By Heather Clower
The Parsons Advocate
The Tucker Valley Elementary Middle School Local School Improvement Council (LSIC) group offered a presentation to the Tucker County Board of Education to showcase the positive aspects that have come from the SBA Grant and efforts from the parents and staff, along with the needs and difficulties they are facing.
The goals that have been set are to improve student achievement and behavior, increase attendance, and increase parental involvement. How the schools are addressing those goals were highlighted and included new equipment and materials, positive behavior awards, and after-school programs when permissible.
Improvements made to the facility as a result of the SBA Grant were showcased including the new roof, a middle school awning, a safe and secure entryway, and new lighting and paint in the cafeteria. Safety measures included a new fire alarm, intercom, and lockdown system. Hopeful future projects are awnings for the early elementary wing and the parent drop off area near the gym, bleachers suitable for the gymnasium, a paved track area, playground equipment, an outdoor courtyard, middle school lockers, new flooring for the library, stage, and music room, classroom phones, a paved basketball court, smaller class sizes, upgraded security cameras, and an additional physical education area so more than one class can be scheduled at one time.
Within the first few days of school, a new diagnostic testing program called i-Ready was administered and the results were presented. The first tests revealed a lot of red indicating below grade level, however, teachers have commented they have seen a lot of growth in their students and feel confident in the next benchmark results.
Attendance Director Amber Kyle provided the board with the annual attendance report for October 1. Current enrollment includes 174 at Davis Thomas Elementary Middle School, 444 at Tucker Valley Elementary Middle School and Tucker County High School with 301 for a countywide total of 919 students with the count as of October 1 being 927.
“Our attendance rates at Davis Thomas and Tucker Valley are very good,” Kyle stated. DTEMS currently has a 98.22% attendance rate with 1.72% chronically absent, TVEMS has a 97.55% attendance rate with 3.16% absent, and TCHS has an attendance rate of 97.06% and 11.96% chronic absenteeism. The countywide chronic absenteeism rate is currently at 5.77%.
There are 137 students across 104 families engaged in homeschooling where 50 students would be at TVEMS, 64 at DTEMS, and 23 at TCHS. Since the beginning of the year, seven students have re-entered school or have moved from Tucker County. The BOE received 52 transfer requests for this school year, 10 transferred within the county, 42 came from outside the county.
Kyle provided the student numbers who are deemed homeless, defined as lacking a fixed, adequate nighttime residence or doubled-up, including those living in a shelter. Currently, there are 58 homeless students, 12 from DTEMS, 20 from TVEMS, and 26 at TCHS. The Ridgeline Facility had 70 students enrolled within Tucker County Schools during the 2019-20 school year with an average stay of 33 days. So far in 2020-21, 17 students have come from Ridgeline with nine currently enrolled.
Board President Tim Turner stated, “I think there’s only one county in the state that’s had an increase in enrollment and that’s Pendleton.” Two notices of intent were submitted for acknowledgment for a first-grade student at DTEMS and a fourth-grade student at TVEMS.
A motion was made by Vice President Daniel “Chopper” Evans with a second from Board Member Jessica Wamsley to approve the consent agenda items as presented. Superintendent Alicia Lambert made the recommendation to accept the resignation of Randy Davis as DTEMS track coach, which approved with motions from Evans and Wamsley with all in favor.
Lambert provided the board with the job description as requested to create the Athletic Game Administrator position. After discussion of the potential schedule for the winter sports, Board Members Cathy Hebb, Evans, and Wamsley voted in favor of the position with Turner and Board Member Chris Gross voting against.
Budget adjustments were reviewed as were the memorandum of understanding between Tucker County Schools and Western Governors University for student teaching.
Surveys were sent out to staff and parents throughout the county regarding COVID-19 and the procedure of the school. Lambert stated that 133 teachers and 373 parents completed the survey which showed 53.4% of teachers felt that the schedule should remain blended in the month of December, with 18% suggesting five days per week and 27.1% said four days per week and one day virtual. These results were collected when the county only had two active cases, therefore the results could differ if the survey were offered again. Of the parents, 39.9% felt blended was the best option, 29.8% suggested five days per week, 16.6% four days per week in person and one day virtual, and 13.7% feeling fully remote was the best option.
Feelings were shared about the current county statistics and how the counties surrounding Tucker are affected. The W.Va. Department of Education submitted a request to Gov. Jim Justice to set all schools on full remote learning until the end of December, but as of the time of publication, that action had not been made.
Lambert asked the principals to attend the meeting and share how their staff feels about the current situation. DTEMS Principal Neil “Steelie” Kisamore has had his school on full remote learning for the past four weeks, “So anything we can do to keep from being remote is what I suggest.” His staff recommended keeping each child in school for at least two days per week while bringing in the at-risk children on Fridays to accommodate their needs.
Kelly Thompson, TVEMS Principal, agreed with Kisamore adding that substitutes are the biggest issue within their school at this time. “We all want them to be back five days, but we need them to be back as safe as they can,” said Thompson. She added that routine is the biggest need and as long as a schedule is developed and adhered to, it will be better for the students.
The Principal of TCHS David Koritko had a meeting with his staff where he was in favor of five days of in-person instruction, but agreed that it made sense to stay blended through the end of the year to maintain continuity, but afterward, a plan is needed. “We are having a failure rate at the High School of 131, we’re going to lose those kids if I don’t get the kids back on,” he said.
Gross quoted a statistic he read that said individuals under the age of 20 are 20 times more likely to die of the flu than COVID-19. “This doesn’t affect kids,” he added. Gross said that the masks do not prevent the spread and the shutdowns are not necessary, rather the need to build immunity is what should be most important.
Lambert responded that the quarantining is what causes the issues for the school system that are leading to the shutdowns due to lack of substitutes to fill the positions. She said this is a state-wide issue not just in Tucker County, but what is more of a local issue is the ability for the students to fully participate in their coursework on a fully remote schedule. Lambert revealed that as of the end of October, there have been 353 COVID-related staff absences.
Earlier, Lambert offered a statement regarding TVEMS going to full remote learning due to an increase in numbers. “TVEMS had four staff members in quarantine, three of which were positive for COVID. We had two classroom outbreaks, meaning two or more people in the same core group or classroom that tested positive. Due to both factors and the sudden rise in cases in our county, we felt the best action was to switch to remote learning immediately for the safety of our students at TVEMS. This will hopefully help prevent any further spread of the virus in that school. Our goal is to have in person instruction as much as possible, but with that many staff members absent, we do not have the resources to fill that many vacant positions.”
The board entered an executive session to discuss the Superintendent’s goals and returned stating no decisions were made. The next meeting for the TCBOE will be Monday, December 7 at 4:30 p.m. at the TCBOE Office.
