dei dati
