Interim Meetings Story Archives - West Virginia Public Broadcasting

FAFSA Issues, College Going Rate And More Presented To LOCEA

A change to a federal financial aid form for college students is having major ripple effects through West Virginia’s higher education system.

The Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) unlocks both federal and state financial aid for students but a recent attempt to simplify the form has caused delays for college applicants across the country.

“At this point this year, we have six million students who have filled out a FAFSA,” said Sarah Tucker, chancellor of the Higher Education Policy Commission. “At this point last year, we had 17 million, this is across the country. So we have a significant deficit right now that we’re trying to make up and trying to figure out exactly what’s going on and how best to help our students.”

Tucker told an interim meeting of the Legislative Oversight Commission on Education Accountability Sunday the Student Aid Index (SAI), which determines student need, is now being determined by a new interface between the IRS and the federal Department of Education that is not working correctly. Further delays occur because users of the new system are not notified of errors until after the form has been submitted.

Tucker told the commission the faulty SAI formula is causing delays for the state’s educational programs as well.

“I need to know how much money the federal government is going to be giving to all of our students in order to know what our award is going to be for West Virginia Invests,” she said.
“We’re really sort of stuck in limbo until this functionality gets fixed.”

The Higher Education Grant Program, West Virginia Invests and PROMISE Scholarships are all currently delayed.

Nationally, West Virginia is faring slightly better than average with the new FAFSA. As of last month, more than 6,000 seniors across the state have filled out the form, a number Tucker credits to hundreds of FAFSA workshops the HEPC and other organizations have hosted.

“We’re actually ranking 20th in the number of high school seniors who have completed the FAFSA,” she said. “The West Virginia Department of Education has done a lot of work as have all of our institutions in trying to do FAFSA workshops to make sure that our students know how to fill out those forms.”

Tucker said West Virginia Invest and PROMISE may revert to awarding the same amounts as last year without adjustments to ensure students are not further delayed.

“I think that may be where we end up because I don’t want to keep stringing students along,” she said. “I want to do the best we can to make sure that they know that they can go to college. Our college going rate is finally ticking up. We have this great momentum.”

College Going Rate

The oversight commission also heard a report on the state’s college going rate from Zornitsa Georgieva, director of research and analysis for HEPC. She highlighted a one percent increase in post-secondary enrollment from 2022 to 2023, including enrollment in trade programs or other career and technical pathways.

“For the class of 2023, the college going grade is 47.4 percent,” Georgieva said. “We’ve had more than 7,900 high school graduates continue into some kind of post-secondary education this year. I think that really speaks for the hard work of high school staff, high school counselors, teachers, our staff in our secondary system, as well as post-secondary institutions and staff that works around outreach. And providing information about financial aid.”

In 2021 the national immediate college enrollment rate was 62 percent, which puts West Virginia 15 percent below the national average. “Immediate college enrollment” is the metric used by the National Center for Educational Statistics and looks at students who enrolled in a post-secondary institution the fall after graduation.

Georgieva said when looking at the 12 months after graduation, including spring enrollments, West Virginia’s college going rate jumps to 49 percent. Rates differ from county to county, and 36 of 55 of West Virginia’s counties increased their college going rate year over year.

Benchmarks and Screeners

As part of House Bill 3035 – also known as the Third Grade Success Act – that passed last year, screeners or benchmark assessments must be administered at the beginning of the school year and repeated mid-year and at the end of the school year to determine student progression in reading and mathematics kindergarten through third grade.

Sonya White, state deputy superintendent, presented the results of the mid-year screeners to the commission.

“Overall, we were encouraged by the results, we had a decrease in the number of students… who needed that intensive intervention,” she said.

Even accounting for regular academic gains in the first half of the school year, White said the need for intensive intervention decreased from the start of the year to mid-year. She said the screeners are also identifying new students that need intensive interventions and are getting the help they need.

“On the front side are the literacy results,” White said. “We had an average decrease of 5.4 percent of students that needed intervention in grades K through three, and an average of 6 percent of the students in grades four through eight were scoring in the lowest category.”

White presented even higher decreases in intensive intervention for mathematics, “with an average of 6 percent for K through three and an average of 8.1 percent for four through eight.”

Del. Joe Ellington, R-Mercer, expressed concern at some of the numbers that showed an increase in the need for math intervention between first and second grade.

“Do we have schools looking at why there might be that big change from only 17 percent initially in first grade up to almost 40 percent when they get the second?” he said.

White cautioned that the state is still in its first year of collecting the data but theorized that those numbers could be a result of lowered learning opportunities three years ago during the COVID-19 pandemic.

“We are being proactive,” she said. “We are also looking at getting more detailed data for each section so we know what pieces of mathematics are struggling with.”

