After the Socastee High School shooting and bomb scare, Horry County schools implemented the daily use of metal detectors district-wide for middle and high schools.
It's a time consuming task that takes a lot of manpower, and the ones picking up the slack are teachers and other staff.
Hundreds of teachers, who've never administered metal detectors, are now showing up an hour early at their particular schools and running security.
Not every teacher at every school is doing it, but a lot are, and the district superintendent thinks the teachers should be compensated for their extra work.
"It's just like a coach," said Dr. Cindy Elsberry. "We wouldn't ask a coach to spend all the hours they do, after school and in the summers ... going above and beyond the normal school day without some kind of compensation."
At a school board meeting Monday night, Elsberry ran the idea past the board members who gave mixed reaction.
Some absolutely agree that compensation is necessary, while others questioned whether teachers should simply adapt to a changing job description.
Elsberry said she and her staff are reviewing the best way to compensate teachers, whether it be through comp time or overtime pay.
Elsberry said she envisioned a system where each principal would be allocated a certain amount of capital based on school size, and the principals would decide how to distribute the money.
Board members want more research and a clearer plan before taking any action, as it may have to be an amendment to the current budget.
