Transparency. It’s defined as “the condition of being transparent.”

That’s not very helpful, so we will try to clear things up: Transparency — as used in science, engineering, business, the humanities and in other social contexts — is operating in such a way that it is easy for others to see what actions are performed. It implies openness, communication and accountability.

For the majority of this year, Scotland County Schools has shown little timely transparency and, earlier this week, Superintendent Takeda LeGrand and her administrative team were rightly called out on it by Board of Education members.

We have liked LeGrand since she took over for retiring Superintendent Ron Hargrave. She comes across as a very sociable and intelligent person who is more than capable of leading a school system. It was a good hire by the school board.

But cracks have begun to show — some of them since early on.

Those include what seemed to be a mass exodus of important pieces to the Central Office administrative staff, school administration personnel and teachers. This has kept LeGrand busier than normal with trying to fill positions, rather than overseeing the day-to-day operations of a school district that needs positive consistency far more than it needs a long line of new faces.

And by the way, there remains 43 open positions within Scotland County Schools. Many are teacher positions.

Another question mark comes from the fact that, in many cases during Board of Education meetings, LeGrand will be the one answering inquiries from board members in reference to department head reports. This is leading us to determine there is far too much micromanagement going on, which also takes up too much time in the superintendent’s day.

We think, if qualified people are being hired for department head positions, they should be allowed to do their job.

Which leads us to the transparency question.

The face of public information from Scotland County Schools was Public Information Officer Meredith Bounds for a number of years. And though she was often cautious about what she said, it usually came quickly to media and put out on social media for the community to stay aware. That’s not the case now.

Dave Wells, a well-versed former radio news guy who understands and often relied on the need for transparency, is the new PIO but has rarely been the one giving information to the media or public. The school district’s mouthpiece primarily continues to be LeGrand — and that often means it comes days after the incident.

Within the age of social media, false information gets spread quickly and leads to more people believing it as truth before the school district even begins to get the information out.

We sincerely hope things change soon. We have enjoyed a pretty strong relationship with Scotland County Schools for a number of years, which is something we want to continue. Whether it’s good or bad information, the media, parents and the public in general need the school district to make the two Ts — transparency and timeliness — two of its top priorities.

TO THE SCHOOL BOARD …

Perhaps not all, but some of you are receiving a zero for homework assignments not being done.

This week’s stunning announcement that some board members were unaware of the annual payments for construction of South Johnson Elementary School befuddles us. There isn’t a dog big enough in the world that could eat that nugget of the school board’s long-overdue homework — it’s their job as elected officials to know those details from the start.

And, in this case, they failed miserably.

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QUOTE OF THE DAY

“Transparency is the antidote to hypocrisy.”