Comedian Stephen Colbert may have acted like a conservative during his former gig as host of The Colbert Report on Comedy Central. But his recent actions are those of a liberal who knows the way to solve the problems of the school districts suffering from budget deficits in his native South Carolina. Colbert has agreed to fund teacher-requested grants at some 375 schools to the tune of $800,000.
Colbert reviewed the requests made by teachers in his home state that were posted to the online charity website DonorsChoose.org. He alerted happy students and teachers about his generous decision during a live webcast that occurred in Greenville, SC, at the Alexander Elementary School.
Colbert’s decision to fund more than 1,000 teacher-requested grants means that schools will be able to purchase some much needed equipment. Some of the requests were for things as simple as pencils, paper, books and new carpeting, while other requests will physical education and therapy programs by adding dodge balls, trampolines and treadmills.
South Caroline currently ranks a sorry 45 out of 51 school systems in the United States, including Puerto Rico. It ranks at the bottom when it comes to student performance, according to the American Legislative Exchange Council, and suffers the third worst high school graduation rate in America at only 61.7%. Parents and students alike are praising Colbert’s generosity, which is in direct contrast to the miserly actions of the state’s Republican-led legislature as well as its Governor, Nikki Haley.