Get Ready To Read With Super Why! At The Cabell County Public Library

West Virginia Public Broadcasting (WVPB) and the West Virginia Treasurer’s Office invite you to attend Get Ready to Read with Super Why! with Super Why! and Princess Presto for a read aloud, free photos, and giveaways. The first 100 children in attendance will receive their own superhero cape and mask!

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

[CHARLESTON, WV] — West Virginia Public Broadcasting (WVPB) and the West Virginia Treasurer’s Office invite you to attend Get Ready to Read with Super Why! with Super Why! and Princess Presto for a read aloud, free photos and giveaways. The first 100 children in attendance will receive their own superhero cape and mask!

The event will take place in Huntington on the third floor of the Cabell County Public Library on July 27 from 11 a.m. – 1 p.m.

“We are extremely excited to work with the West Virginia State Treasurer’s office again this year to bring Super Why and Princess Presto to the Huntington community at Cabell County Public Library,” shared WVPB Education Director Autumn Meadows. “They are fitting characters to celebrate literacy with local families. We hope to see you there for a story time, free photos, and other activities.”

The Cabell County Public Library is located at 455 9th Street in Huntington.

This event is free and open to the public.

About West Virginia Public Broadcasting:

The mission of West Virginia Public Broadcasting (WVPB) is to educate, inform and inspire people by telling West Virginia’s story. WVPB is an indispensable resource for education, news and public affairs, emergency services and economic development. Learn more at wvpublic.org or find us on Facebook and Instagram.

MEDIA CONTACT:

Amanda Rogers
Marketing Manager
304-556-4911
arogers@wvpublic.org

Lawmakers Discuss Vaccines In Private, Virtual Schools, This West Virginia Morning

On this West Virginia Morning, there has been a lot of discussion in the West Virginia Legislature this year about vaccines and whether they should be required in private, parochial or virtual schools. Emily Rice spoke with Del. Chris Pritt, R-Kanawha, and Del. Joey Garcia, D-Marion, to get their perspectives.

On this West Virginia Morning, there has been a lot of discussion in the West Virginia Legislature this year about vaccines and whether they should be required in private, parochial or virtual schools. Emily Rice spoke with Del. Chris Pritt, R-Kanawha, and Del. Joey Garcia, D-Marion, to get their perspectives.

Also, in this show, one of the banks barred from state contracts by the Treasurer’s Office is financing the Mountain Valley Pipeline. Curtis Tate has more.

West Virginia Morning is a production of West Virginia Public Broadcasting which is solely responsible for its content.

Support for our news bureaus comes from Shepherd University.

Eric Douglas is our news director and producer.

Listen to West Virginia Morning weekdays at 7:43 a.m. on WVPB Radio or subscribe to the podcast and never miss an episode. #WVMorning

Unrivaled Dedication: Brandon Maynard Clinches WVPB’s Prestigious Above And Beyond Award

Brandon Maynard, a special education teacher at Cabell Midland High School, earned West Virginia Public Broadcasting’s Above and Beyond Award for November, which recognizes excellence and creativity of Mountain State teachers.

Brandon Maynard, a special education teacher at Cabell Midland High School (CMHS), earned West Virginia Public Broadcasting’s Above and Beyond Award for November, which recognizes excellence and creativity of Mountain State teachers.

Maynard was honored by WVPB in front of his class, coworkers and administrators. He received a monetary award and a signature Blenko Glass blue apple paperweight. The West Virginia State Treasurer’s Office sponsors the award, presenter of the SMART529 college savings program in the Mountain State.

Maynard was nominated by a parent of one of his students. She celebrated his ability to be patient, compassionate, understanding and joyful. All while consistently communicating with parents, administration and support staff. In her nomination, she states, “He is calm and energetic all at the same time. He recognizes the student’s best qualities and builds on those for making learning fun and relevant for long-term success. He created greenhouse opportunities for learning and incorporates life skills that will help students with disabilities become more independent. He ensures safety while also exploring moments for students to be leaders themselves and moments of being just like everyone else in high school.”

