Event Information

Barbara A. Drayton, Esquire is the deputy general counsel at the South Carolina Department of Education (SCDE), Office of General Counsel (OGC). Ms. Drayton's areas of practice are the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) and other disability and civil rights laws related to the education of students with disabilities; the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA); school-based Medicaid and health services; medical homebound instruction; private and home school related issues; alternative schools; the educational rights of students placed or referred by state agencies in foster care, group homes, residential treatment facilities, and other out of home placements; and other education matters. Ms. Drayton supervises the state's special education due process and mediation processes, and provides technical assistance to school districts, state agencies, parents, and other constituents and entities across the state on education-related issues.

Prior to joining the SCDE, Ms. Drayton was employed with the Eighth Judicial Circuit Solicitor's Office as a deputy solicitor.

Ms. Drayton received her BA in political science from the University of South Carolina and a JD degree from the University of South Carolina, School of Law.

Member of the SC Bar, including the Children's Law and Education Law Committees.

Licensed to practice in Federal District Court, before the 4th Circuit of Appeals, and before the Department of Treasury, Internal Revenue Service.
 

Mr. Matthews is certified by the South Carolina Supreme Court as a Specialist in Employment & Labor Law.  He is also a certified mediator, and often mediates employment claims. 

From April 2000 to March 2004, Mr. Matthews was General Counsel and Deputy Director for the South Carolina Department of Public Safety (SCDPS).  From 1999 to 2000, he was Deputy Director for Labor at the South Carolina Department of Labor, Licensing & Regulation (LLR).  Prior to state service, from 1995 to 1999, Mr. Matthews practiced law with Kilpatrick Stockton, L.L.P. 

Mr. Matthews has previously served as the Chairman of the South Carolina Bar’s Employment & Labor Law Section, and has also served on the Employment & Labor Law Specialization Advisory Board of the S.C. Commission on CLE and Specialization.  He is a member of the South Carolina Bar and North Carolina Bar 

Mr. Matthews received a B.A. summa cum laude from Furman University, an M.A. in International Relations from Yale University, and his J.D. from the University of Virginia School of Law.  Prior to attending law school, Mr. Matthews served with the Central Intelligence Agency.  In 2019, he retired as a Captain from the U.S. Navy Reserve.

Jack E. Cohoon is a partner at Burnette Shutt & McDaniel, P.A. He focuses his legal practice on employment law. Prior to joining the firm in January 2020, Jack worked as a legal aid attorney at South Carolina Legal Services for nearly 14 years, where he focused primarily on employment-related legal issues affecting low-income South Carolinians. He is the recipient of Martindale-Hubbell’s AV Preeminent Rating, the Richland County Bar’s Civic Star Award for community involvement, and the South Carolina Access to Justice Commission’s Ellen Hines Smith Legal Services Attorney of the Year Award.

Jack is a graduate of the University of South Carolina School of Law. He holds a Bachelors degree in History and Political Science from the University of Georgia. When not practicing law, Jack hikes, bikes, and camps with his family and volunteers as a scout leader with his sons’ scout troop.