Suzanne Stewart
Staff Writer
Superintendent Lynne Bostic gave a report at the September 3 Pocahontas County Board of Education meeting on the recent visit from staff of the West Virginia Department of Education. The state DOE collaborated with Pocahontas County High School staff on properly implementing Policy 2510.
“You’ll recall, last spring when it was personnel season, we, as a board and myself discussed an educational audit of the high school this fall and that’s what we’re in the process of doing,” Bostic said. “They have been great to work with. They’ve met with the leadership team of all the departments at the high school.”
Derek Lambert and Lauren Landry met with the principals and counselors one day to discuss personalized educational plans, the role of the counselor and transcribing grades for students. Then, they met with high school staff and did the same, in addition to discussing Policy 2510 and the courses that are required for students to earn a high school diploma.
“They’ve been fantastic to work with, and they have given us the priorities for us to work through the process,” Bostic said.
While the staff was in sessions with Lambert and Landry, the students were going through training of their own with the help of Youth Health Services. Bostic explained that all students are required to go through suicide prevention, fentanyl awareness and drug awareness. A little bit of fun was added into the mix with a round of pickleball in the gym.
In other updates:
• Director Julie Shiflet gave a report on the county’s overall test scores from last year. She said the math department at the high school was ranked 12th out of 110 high schools in West Virginia with a score of 27.2 percent. Shiflet provided a print out of all the scores to the board members and said it was a lot of information to digest, but she was available to answer any questions they may have.
“We do have some areas in our grades that we need to work on and this is what we’re going to be going over with our principals in the principal meeting and try to figure out a strategy to support our students and teachers,” she said.
Shiflet also provided information about online courses and homeschool students. She said there are currently 16 students taking 45 different online courses at PCHS. Three of the students are enrolled in the Grow Your Own program through Glenville State University.
She added that there are currently 104 registered homeschool students and there are six more pending.
“That’s a little concerning,” she said. “I hate that we have that many that are homeschooled. We do have communication with them. We do invite them in to take the state assessment, and we did have some that came in and participated with us last year. It’s a good way to make sure their children are on track with the assessments for the grade levels.”
Like students enrolled at the schools, homeschool student scores are reported in third, fifth, eighth and 11th grade.
In addition to 104 homeschool students, Shiflet said there are 19 students enrolled in the virtual program through Proximity.
• Director Kristy Tritapoe gave a report on the special education program, explaining that the secondary education teachers have com- pleted their transition plans. They are on schedule and will continue to work hard on staying in compliance with the state education department requirements.
As Tritapoe reported at the prior meeting, special education teachers have to have transition plans for all their students to make sure they make a smooth transition after graduation.
“If you see those high school special ed teachers, please say thank you because they are a little bit overwhelmed right now,” she said.
Tritapoe and PCHS Communities In Schools coordinator Lois Wilfong also gave a report on Communities In Schools and its work in Pocahontas County. Wilfong said she is working on a college day and career day for students to learn more about the colleges they can attend and the job opportunities they can find in and around the county.
Financial, personnel and miscellaneous management will be published in next week’s edition.
The next board meeting is Tuesday, September 24, at 6 p.m., in the board of education conference room.
