Suzanne Stewart
Staff Writer
At the Pocahontas County Board of Education meeting June 11, superintendent Lynne Bostic gave a presentation on the steps all school systems have to take during “personnel season,” when the superintendent decides if there should be any RIFs – Reduction in Force – or transfers.
Personnel season for Bostic’s first year as superintendent became contentious when misinformation was shared about RIFs that were considered for several staff members at Pocahontas County High School. This caused students to protest and walk out of school for two days. It also caused a lot of unrest in the community and led to a lot of discussion about funding and cuts in staffing.
In Bostic’s presentation, she explained that personnel season really begins in the fall when she starts to look at classroom size and the courses being taught. West Virginia Schools must follow state law Policy 2510 when planning course offerings to ensure students are taking all the classes they need to graduate.
“The policy actually outlines the required courses at each level,” Bostic said. “There are required courses that we have to have and it also provides options for us,” Bostic said. “That is our Bible of what we have to offer and how many credits for each high school subject area.”
This is what led to Bostic’s concern with the math department at Pocahontas County High School. When she looked over the course schedule, she learned there were classes being taught that are no longer approved by the state.
“We were offering courses that were no longer even approved by the state as courses,” she said. “They said I was cutting STEM. No. It was just STEM classes that did not exist in the course codes at the state level. They are now called something else.
“When I talked to the state, they said ‘you could be offering classes that these kids cannot get credit for and should not be graduating because they would not have graduation credits,’” she continued. “That’s the discussions I was having with the state.”
In those discussions, Bostic was informed some of the courses being taught were taken out of Policy 2510 years ago.
Board vice president Becky Campbell asked if the teachers at the high school were aware they were teaching classes that did not turn into credits for students.
“They know now,” Bostic said. “I had a discussion with them. We’ll be monitoring that closer.”
“Allowing the teachers to decide what they want to teach… it doesn’t always fit,” board president Sue Hollandsworth added.
Bostic provided each board member with a copy of Policy 2510 and said that it is available for staff to review, as well.
In updates:
• Reading coach Stephanie Burns gave a report on the Standards Based Report Cards which evaluate third through fifth grade.
In miscellaneous management, the board approved the following:
• 2024-2025 Pocahontas County Schools Board of Education meeting schedule.
In personnel management, the board approved the following:
• Abolishment of position of alternative education teacher/interventionist at Green Bank Elementary-Middle School.
• Requested transfer of Melissa Walker from teacher of fifth grade at Marlinton Elementary School to teacher of preschool special needs at Marlinton Elementary School, effective for the 2024-2025 school year, at state basic pay for 200 days.
• Employment of Brianna Morgan as science teacher at Pocahontas County High School, effective for the 2024-2025 school year, at state basic pay for 200 days.
• Employment of Kelly Buzzard as special education teacher at Pocahontas County High School, effective for the 2024-2025 school year, at state basic pay for 200 days.
• Employment of Lisa L. Johnson as special education/classroom/bus aide at Pocahontas County High School, effective for the 2024-2025 school year, at state basic pay for 200 days.
• Employment of Tim McClung as head girls basketball coach at Pocahontas County High School, effective for the 2024-2025 athletic season at a supplement of $2,475.
• Creation of position of alternative education teacher/interventionist at Green Bank Elementary-Middle School and Marlinton Middle School.
The next board meeting will be Tuesday, July1, at 6 p.m. at the board office in Buckeye.