West Virginia Board of Educaiton Story Archives - West Virginia Public Broadcasting

New Online Mental Health Resources Available To Parents, Caregivers And Schools

ParentGuidance.org is a 24/7 online platform that assists those who care for children to address and elevate their own mental health wellness and self-care.

Schools and families in West Virginia have access to a new mental health resource. ParentGuidance.org is a 24/7 online platform that assists those who care for children to address and elevate their own mental health wellness and self-care.

Parents and families can access regular one-on-one parent coaching, on-demand parenting sessions taught by licensed therapists, as well as “Ask a Therapist,” a frequently updated question-and-answer forum.

The resources are made possible through a three-year contract between the West Virginia Department of Education and the national nonprofit The Cook Center for Human Connection. The Cook Center lists its current focus as eradicating suicide by offering youth mental health resources to support children, families and schools.

Counties may also customize professional development sessions with The Cook Center such as bullying mitigation, isolation and absenteeism at reduced costs for counties.

According to a press release from the Department of Education, West Virginia is the first state to offer these resources statewide amidst a shortage of traditional mental health services.

“Our educators are experiencing several mental health behaviors in our children that they have not seen previously,” said State Superintendent of Schools Michele L. Blatt. “ParentGuidance.org will provide resources that have never been reasonably available to many West Virginia families and communities. This will be a great asset and will make a difference in the lives of our children, the stability of our families, the mental health of teachers and school employees, and the progress of our schools.”

State Board Of Education Discusses Effects Of Recent Legislation

Education leaders are taking stock of what the state legislature did and didn’t do for schools in the regular session.

Fred Albert, president of American Federation of Teachers-WV, expressed his concern over the passage of House Bill 5105 to the West Virginia Board of Education Wednesday morning. The bill removes private, parochial and virtual schools from state vaccine requirements.

“I’m all for people having freedom and choice, that’s the American way of life, but when someone’s freedom then infringes upon the safety of others, I think we have a real concern,” he said. “Why would we want to go back to the days of measles and mumps and rubella? Chickenpox, polio?”

Albert said he is signing a public letter to Gov. Jim Justice urging him to veto the bill, and asked board members and listeners to contact the governor in opposition as well.

“I have a colleague that told me in Florida in one elementary classroom, they’ve had six cases of measles in one elementary classroom,” he said. “In Ohio, there are outbreaks of measles. Why would we want to go there? I just don’t understand it.”

Albert also expressed regret that Senate Bill 614, which would have allowed elementary teachers to remove disruptive students from their classroom, did not pass and told the board school discipline issues must be addressed.

“It was not a perfect deal. It had things in there that I didn’t like, but I think it was a start,” he said. “We’ve talked about the cry of our educators needing help with discipline in the classroom. So while that bill wasn’t perfect, it maybe was a beginning. But this looks like we educators have just been shut out, they’re not being heard.”

Policy Changes

The WVBE also approved withdrawing Policy 2322 from public comment. The policy was originally amended to clarify language related to the identification of school districts in need of support for student academic achievement and success and the required actions of the districts based on the level of support needed. In addition, the responsibilities of county board members and the requirements for each level of support were clarified.

Two bills passed during the regular session of the state legislature that ended Saturday make changes to the code the policy refers to, and are currently awaiting Gov. Jim Justice’s signature. Senate Bill 172 revises requirements of local school improvement councils, while House Bill 5514 enhances training requirements for county boards of education members. This requires the policy be withdrawn, revised and presented for placement on public comment at a future board meeting, inclusive of legislative amendments.

Meeting Date Change

The next regularly scheduled WVBE meeting was changed. It will be held on Tuesday, April 9, 2024, at 9 a.m.

AI Coming To Classrooms, The Key Is Using It Correctly

The West Virginia Department of Education is helping schools come to terms with the new reality of artificial intelligence (AI).

West Virginia is the third state in the country to develop AI guidance for PK-12 education use. That’s according to Erika Klose, coordinator of academic support for the state Department of Education, who told the state Board of Education Wednesday that AI is already here in a variety of everyday technologies.

“We may not really realize it, but it’s here,” Klose said. “So if you ask Siri to set a reminder for you, Siri is using something called natural language processing to understand what you said, and then complete the task. When our phone scans our face in place of a password, your phone is using complex image processing, which is a form of AI to make certain that your face belongs to the person who should be accessing that phone.”

Klose gave a similar presentation to members of the Joint Standing Committee on Education Sunday.

She emphasized that AI will never replace educators, who instead will be taught how best to use the technology in their classroom. Nor will it solve all of the problems facing the education system. These concepts help frame the new guidance to support learning, which include clarifying the ethical uses of AI, safeguarding student well being and data privacy and facilitating open and transparent dialogue about AI with all involved parties.

She said if the department’s new guidelines are followed, AI has the potential to greatly help both students and educators create productive learning environments.

