Pocahontas Schools looking to Improve English Language Arts Education

Kimberly McComb At the July 11^th Pocahontas Board of Education Meeting, Superintendent Terrance Beam talked about possibly establishing an English Language Arts (ELA) Coach position to achieve results similar to the very successful job Math Coach, Joanna Burt-Kinderman has done. ELA teachers from different schools in the County are meeting to try and get a handle on the English Language Arts situation in the Elementary and Middle Schools and to possibly come up with a more successful way to get students up to grade level in reading.

Mr. Beam also provided some results from the recent survey sent out to school employees. Sixty-eight out of two hundred staff responded to the survey. Fifty-eight of those felt that the Board of Education meeting with the staff at each school to hear about problems and receive suggestions was a good thing which should be continued. Fifty-six of the sixty-eight respondents agreed that the school buildings were in need of major renovations. Asked to name a positive thing about the schools, most listed their own schools and good working relationships with other staff and Principals. Almost all of the negative comments were directed at the Central Office. These were things like lack of trust, lack of confidentiality and lack of good communication.

Beam also noted that the County Schools will open for the 2016-2017school year on August 10^th.

In other actions at the July 11^th meeting, the Board of Education approved the minutes from their June 8^th and 22^nd meetings; a number of payments to venders; bank reconciliation statements for April and May, 2016; budget adjustments; and the June payroll.

The Board extended a contract with Old Dominion University Research Foundation until June 30, 2017. The Old Dominion Research Foundation will reimburse the County Board of Education an additional $35,000 for this extension.

They also approved $500.00, $5000.00 and $1000.00 grants with the WV Department of Education, and an agreement with the WV Department of Education for the electronic transfer to the Internal Revenue Service information about health care.

The Board also approved an agreement between themselves and McLiney & Company about the Qualified Zone Academy Bond Program.

They approved Brick Street Mutual Insurance Company as their workers Compensation provider and approved the Notice of Election to Authorize Additional School Levies to the Voters of Pocahontas County and an agreement with OWPR Architects and Engineers, Inc.

The board approved a Teacher-in-Residence Program Partnership with Glenville State College.

The Board adopted one new policy –labeled “IKN”- regarding credit recovery and placed 3 other policies on 30 day comment. These were policy IHE which limits student grade retention to one time per student, and establishes a new date by which parents must be notified their child is in danger of being retained. The other two policies being placed on 30 day comment involve Reduction in force policies and personal leave policy.

The Board approved the WV Alternative Certification Proposal Region 4 Alternative Certification Program Special Education.

They named Board Member Jessica Hefner as their new representative on the RESA IV Regional council

They approved a contract for John R. Staats to serve as a mentor to the 3 new Principals: Phillip Anderson at Marlinton Elementary School; Dustin Lambert at Marlinton Middle school and Rebecca Spencer at Hillsboro Elementary School. Staats will be paid $1000.00 for each of these Principals.

The Board approved a large Personnel Agenda which can be found with this story on our website –alleghenymountainradio.org.