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Letters to the Editor
Remove passive smoking from public places
I was excited, once again, to see that you’ve expressed support for removing passive smoking from public work and entertainment locales. Your care and concern for the well being of our community has always been outstanding.
It is a truly sad situation when our media and elected officials cannot mobilize their strengths to help bring better health care to our community.
Around the world countries, states and cities are daily enacting legislation to protect the health of people they represent. Smoking, both passive and active, is responsible for hundreds of thousands of deaths yearly in our country alone. What an awful preventive waste.
Economics is such a sorrowful excuse for failure to pass health protective legislation. When one is hurt by the many ill effects of smoke exposure then money no longer seems to be more important than the injuries.
It’s of interest, however, that most well done studies on the environmental impact of passive smoking shows that where its been prevented by law, work productivity increases and patronage of places that respect the law of no smoking increases as well.
Surely the educated, caring leaders of our community can see the Win! Win! Win! value of eliminating smoking in the public places of work and entertainment.
We win because we’re healthier. We win because the economy gets better. We win because we care about each other.
Dr. Myron H. Lutz, M.D.
Successful school shows tax credit isn’t the answer
Much has been written lately about “our failing public schools.” How about a success story for a change? I’m one of 40 teachers at Cross High School, a small rural school in upper Berkeley County. Our school population of 481 students in grades seven-12 is nearly 90% African-American; 78% of our students qualify for free or reduced priced school lunches. Two years ago, only 41% of our sophomores passed both the math and English portions of the South Carolina exit exam on their first try. Our students’ futures and our pride were at stake.
Working with teachers, students, parents and our School Improvement Council, principal Figgins Frayer mapped out a plan for academic improvement. As a Title I school, we received additional financial support for after-school programs including a Homework Help Center and several specialized computer programs designed to address our students’ academic deficiencies. Since we’re in a rural area, school buses begin picking up our students at 5:40 a.m., so one of our math teachers offered math tutoring to students while they ate breakfast before school, while other teachers provided after-school tutoring in English, reading and math. Our school’s motto was posted in every classroom: “Education is the key that unlocks the door to a brighter future,” and our students rose to the challenge.
After a year of hard work, we learned that 80% of our student had passed both parts of the exit exam on their first try, a higher first-try pass rate than that of all other high schools in Berkeley County except one; 95% of our sophomores taking the exam for the first time passed the English portion, and nearly 90% of our seniors passed all parts of the exit exam, which they must do to graduate. In that same time period, our students’ average SAT scores have improved by almost 100 points, a phenomenal increase for one year. Our seventh- and eighth-graders’ PACT scores continue to rise, and as a result of all of these accomplishments, Cross High recently received one of the state’s coveted Palmetto Gold Awards for its Excellent Improvement Rating.
In addition to their standardized testing successes, our students competed last month in the District V Future Business Leaders of America competition where they earned five first-place awards, seven second-place awards and seven third-place awards. At the statewide competitions which followed, our students brought home two trophies and none of them placed lower than 13th in any of the areas in which they competed along with 900 students from other, often much larger, schools across the state.
Part of the credit for our improvement surely goes to the taxpayers and Berkeley County School District, which spent $6.5 million renovating our school building last year. These renovations were the beginning of a renewed sense of pride in our school, which has manifested itself not only in academics, but in other areas as well. Our JROTC was recently awarded Honor Unit with Distinction, an honor we had lost three years ago; our Blue Thunder Band was invited to perform at Disney World; our basketball team made it to the playoffs for the first time in many years; and our coach, Leon Wheaton, was named Regional Basketball Coach of the Year.
Cross High School is an example of what a dedicated group of public school teachers, students, parents, business partners and a supportive school district can accomplish when they all work together. Because of the commitment of our teachers, ours is no longer “a failing public school.” Parents are already in charge, and the loss of students or public money to private schools will do nothing to make us better. I urge our legislators and South Carolina citizens not to lose faith in our public schools. A tuition tax credit is not the answer to improving public schools; dedicated teachers and public support is.
Ellen E. Moore
Teacher of the Year
Cross High School
Smoking ban would improve businesses’ bottom line
When hearing of a smoking ban, any business person is likely to wonder “Good idea, but how will it affect my bottom line?”
In study after study, the answer is clear: It will improve your bottom line, even if you own a bar or restaurant.
Here’s the conclusion of a major study of the effect on tourism of smoke-free restaurant ordinances in three states and six cities: “This study debunks the tobacco industry allegation that smoke-free restaurant laws adversely affect tourism, including international tourism. Quite the contrary, implementation of these laws is often associated with an increase in the rate of growth of tourism revenues.”
In California, for example, less than three years after bars went smoke-free, 91% of bar patrons were either going to bars more often or had not changed their bar-going behavior as a result of the law.
Smoke-free environments not only increase revenues, they decrease expenses. Just think about it: insurance costs are reduced, cleaning costs are lower, and there is less risk of fire and damage to furniture and equipment.
I frequently walk by little bars in New York City that were for so many years defined by their classic smokey ambience. And I’m amazed that these places, which were defined by their smokiness, are now still packed with patrons, enjoying a smoke-free environment.
And think of the college kids working for their tuitions and their futures in Charleston’s bars and restaurants. Exposure to second-hand smoke statistically increases their risk of developing lung cancer by 50%.
Smoke free environments are better for your bottom line. They are better for your conscience, too.
David L. Rawle, Chairman
Rawle Murdy Associates Inc.
Volunteers’ efforts help TTC expand programs
I would like to personally thank the Charleston Regional Business Journal, as well as the business and hospitality community, for the outpouring of support Trident Technical College has received about our plans to expand our culinary and hospitality programs.
We know there is a pressing need for highly talented professionals in the culinary and hospitality fields here in Charleston, which is why we’re moving quickly to address that need with our new Culinary Institute of Charleston, a state-of-the-art culinary and hospitality training center, and our new partnership with the College of Charleston. This exciting partnership will allow our graduates to extend their associate degree into a bachelor’s degree in hospitality and tourism management in about five years.
And we simply could not have come this far without the help of so many of the Lowcountry’s finest professionals who’ve volunteered their time and expertise to guide our efforts along the way.
One such individual is Ed Wax, who is an esteemed member of the Board of Trustees of the Trident Technical College Foundation. Although we would be very lucky to have Mr. Wax “on staff,” I wanted to clarify that he has not been hired to assist us as was reported; he is one of the many talented individuals who is helping us market the Culinary Institute on a pro-bono basis—and we thank him. We are also working with our agency of record, Rawle Murdy Associates, on marketing the Institute to attract students into our kitchens and, consequently, into the kitchens of area restaurants.
There is a great deal to be excited about at Trident Technical College’s Culinary Institute of Charleston, and we are grateful to you, the business community, for your ongoing support. We’re looking forward to educating the next generation of culinary artisans and to providing this community with the best and the brightest workforce possible.
Mary Thornley, Ed.D.
President, Trident Technical College
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