“We believe that we could have individualized learning experiences that cater to each student’s needs, improve accessibility for students with diverse learning needs and exceptionalities … and allow our students to acquire the necessary skills for the 21st century, such as the knowledge of computer science and data literacy,” Klose said.

Klose concluded by stating that the next steps in AI guidance will include significant public input.

“Within the next month, we will be launching a public stakeholder survey to look at our larger community’s perceptions around AI and how they’re using it, questions that they have,” she said. “We want the responses from our community, our parents, our students, our schools, our districts, our administrators, our teachers. We want their voice in that survey.”

Disciplinary Disparities Focus Of Public Comment At Board Of Education Meeting

The Board heard public comment from two individuals concerned with disciplinary issues in the state’s schools, as well as an update on their own disciplinary report.

Early in its Dec. 14 meeting, the West Virginia Board of Education heard public comment from two individuals concerned with disciplinary issues in the state’s schools.

Rev. Franklin Hairston of the Harrison County NAACP spoke first to discuss racial bullying and harassment in schools.

“My goal for being here today is for you to understand that we have a problem in Harrison County, West Virginia, and in other counties all throughout West Virginia, as it pertains to racial bullying, harassment, unfairness and discipline, and a push for academic achievement,” Hairston said.

He listed more than half a dozen incidents in schools where little or nothing was done to address the racial harassment students face, including his own daughter.

“I’ve been addressing issues with race in her schools since she was in the second grade from being called outside of her name, picked on because of the color of her skin, the texture and style of her hair, the build of her body, and she’s even been hit by few male athletes,” Hairston said.

He went on to request disciplinary data for Harrison County schools, but also urged statewide action including diversity in recruitment of teachers and diversity and racial sensitivity training.

“The issues with our children are not just with students, it’s also with our educators.”

The Board is not allowed to deliberate or take action on any topic addressed by a member of the public that is not already on the meeting agenda.

Hairston was followed by Rev. Matthew Watts, who spoke more broadly about the multiple crises facing the state’s poor children. Watts listed several chronic issues impacting low-income children in the state including low labor force participation and poor health outcomes, before focusing on education.

“Probably the most profound crisis we have is in education,” Watts said. “Four reports were produced in the last four months that I thought would have resulted in summits being held all over the state.”

Watts referred to the board’s own School Discipline Report and 2021 Summative Assessment Results, the Higher Education Policy Commission’s College-Going Rate report, as well as the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP).

Released in July, the School Discipline Report showed that poorer students were more than twice as likely to be referred for disciplinary action in schools. Both the Summative Assessment and NAEP results showed a drop in academic achievement across the state, while the college-going study indicated less than half of all high school graduates in the state go on to post-secondary education.

“If that’s not a crisis in education, I don’t know what it is,” Watts said. – “It’s pretty profound among poor children, so what I’m here to request is we’ve got to take some action.”

Watts asked the Board to help facilitate discussions in all 55 counties and at individual school levels, on how to address educational issues. He also asked that funds from the American Rescue Plan Act be set aside to help address the issues.

Watts ended by encouraging the Board to develop a suspension tracking system that posts every week online.

“This is a national problem,” he said. “Why can’t we be first in solving something for change? Why can’t we take the lead in West Virginia?”

Discipline was briefly discussed later in the meeting when Superintendent David Roach gave an update on the Student Discipline Report.

He stated that data has been distributed to county and school level leadership, and that the Board of Education directed the Department of Education to expand the scope and depth of the report to address these issues more effectively and develop a plan moving forward.

“Educators, students, families, community partners, and other stakeholders will be involved as part of a comprehensive response,” Roach said. “A detailed analysis and potential action steps will be developed and presented to the West Virginia Board of Education to ensure that all students have equitable access to safe and high quality learning opportunities in West Virginia classrooms.”

Board member Debra Sullivan said she was glad to see progress being made on the issue, and expressed disappointment with the initial report for its lack of actionable items.

“There was really nothing there that you could get your hands on to deal with,” she said.

Sullivan also pointed out the ambiguity of some of the data, and looked forward to greater detail that will better help school leaders.

“I know that you’ll be looking at the various demographics, all the indicators, and not just race, but SES (Socio-Economic Status), and gender, and special ed populations, and are certain special ed populations being cited more frequently than others, the learning disabled versus a behaviorally challenged,” Sullivan said. “There’s such a wealth of information that the schools could use.”

Delays In School Construction Could Leave Nicholas County Owing Millions To FEMA

There’s a struggle to break ground on the construction of three public schools originally damaged by flooding six years ago.

Nicholas County Schools has just two years to complete federally backed construction projects or risk owing millions to the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA).

During the flooding disaster of 2016, Richwood Middle School, Richwood High School, and Summersville Middle School in Nicholas County were severely damaged.

Four years later, in 2020, FEMA awarded the West Virginia School Building Authority with a grant of $131 million to replace the schools in Nicholas County.

More than $17 million of that has been spent as of June 13, 2022. The county is negotiating a construction contract that fits within the current budget.