Policy 7212

Earlier in the meeting, legislators heard a brief description of changes to Department of Education Policy 7212. The policy applies to the transfer of students, both inside and out of their county of residence.

Student transfers became a point of contention this past fall after legislation passed during the 2023 regular session changed eligibility rules for student athletes after transfer. Gov. Jim Justice and others urged the legislature to revisit the issue during this year’s legislative session, but no action was taken by the legislature.

The proposed changes to Policy 7212 include significant clarifications of the requirement for county boards of education to implement an open enrollment policy for nonresident students, including a new allowance for boards to revoke applicants for chronic absenteeism or behavioral infractions. There is no mention of athletics in the proposed changes.

The changes to 7212, as well as other policies, are open to public comment until May 13.

Raleigh County Schools Embrace Alternative Approach To School Discipline Issues

An increase in disciplinary issues in schools is leading to a new approach in elementary schools across the state.

Rather than send students with the most serious disciplinary issues to a virtual learning or traditional Homebound program, Raleigh County has implemented an intensive academy that aims to address the traumas and triggers that are the core cause of the students’ behaviors.

Allen Sexton, director of special education for Raleigh County Schools, told the interim meeting of the Joint Standing Committee on Education Sunday, Jan. 7 about the county’s alternative education program for elementary schools.

He said it was developed after observing similar existing programs in other counties such as Monongalia County and adapting it to fit Raleigh’s needs. Named the RCSD Four Academy, Sexton called it the fourth tier of academic support for the county’s elementary school students with severe disciplinary issues.

“We call it ‘T-4’ because we know that next layer of support that teachers are expecting, they know we can’t provide it at the school level,” he said. “Administrators at the school level and teachers are saying ‘Please help. We don’t know what to do next.’”

Sexton walked the legislators through the support process, starting with teaching students how to behave, observation of disciplinary issues in the classroom and finally to determining whether students have a disability or a conduct disorder.

“The labeling of a student with a disability is not a benign act, that is a label that follows them lifelong,” he said. “A lot of conduct disorders mirror a disability. My job as the special education director is to protect IDEA (Individuals with Disabilities Education Improvement Act) and make sure that we provide supports to students with disabilities, but I also am to make sure we’re not over-identifying. We don’t want to mislabel someone that will follow them the rest of their life.”

Many of the students that have been identified by the new program have high Adverse Childhood Experience scores, Sexton said, meaning they have had childhood trauma that manifests in negative behavior in the classroom. He said that data from traditional, exclusionary alternative education, such as virtual learning or Homeward Bound programs, showed behaviors did not improve when students returned to the classroom.

“When they come back, they often have the same or worse behaviors than what they did previously, so we’re dealing with those again,” Sexton said. “That’s what our board recognized in 2016, 17 is that we’re seeing the same behaviors.”

In comparison, Sexton said that only two of the 35 students that have gone through the new program since its implementation in 2019 have repeated high-level behaviors. He attributes that success to low student to teacher ratios – there are currently only eight students in the program – as well as specialized support.

“Those educators collaborate together with three aides…because as you can imagine, when you’re working with students that have the most challenging or difficult behaviors, you can reach your saturation point as well, you need a break,” he said.

The extra help ensures that everyone can maintain a very high level of professionalism and support for students. Sexton said students tend to participate in the program for six to nine months before being transitioned back to school with support, which includes teaching the teachers about the students’ needs and best practices.

“We’ve had a very high success rate, only having one student ever pulled back from the school setting, back to the T4 setting to provide additional support because the transition didn’t go well,” he said.

Del. Heather Tully, R-Nicholas, asked about the involvement of the families of disruptive students in the program. Sexton replied that families must agree to the terms of the program before a student is involved in the program, which includes a weekly family engagement day.

“Those days, sometimes families visit the center, they receive parent education, sometimes they perform tasks with their children,” he said. “Other times they report to our Community Health Agency, and they receive their family therapy or their individual therapies as well.”
Senate President Craig Blair indicated during a legislative lookahead event Friday that alternative education for disruptive students will be a focus for lawmakers in the upcoming regular session which begins Wednesday, Jan. 10.

New Appeals Court Improving Consistency Of Family Law

The new Intermediate Court of Appeals is creating a more consistent family law across the state.

The state’s new intermediate court of appeals has been active for more than a year now, and its effects are starting to become apparent when it comes to families.

Members of the Joint Standing Committee on the Judiciary heard an update from the new appeals court during interim meetings Monday at the West Virginia Independence Hall in Wheeling.

Intermediate Court of Appeals Chief Judge Daniel Greear said previously the implementation of family law was inconsistent and varied greatly between circuit courts in disparate counties.

“The circuit courts that heard family law appeals in Mon County might have entirely different conclusions than the circuit courts that heard the appeals in Mercer County. Or, Berkeley County might be different than Kanawha County. And they, in fact, were.” he said.

