Marlboro schools paid a superintendent $326,250 while she lived outside the district
A May 2026 SC State Inspector General report on the Marlboro County School District identified $7,354,844 in financial exceptions for FY2020-2025. It found Superintendent Dr. Helena Tillar, rehired in 2023 with a contract requiring her to live in the district by January 31, 2024, kept her primary residence in Orangeburg County and received $326,250 in that period. While under a state fiscal emergency, the district bought her a $51,952 replacement car without competitive bidding, approved in a closed executive session the IG said violated FOIA. Board members gave themselves employee bonuses five times, totaling $38,982, and the chair emailed a pay raise from $7,500 to $12,000 without public discussion. The district owes $1,013,202 to the IRS that it did not disclose to auditors. Tillar was terminated in November 2025; the state took full control on June 2, 2026. No repayment has been reported.
Not once, not twice, but five times between 2022 and 2024, the board voted to give district employees a bonus; they gave themselves the same bonus, totaling $38,982 for the full board.
During the period of 2/2024 through 11/2025, Dr. Tillar received at least $326,250 in compensation as the District's superintendent when her legal residence was outside the District and failed to comply with her employment contract
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