The West Virginia Board of Education says county school districts should have more control over how their state funding is spent.
A decades-old funding formula determines how much state funding each county system gets annually. The formula also determines how this funding is spent.
The Charleston Gazette reports that the state board voted last week to ask the Legislature to consider allowing counties to use up to 10 percent of their state school funding however they choose.
Board member Tom Campbell says the proposal wouldn’t change the state formula. He says the goal is to use the formula to use the money more efficiently.
Board member Lloyd Jackson says he’s concerned that counties would take money allocated for teachers and use it to hire more administrators.
Democratic gubernatorial candidate Katie McGinty has returned $40,000 in campaign contributions from a western Pennsylvania coal executive, citing his…
Democratic gubernatorial candidate Katie McGinty has returned $40,000 in campaign contributions from a western Pennsylvania coal executive, citing his ties to the West Virginia chemical spill.
McGinty’s campaign manager Mike Mikus said Monday the two 2013 contributions from J. Clifford Forrest, owner of Kittanning-based Rosebud Mining Co., were returned Jan. 18.
Mikus says campaign officials only learned through news reports that Forrest owns the parent company of Freedom Industries, the company at the center of the Jan. 9 spill that contaminated the water supply for 300,000 West Virginians.
A call to Rosebud headquarters Monday afternoon wasn’t answered.
McGinty is one of seven candidates seeking the Democratic nomination to challenge the re-election of Republican Gov. Tom Corbett. She’s a former environmental adviser to ex-Gov. Ed Rendell and the Clinton White House.
The number of low-income students taking Advanced Placement courses around the nation has more than quadrupled in the last decade, according to the College Board. But a study shows West Virginia is still behind when it comes to making sure low-income students have access to these rigorous classes.
In West Virginia, nearly 52 percent of students receive free or reduced lunches — an indication of poverty — but such students make up only 16 percent of exam-takers.
States with similar percentages of low-income students have more who take AP Exams.
Raleigh County Assistant Superintendent Kenny Moles said individual school size and teachers’ willingness to go through AP training play huge roles in what courses are taught.
Students can take AP courses online in West Virginia, but being self-paced is often more difficult than a traditional classroom setting, he said.
Kanawha County and City of Charleston Bulk Water Sites for Saturday, February 15, 2014 through Monday, February 17, 2014:
Bulk Water-Bring Your Own Containers
Crossing Mall – Elkview Walmart Parking Lot – Quincy Shawnee Park – Institute Old Big Sandy Parking Lot – Cross Lanes Big Lots Parking Lot –Patrick Street – Charleston 100 Maywood Avenue-Across from Post Office – Clendenin
Bulk Water Tankers and Buffaloes will remain at locations each day until 5:00 p.m. due to temperatures which are expected to drop below freezing nightly.
The bulk tankers and buffaloes are being provided by West Virginia American Water Company and are being filled in Huntington and Montgomery. If the tankers or buffaloes run out of water, they will be pulled and then driven to Huntington or Montgomery to be refilled. Due to the travel time and filling time, the bulk containers may be offsite for several hours.
If temperatures are below freezing or there is substantial snow in the morning hours, it is possible that the deployment of the tankers and buffaloes will be delayed.
West Virginia State Police are asking residents to use the Department of Transportation’s 511 system to obtain information about road conditions.
State police spokesman Lt. Michael Baylous says the agency’s detachments are overwhelmed with calls about road conditions whenever a big winter storm hits.
Baylous says these calls tie up dispatchers who need to respond to emergency calls.
He also says the DOT has more information about road conditions that state police do.
The 511 system is available online at ww551.org and at WV511.org/Twitter.
The system also can be accessed by telephone by dialing 511.
Gov. Earl Ray Tomblin is asking West Virginia residents to stay home and off the roads because of a winter storm.
Tomblin said Thursday that residents shouldn’t travel unless it’s an emergency or they have to travel.
Only state employees who provide essential services were told to report to work Thursday.
In Berkeley County, Council President Doug Copenhaver declared a state of emergency for the county. A news release said the declaration allows the county to request and receive additional resources from the state.
The release said roads are extremely treacherous and the state highway department is having trouble keeping up with clearing roadways and with more snow expected throughout the day emergency services will be stretched.
Berkeley County Emergency Services Director Steve Allen said in a text message that the county is expecting to get help from liaison and community assistance teams from the W.Va. National Guard. He said these teams will help emergency service personnel when they’re called to hard to reach places.
Winter storm warnings remain in effect across the state through Thursday afternoon and a warning is in effect for the Eastern Panhandle until Friday morning.
The National Weather Service says up to 15 inches of snow could fall along higher elevations and a foot is possible in the Eastern Panhandle. Up to 10 inches are forecast elsewhere in the warning area.
School systems in most of the state’s 55 counties were closed Thursday and some counties have already canceled school on Friday, including Morgan, Jefferson and Berkeley.
Some college students are also getting a break from classes because of a winter storm.
West Virginia State, Concord and Shepherd universities closed their campuses Thursday. Bluefield State and Glenville State colleges shut down. Marshall University’s Beckley center also closed.
The University of Charleston canceled classes at its main campus in Charleston and at its Beckley campus.
In the Eastern Panhandle, Shepherd University and Blue Ridge Community Technical College were closed, along with Jefferson County government offices, Martinsburg city hall as well as courts in many counties across the state.
Poor Driving Conditions
The storm is making travel treacherous across West Virginia.
The West Virginia Department of Transportation reports on its website that snow and ice are making driving conditions fair to difficult on major highways in southern, western and north-central West Virginia and in the Eastern Panhandle.
The DOT is advising motorists to slow down and use caution.
The timing of the latest winter storm couldn’t be better for West Virginia’s ski resorts.
West Virginia Ski Areas Association spokesman Joe Stevens says the upcoming Presidents Day holiday is one of the season’s biggest weekends.
Most of the heaviest snow is expected to fall Thursday. Stevens says that gives snow plows an opportunity to clear roads before skiers head to the mountains for the weekend.