The intermediate court began hearing cases in July 2022 after being created by the passage of Senate Bill 275 in 2021. The three-judge panel hears appeals from family courts as well as other issues including civil cases from circuit courts and worker’s compensation cases.

Greear said before the intermediate court’s creation, appeals went directly to the state supreme court which could not devote as much time to issues of family law.

“We think that one of the most significant things that’s going to happen, that I didn’t anticipate or realize, from the existence of our court is the development of family law in a consistent manner throughout the state,” he said.

Greear says since its inception in 2021, the intermediate court has more than tripled the number of published decisions on family law from 22 to 65.

PSC Urges Legislators To Address Fire Hydrant Disrepair

Director of the Public Service Commission Charlotte Lane asked that the legislature give the PSC power to regulate fire hydrants in the state so that they comply with the National Fire Protection Association’s recommended practice.

Concern over fire hydrants in the state is on the rise as smaller water providers don’t have the ability to test them.

Director of the Public Service Commission Charlotte Lane asked the West Virginia Legislature during the Joint Standing Committee on Technology and Infrastructure for $7 million; $3 million would be used as grants to cover inspections and testing costs and $4 million would be used as low or no interest loans to water districts so they are able to finance repairs and replacements of fire hydrants.

“There are firms in West Virginia that will do flow testing, and they charge, like, $100 per fire hydrant,” Lane said. “We think that a lot of these small utilities won’t have the money to do the testing.”

Guidelines For Improvement

The Fire Protection Association recommends that hydrants be flow tested every 3-5 years, plus a yearly inspection. According to Lane, those tests are costly and would disproportionately hurt small utilities that have difficulty paying bills and providing potable water to customers.

She also asked that the legislature give the PSC power to regulate fire hydrants in the state so that they comply with the National Fire Protection Association’s recommended practice.

“We don’t promulgate rules without statutory authority. And so if we want to amend our water rules related to fire hydrants, I would request that we have statutory authority,” she said.

Tragedy Sparks Awareness

Awareness around fire hydrants in the state rose after a Charleston man’s house caught fire and multiple fire hydrants were not functioning. West Virginia has double the rate for deaths caused by fire than the rest of the country and is in the top five states for fire-related deaths.

Spouting The Numbers

The PSC asked every water district in the state to test their fire hydrants and fill out a detailed survey about their functionality. They ended up extending the survey from June 28 to Aug. 25 after many districts failed to fill out the survey in time. Currently, 90 percent of water districts have filled out reports with the PSC still waiting on 27 water districts.

The normal lifespan of a fire hydrant is around 50 years, Lane said. Nine in 10 fire hydrants are less than 50 years old. The oldest fire hydrant in the state is 138 years old.

It costs around $15,000 to completely replace a fire hydrant.

The majority of the state’s fire hydrants are utility owned, with around 5 percent being privately owned.

Questions And Caveats

Committee members questioned Lane if any of the repairs would qualify for federal funding, like the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act. Lane said the PSC did not know.

Other members asked questions about the effect of struggling or deteriorating water systems on a new fire hydrant’s ability to function properly. Lane said that part of fixing a fire hydrant could be to remedy the water line that it connects to, which would raise the cost.

Lane said if the legislature follows the recommendations from the PSC the public will be able to be confident that they have functioning fire hydrants in case of a fire.

Foster Student Suspended More Often Than Peers According To Report

Students in foster care are suspended from school significantly more often than other students according to a presentation by the state Department of Education to the Joint Standing Committee of Education.

The data was previously presented to the West Virginia Board of Education in May.

Georgia Hughes-Webb, director of data analysis & research for the West Virginia Department of Education highlighted the disciplinary outcomes for foster students.

“This slide was particularly upsetting for me when I put it together,” she said.

The data showed that more than a third of all foster care students were referred for a disciplinary incident, and one out of every four foster care students was suspended from school in the 22 school year.

“More than the overall population when foster care kids got in trouble, they were pretty much guaranteed a suspension,” Hughes-Webb said.

Specifically she said 73 percent of foster care students who were referred for discipline ended up getting a suspension, compared with 55 percent for students who are not in foster care.

Del. Heather Tully, R-Nicholas, asked how outcomes for this group can be improved, and asked if contacting caseworkers was part of the disciplinary process.

Drew McClanahan, director of Leadership Development for the West Virginia Department of Education, said schools have to do a better job of identifying who foster care students are.

“We have situations where maybe a school doesn’t know that that child is in foster care,” he said. “We’re working on general information to provide to principals, secretaries, whoever it may be as far as onboarding, what questions to ask and what supports may be there because if it’s the first time that you’ve had a foster care student in your building, you may not know who the caseworker is or how to contact and whatnot.”

