DISTRICT NAMES TAYLOR FOR NEW POSITION OF ASSISTANT SUPERINTENDENT FOR SPECIAL PROGRAMS
With additional emphasis on support to students with disabilities, Aiken County’s Board of Education approved District administration’s recommendation to restructure the Department of Special Programs during their regularly scheduled May 9, 2023, meeting.
Interim department leader Beth Taylor has been named Assistant Superintendent of Special Programs. In this new Assistant Superintendent role, Taylor will serve alongside Assistant Superintendents for Elementary, Middle and High School; Chief Officers for Operations, Human Resources and Finance; and the Communications Director on the District’s Leadership Team and Superintendent’s Cabinet.
“The new structure will focus on greater support to our students and families through more robust efforts from teachers, staff, and leaders at the school and district levels,” Chief Officer for Instruction Dr. Amy Edwards commented. “We can and will serve students with disabilities to the best of our ability, as efficiently and effectively as possible, and we are grateful for the school board and community’s trust in us to do so.”
Taylor’s career in the district’s special programs department spans more than two decades and began with her work as a special education teacher for students with Emotional Disabilities. She has an undergraduate degree in Special Education from Erskine College, and two Masters Degrees. The first she earned in Education Technology from the University of South Carolina Aiken in 2006, and a second in Education Administration from the University of South Carolina in 2019. She also holds certification in the State Department’s Institute for District Administrators and is a Board-Certified Behavior Analyst.
The District’s new Assistant Superintendent for Special Programs is a self-professed “processes and procedures girl,” and has helped the District build a number of programs to address some of the school system’s greatest needs, including an autism program, the instructional programming
division of special programs, and an elementary tier-three behavioral intervention social emotional learning program (XSEL).
She has served as Interim Director of Special Programs since January. Ensuring appropriate staffing, recruiting for unfilled special education vacancies, and establishing a strong, supportive Special Education presence throughout the District’s schools have been among her highest priorities.
“My heart has always been with students who need a little extra support,” she stated. “I’m honored to serve in this new role and look forward to ensuring that those who teach and serve our most vulnerable children are well equipped and supported by our District in doing so.”
LINK TO DISTRICT PRESS RELEASE: https://www.acpsd.net/cms/lib/SC02209457/Centricity/Domain/4/ACPSD PR Taylor Assistant Superintendent for Special Programs.pdf