MORGANTOWN, W.Va. — The Mountaineer Boys and Girls Club, which was ordered to close its doors last month, is slowly rehabbing its way back to its job description.
Eric Murphy gave that update to the Mon County school board members Tuesday. Murphy, the club’s parent advocate, said morning and afternoon offerings are back in place for youngsters who attend Brookhaven, Mylan Park, Mountainview and Ridgedale elementary schools. For a while this summer, parents and other caregivers weren’t so sure. Nor was the Monongalia County Board of Education.
That was after the sudden call to close came down July 19 from the national organization. The Boys & Girls Clubs of America ordered the local headquarters temporarily shuttered.
The former Woodburn Elementary School, the local club’s 100-year-old home on Fortney Street, was in dire need of repairs, the national headquarters said. The Morgantown club, Murphy said, is also refurbishing its human infrastructure. Staffers in recent weeks have gone through a re-hiring process that most of them cleared, Murphy said. The Mountaineer Boys and Girls Club is also looking to replenish its board of directors, he said.
“We want to build a robust, strong, sustaining board,” the parent advocate said. “That’s really what our next goal is.”
Meanwhile, the Monongalia County Board of Education is also looking to put its recruitment efforts out there in big letters. The board inked a 1-year, $28,800 contract with Lamar Advertising, of Bridgeport, which will offer five billboards across the area to the local school board. Four of those billboards are electronic, Assistant Superintendent of Schools Donna Talerico said.
The main idea, she said, is to advertise for service positions — bus drivers, in particular. The district is also putting a call out for drivers on a social media campaign.
“And there are plenty of other things we can promote,” she said.