Maynard knew from the beginning he wanted to be an educator thanks to his second grade teacher, but there was a long road to his current role at CMHS. He wanted to teach science, then physical education and eventually history. Unfortunately, history teachers were not in high demand, so he began substitute teaching in a variety of classrooms which is how he was exposed to his current calling in special education.

He said, “I finally started my career. I enrolled in classes at Marshall towards a master’s in special education with an autism endorsement and I haven’t regretted it since. The population of students that I work with are incredible when you give them the right tools to be successful. Every day is a new challenge, and I am constantly learning and impressed by their abilities and talents. They make each day and school year worth every moment.”

Maynard is constantly making his activities engaging and relevant. They learned about the solar system and planets using salt dough and even though it was a messy time, the students loved it, so he used the same method to teach the skeletal system. They’ve also made model rockets and went outside to launch them to learn how difficult it can be to design a rocket for space travel. “Anything we can do that is hands-on and gets them actively engaged in a lesson is most enjoyable.”

The class also has a greenhouse available that they use to grow plants year-round. The students not only plant the flowers and vegetables but also learn the plant life cycle, plant parts, the responsibilities of raising a garden and the benefits of plants to animals and people.

Maynard also makes it a point to collaborate and work with others in the school. His coworker, Sherri Riggio, who is an autism mentor said, “I’ve worked with Mr. Maynard for years and nobody deserves this award more than he does. He puts heart and soul into this job. He truly connects with his students and always focuses on what is best for each one. He works cooperatively with everyone in our special education department and the school as a whole. He makes the classroom and school a better place through his involvement. If anyone goes above and beyond, it is Maynard!”

From left to right: Jared Collins (Assistant Principal), Matthew Adkins (Principal), Brandon Maynard (award recipient), Maggie Holley (WVPB Education Director), Danny Harbert (Assistant Principal).

Credit: Autumn Meadows/West Virginia Public Broadcasting

Maynard is praised for not only his work in the school, but also outside the building. His nominator said he would drive to her home to deliver materials she was unable to access and attend community theater performances her son performed in. He seeks out and communicates to families different community activities that are sensory friendly and accommodating to their unique needs. She said, “He is an outstanding advocate that goes beyond his job requirements because he cares and is genuinely invested in his students beyond the confines of the special education classroom.”

When asked about how he incorporates inclusive activities inside and outside the classroom, Maynard said, “The students I work with in special education deserve the opportunity to be included in everything other students participate in, to the best of their ability. I want to create an environment for my students where they feel they can be themselves and not have to worry about anxiety or other triggers that may create a bad experience.”

He recalled some rewarding experiences he had with the students by simply including them. Once, a student of his had the opportunity to create a project and present information about goats. To allow her to have a visual aid for the presentation, he brought in one of his own goats for her to use. “That day was the most I’ve ever seen that student smile. She did fantastic with the presentation and was able to show and teach other students about goats through a PowerPoint presentation.”

Another time was with a student and family whom he goes to church with and attended most of their church softball games together. The student would sit with him and would always encourage the players. So, after one of the games, Maynard took him onto the field to let him bat. Maynard said, “He ended up crushing a ball out of the infield never having played baseball before. He ran the bases and had a blast. I love taking the initiative to give these kids a chance to just be kids and allow them the opportunities to be successful in any activity I can get them in.”  

Each month, WVPB has an esteemed panel of judges that select one deserving teacher who goes above and beyond for the students in West Virginia. If you know of a deserving teacher who goes “Above and Beyond,” please click here to nominate them.

W.Va. Unclaimed Property Funds Returned At Record Setting Pace

West Virginia State Treasurer Riley Moore said his office has returned more than $3.6 million worth of unclaimed property during the month of May.

West Virginia State Treasurer Riley Moore said his office has returned more than $3.6 million worth of unclaimed property during the month of May.

“It’s really a testament to the work of my staff and my employees,” Moore said. “It is also the legislation that we had passed in the legislature a couple of sessions back that helped us modernize the Unclaimed Property Act.” 

