West Virginia Governor Jim Justice laid out the priorities for state educators during a news conference Friday morning.
Food. Mental health. Academics.
That is why Ohio County Schools Superintendent Dr. Kim Miller worked with the district’s employees to organize meal preparation and distribution beginning tomorrow between 11 a.m. and 1 p.m. at several locations.
“There have been a lot of meetings and a lot of conference calls in the effort to get everyone on the same page,” she explained. “We’re going to do everything we can in order to help our students and their families.”
‘As Long as It Takes’
Gov. Justice closed public schools in the Mountain State indefinitely, and he added this weekend that the closure will last at least two weeks. Whether or not the academic year will be extended to make up the instructional time, Dr. Miller does not know.
“The focus right now is on nutrition and on the mental health of our students,” she said. “We are not sure about how this will impact us as far as the school year and how it will end for the summer. Right now, we’re looking at a lot of different options for the high school’s graduation ceremony.
“I believe a lot of decisions will be made once everyone is confident that this crisis is under control in our country,” Miller continued. “When that will take place, no one knows right now, so we have to concentrate on caring for our kids in the ways we are capable, and we are aware of the importance of the meals. We’re going to do this for as long as it takes.”
Meal distribution begins tomorrow morning at 10 locations, and Ohio County students and their parents can visit any of them to gain access to the food. Wheeling Park High School is not one of the locations because of its location, but high school students and their parents should feel free to visit one of the others on the school system’s list.
“We looked at where our schools are and which ones were in close proximity to the county’s population,” Dr. Miller explained. “There are not too many of our students that live close to the high school, but those students should feel free to go to any of the other locations if they want.”
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