Lawmakers Pivot Special Session from Education to Cleaning up Vetoed Bills

On this West Virginia Morning, lawmakers are scheduled to return to the Capitol in Charleston at 2 p.m. on Monday, May 20, to reconvene a special session on education betterment that was called months ago. But Republican leaders have yet to agree on exactly what kinds of reforms will be considered. So, as Dave Mistich reports, instead of focusing on education, the special session will likely address bills Governor Jim Justice vetoed on technical grounds.

Also on today’s show, thousands of schools have closed across the country in recent decades. Declining population in rural Appalachia has made this especially common for our region, as school boards attempt to consolidate resources.

But when a school closes, more than a building is lost. In the most recent episode of Inside Appalachia, we hear how consolidation of schools affects community.

This morning, we hear the final part of a series of stories about Northfork High School, in McDowell County, which was closed in 1985. John Hale, who was born in Northfork, returned to hear what people in the community remember about losing their school.

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