TERRA ALTA — Three people spoke Thursday at a hearing on possible school closures in Preston County.
The hearing was held at Terra Alta/East Preston School, which will receive some of the students from Rowlesburg if the Preston County Board of Education votes to close it. Also under consideration for closure is Fellowsville Elementary.
This was the third public hearing. Three others will be held next week.
Thursday Terra Alta/East Preston Principal Justin Hough, and community members Paige Dopson and Michael Yates, addressed the board.
Hough said that, if students transfer to the school, they will be welcomed.
“As much as we may be a county made up of many small communities, we are still one county and one family, and that is the Preston County Schools family. No matter where they’ve come from or where they’ve been, once you step foot through those doors, you are now an Eagle,” Hough said, referring to the school mascot.
He and the staff will work for as smooth a transition as possible, Hough said, and, if the decision to close other schools is made, the new students will be welcomed to all remaining activities at Terra Alta/East Preston this year.
Paige Dopson, director of Cranesville Christian Academy, asked how true the board’s projected numbers hold and if school choice is an option?
Preston Superintendent Steve Wotring said things could come up in any year that could offset budget projections, such as a boiler failure. But they are as accurate as they can be, given trend data, he said.
“I always say that we’re one catastrophe away from making those figures go totally off the track,” Wotring said.
Regarding school choice, he said parents can apply for transfers within the county and to other counties. He explained the process for those. Parents also can opt to home school.
The final speaker, Michael Yates, said his family moved to Preston County five years ago. He asked the board to consider more than the economies of scale to be gained by having more students in one place.
Larger student populations also make it easier to miss struggling students, Yates said. Studies have also shown larger school populations mean students are more anonymous and bullying rises.
“I would encourage the board to remember that those costs are there,” Yates said.
He noted the board has worked hard to regain trust, “that had been strained over the years.” If schools close it’s possible people would think, “their votes are not valued,” and asked the board to consider how that will affect future levy votes.
Wotring said he understood Yates’ comments, and schools and teachers are trying very hard to identify struggling students, regardless of the size of the school.
But, he said, “the history of levies in this county has not been good since I think the 1970s. We’ve done everything I possibly know to do to get the support of our communities, and we’ve just been unsuccessful in that … we’ve got to live within our means.”
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- The Preston County Board of Education is holding public hearings on the possible closure of Fellowsville and Rowlesburg schools. Hearings will be 5 p.m. Monday at South Preston, 7:30 p.m. Monday at Fellowsville School and 5 p.m. Wednesday at Rowlesburg School.