Unclaimed property is not real estate, but financial accounts or items of value where the owner has not initiated any activity for one year or longer. Examples include unpaid life insurance benefits, forgotten bank accounts and unused rebate cards.

“Many times these are financial instruments that have gone dormant or not acted upon,” Moore said. “It could be a life insurance policy, a safety deposit box or securities such as stocks and bonds and things of that nature. They’re then turned over to the state Treasurer’s Office, and then it is the state Treasurer’s job to return that property.”

Moore said that legislation that helped expand unclaimed property advertising and the ability to file claims online has helped increase public returns at record levels, along with new programs like West Virginia Cash Now. 

“That allows us to just send automatic checks out when we verify individuals on our end,” he said. “$100 to $5,000 is the range of monetary value of those checks.”

Moore said the total unclaimed property cash pushed out for this fiscal year stands at a record breaking $24.3 million. He said there are multiple ways to check to see if you have unclaimed property funds.

“You can search your name on our online database at wvunclaimed property.com, or you can click on our website, wvtreasury.com,” Riley said. “Click on the unclaimed property button and you can search your name, your wife’s name, brother, sister, uncles and cousins. Let people know that they have unclaimed property because you never know what you might have in there.”

A demonstration of how to use the Unclaimed Property search site is available on the Treasurer’s YouTube page, at: https://youtu.be/K09yQ7YNKlE. To search for lost financial assets outside West Virginia, visit www.MissingMoney.com

Nationwide, nearly 33 million people in the United States – one in every 10 – are estimated to have unclaimed property available for them to claim.

First Round Of Hope Scholarship Money Awarded To Students

The first round of Hope Scholarship money was awarded to families on Friday, following months of legal battles.

The first round of Hope Scholarship money was awarded to families on Friday, following months of legal battles.

Nearly 1,800 students and their families received vouchers to cover educational expenses for non-public schools. Of that number, 1,610 were granted the full annual amount of nearly $4,298.60.

Other applicants are still waiting for their payments, including 466 that are waiting for inconsistencies in the West Virginia Education Informational System of when students transferred schools to be dealt with.

A remaining 619 have not had payments issued – a statement from the state treasurer’s office says these families haven’t responded to a questionnaire from Hope Scholarship Board staff asking about their child’s status. They believe most of these cases come from families that decided to keep their children in public schools during the injunction.

“I know the injunction and the uncertainty it caused created a tremendous hardship on families, and we appreciate the patience they have displayed as we continue to work through the litany of issues it produced,” state treasurer Riley Moore said in the release. Moore is also the chairman of the Hope Scholarship Board.

In total, nearly 3,000 families applied for Hope Scholarship funds before an injunction in Kanawha Circuit Court halted the program last May. It was lifted in October by the state’s Supreme Court of Appeals.

Advocates of the Hope Scholarship program call it a victory for school choice, while opponents say it’s taking away needed money from the state’s public school systems.

The period to apply for next school year’s round of Hope Scholarship funding begins March 1, with current applicants eligible to reapply on Feb. 15.

Scholarship Sweepstakes Announced On SMART529 Anniversary

West Virginia’s State Treasurer's office launched a scholarship sweepstakes Wednesday for children 14 and younger in celebration of the 20th anniversary of the state’s SMART529 savings plan.

West Virginia’s State Treasurer’s office launched a scholarship sweepstakes Wednesday for children 14 and younger in celebration of the 20th anniversary of the state’s SMART529 savings plan.

Contestants will be eligible to win one of three scholarships, each worth $20,000. The scholarships will be awarded to the randomly chosen winners once a month from October through December.

The original SMART529 plan began in 2002 to help West Virginians create college education savings plans through the treasurer’s office. More than 37,000 accounts exist today.

Entries must be completed by a parent or guardian, and both caretaker and child must be West Virginia residents. Only one entry per child is allowed, but multiple children in a household can be entered.

More information on the contest, including registration, is available on the State Treasury website.

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