Construction was delayed because of increased costs due to COVID-19.

“We, by our estimations, are around 25 to 35 percent over our budgeted amount,” David L. Roach, Executive Director of the West Virginia School Building Authority, said.

Nicholas County Board of Education has authority over how to spend the FEMA funding.

Richwood Middle School and Richwood High School will be consolidated into a single complex that will include Cherry River Elementary School.

Summersville Middle is being built next to the new Nicholas County High School and Nicholas County Career and Technical Center at the Glade Creek Business Park.

“We’re talking about kids that have been displaced from their educational environment,” Del. Brandon Steele, R-Raleigh, said. “The kids that were in school, have graduated college, and got a career in the time that we can’t figure out how to break ground.”

The deadline is Dec. 2024. If the scope of work isn’t completed by the deadline, all funds will need to be paid back to FEMA by Nicholas County.

7 County School Systems Remain Remote As Teacher Union Prepares Injunction

Seven county school systems in West Virginia opted to keep their students fully remote and virtual this week after the West Virginia Board of Education ruled that all counties should return to mostly in-person instruction.

Berkeley, Gilmer, Harrison, Jefferson, Marion, Monongalia and Taylor County schools chose to keep their students home this week for remote learning.

Gov. Jim Justice, in his latest virtual press briefing, praised the other 48 counties that sent students back to school in-person.

“Many of our superintendents have reported so far today that the first day back to school is going smoothly,” Justice said on Tuesday. “And they are really excited to have their children back and everything, so that’s great stuff.”

Some counties, including Jefferson, are remaining virtual until all teachers and school service personnel can be fully vaccinated against the coronavirus. Jefferson has said it plans to resume in-person teaching on March 1. Other counties, such as Taylor and Harrison, are waiting to see how vaccine rollout goes and will reevaluate after a couple weeks or less.

West Virginia Superintendent of Schools Clayton Burch informed West Virginia Board of Education President Miller Hall in a letter on Monday of the counties that chose to remain remote this week.

“I am submitting this letter to report the county boards of education that have not taken action to provide an in-person learning option for all students the week of Jan. 19, 2021, which the WVBE required,” Burch wrote. “It is my understanding several boards are meeting in the coming days to discuss further options or have published dates to return to in-person instruction beyond the date specified in the WVBE action.”

Burch also notified the WVBE that as of this week, 17 counties have chosen to provide four-to-five days of in-person instruction for families, and 31 counties have opted to begin with a blended model of at least two days of in-person learning each week.

The state school board voted unanimously last week to require pre-K through 8th grade to return to full, in-person school regardless of a county’s color on the state’s coronavirus map, which tracks coronavirus spread. High schools are also encouraged to return to in-person learning unless a county is marked red on the map. Some counties have opted to resume under a blended model of instruction — some remote and some in-person.

In the WVBE’s ruling, officials also said that county school boards and county superintendents have the ultimate authority to work with their local health departments and decide what’s best for their districts.

State education leaders and the governor have held fast, however, and continue to push for children to be back in school for in-person instruction.

“A third of our kids are failing core classes,” Justice said on Tuesday. “The remote stuff doesn’t work or is not working very well, and so with all that, we have to get them back in school. And the transmission rate, we know, by all the science, is almost zero [for children under age 15]. Now, we can’t make it zero. We can’t make it perfect … but absolutely, all the science tells us to go back to school.”

The American Federation of Teachers-West Virginia announced last week they would file an injunction sometime early this week against the state Board of Education, the Department of Education, and certain county boards of education for requiring counties to resume in-person learning. The union said the reason is “to protect the health and safety of school employees.”

A spokesperson with AFT-WV told West Virginia Public Broadcasting that the organization is finalizing details with its attorney and would be officially filing the injunction by the end of the day Tuesday or Wednesday this week.

Additionally, AFT-WV has indicated it will file an amicus brief in support of any county board of education that continues with remote-only learning until teachers and staff can be fully vaccinated.

The governor indicated in his latest press briefing that about 50,000 children in West Virginia remain in virtual school for the spring semester.

According to the West Virginia Department of Education, virtual is different from remote learning in that virtual is often a real-time, video conference with local teachers and classmates. However, this varies. The WVDE offers the West Virginia Virtual School to all 55 counties, which is asynchronous, and the teachers are often located out-of-state. Some West Virginia counties offer a local, virtual option, such as Jefferson Virtual Academy in Jefferson County, which is five days a week, real-time instruction over a video platform with a local teacher from a student’s school.

Remote learning, as defined by the WVDE, is often self-paced without face-to-face instruction. Some West Virginia teachers have argued, however, this is not always the case and varies per county or even per classroom.

All 55 county school systems and all grade levels still have access to a virtual school option, according to the WVDE, whether that’s the state’s West Virginia Virtual School, a local option or both.

**Editor’s Note: This article was edited on Jan. 20, 2021 to clarify the differences between virtual and remote learning.