MORGANTOWN — Why did the Mountaineer Boys & Girls Club Board of Directors announce an immediate closure of all the club’s sites on Wednesday?
Thus far, nobody will say.
What is known is that the Boys & Girls Club recently contacted The Shack Neighborhood House and asked if The Shack could take over at least some of the club’s summer programming.
Both Tia Lasporgara, executive director of The Shack, and Monongalia County Schools Superintendent Eddie Campbell confirmed that such a request was made.
Lasporgara said her board of directors was to consider that question during a meeting Thursday evening.
Following the meeting, Lasporgara sent out an email saying The Shack was “aware” of the temporary closure of the Boys & Girls Club.
“The Shack is acutely aware of the critical need for child care and food service as the Shack is currently operating at maximum capacity,” Lasporgara explained in the message. “We will continue our conversation with the Board of Education, Morgantown Boys and Girls Club and other stakeholders to provide assistance where possible.”
Lasporgara did not respond to follow-up questions.
As for why such a request was needed in the first place, the Boys & Girls Club remains silent.
When contacted Thursday, Mountaineer Boys & Girls Club Volunteer Coordinator Christa Varner passed the phone to Executive Director Denny Poluga, who directed questions to members of the club’s board of directors.
Eric Murphy, a member of the board, pointed back to the statement issued by the club on Wednesday, which cited the need for “important operational improvements” before acknowledging the difficult position the closure put many parents in.
The statement doesn’t say when operations will resume other than “we anticipate our Clubs to re-open for our after-school care.”
Asked if he was aware of social media posts alleging improper conduct by a staff member or volunteer with the club, Murphy again pointed to the club’s official statement.
The Dominion Post attempted unsuccessfully to contact the anonymous Facebook user who made the post, which claims complaints were filed with Boys & Girls Clubs of America, the national organization.
The Dominion Post reached out to the Boys & Girls Clubs of America on Thursday, but received no response.
According to the city, the Morgantown Police Department has not received any reports and is not conducting any investigation into anyone associated with the Boys and Girls Club.
The Mountaineer Boys & Girls Club operates primarily out of the former Woodburn School, on Fortney Street. The building is owned by the city of Morgantown.
As far as the city is aware, there is no work being done at the building that would warrant the closure of the first floor, where the club is located.
Further, Campbell said there has been no change with the club’s standing with the board of education that would prevent it from using school facilities if it needed to vacate the Woodburn location temporarily.
TWEET @DominionPostWV