McClanahan said the study has allowed the Department of Education to identify gaps in the school support system for foster care students that can now be addressed.

Several lawmakers focused on the role of alternative learning centers as a place to isolate disruptive students.

Del. Dana Ferrell, R-Kanawha, asked about the cost of this approach, pointing out the requirement of not only a salaried teacher but also potentially an entirely separate building depending on how a county chose to structure their center.

McClanahan agreed that cost is a factor for schools and districts, and highlighted some other options that have been explored.

“Looking at doing an in-school suspension alternative, looking at doing some sort of restorative practices, we have seen districts that have looked to choose counseling programs, counseling referrals, both in school and out of school meetings and legitimate conversations and working relationships with parents and parent organizations,” he said.

Last month, the Department of Education launched a public, statewide dashboard on ZoomWV to promote transparency and accountability around school discipline.

Ferrell questioned the wisdom of making that data public.

“I really am concerned with that,” he said. “A few years back, we had a suggestion that schools be given a letter grade A, B, C, D. That was quickly pulled back and done away with because from an economic development standpoint, who wants to locate their family and a business, an area where that school has a disproportionate amount of discipline issues?”

McClanahan likened the disclosure to posting test scores.

“This is in the spirit of transparency to make sure that we have a clear understanding of exactly what’s going on inside of our public schools, that members inside of that community deserve to understand what is going on,” he said.

Lawmakers Discuss Vaccination Laws

West Virginia allows for medical exemptions to vaccines but does not allow for exemptions based on religious or philosophical beliefs. Some lawmakers would like to see those laws change.

West Virginia lawmakers discussed medical exemptions with vaccine experts during a meeting of the West Virginia Legislature’s Joint Committee on Children and Families.

West Virginia allows for medical exemptions to vaccines but does not allow for exemptions based on religious or philosophical beliefs.

According to Shannon Kolman, senior policy specialist in the National Conference of State Legislatures’ Health Program, vaccinations are required when a child is enrolled in a public school.

“Some states specifically spell out which vaccines are required in statutes, and other states refer to an administrative body such as the Department of Health or the Department of Education to adopt rules regarding which vaccines will be required,” Kolman said. “Some examples are states like West Virginia, also including Kentucky, New York, Ohio and Pennsylvania, expressively list the vaccines that are required for school in statute.”

However, a parent or guardian is able to apply for a medical exemption to vaccination through a physician.

“All states have immunization laws for school entry that grant exemptions to children for medical reasons,” Kolman said. “So if the vaccine is medically contraindicated, every state allows a child to have an exemption for medical reasons.”

Some lawmakers would like to see vaccination laws changed in the state. Sen. Michael Azinger, R-Wood, spoke against vaccine laws during the meeting.

“We live in America, and if a parent says they don’t want their kid to have a vaccine, they have a constitutional right to do that,” Azinger said. “And here we sit one of these little clumps of states that say that you can’t have a religious exemption. Lord have mercy. Our country was founded on religion, right? The First Amendment, and here we have this, this doctor who’s a very intelligent guy, and I appreciate him coming. But how in God’s name, do you think ‘Doc’ and these folks that DHHR, have the right to tell the parents that they have to vaccinate their children?”

Dr. Joseph Evans, former chief medical officer of Marshall Health and former chair of the Department of Pediatrics at Marshall University, said the World Health Organization has identified vaccine hesitancy as one of the top 10 threats to global health.

“Thanks to our vaccine laws, our state is among the best and safest from vaccine-preventable illness,” Evans said. “We are a model for other states trying to decrease vaccine-preventable diseases. And therefore I think we need to keep our vaccine laws. If it’s not broke, don’t fix it.”

Sen. Patricia Rucker, R-Jefferson, questioned Evans on the efficacy of vaccines.

“So you do make it sound that having this vaccination just provides a protection,” Rucker said. “Have you not ever heard of people getting an illness even though they were vaccinated against it and actually some getting the illness from the vaccine?”

Evans responded, “Well, you don’t get the illness from the vaccine.”

Rucker replied: “That has happened. That has been documented that some folks can trace back their illness to the vaccine.”

Rucker did not cite her source, but the Centers For Disease Control (CDC) studies the adverse effects of vaccines.

Shannon McBee, state epidemiologist, explained the process of compulsory school immunization law exemption to members of the committee.

“West Virginia is considered to have an exemplary immunization model with no recorded outbreaks of measles,” McBee said. “The most common requests that are approved by the Bureau for Public Health are for children who have immunosuppressive medications or have a documented severe reaction to a vaccine or a recipient of an organ transplant.”

Appalachia Health News is a project of West Virginia Public Broadcasting with support from Charleston Area Medical Center and Marshall Health.