Your kids are her kids, and it doesn’t matter if school is in session or not.
That’s just how she approaches her position as superintendent of Ohio County Schools.
If it is in session, Dr. Kimberly Miller wants them in the classroom because public education is tough enough without outbreaks and quarantines and virtual platforms. Not only did the chief administrator somehow navigate a system with nearly 5,000 students and 800 employees through this closed-again-open-again pandemic, but Miller maintained a positive attitude that often is contagious.
Make no mistake; there are the critics who insist Miller can do no right no matter her decisions, but she turns those lemons into lemonade.
“There has been push-back since the beginning, and it hasn’t matter what the issue has been,” said Rick Jones, assistant superintendent of Ohio County Schools. “But it hasn’t mattered to Kim, and that’s because she only has one item on her agenda as the superintendent of Ohio County Schools. That is to do the right thing for our students and our employees.
“It doesn’t matter what the decision is either,” he said. “If some people oppose the decision, she’s OK to push through it in order to do the right thing, and that was her motivation to offer our educators a raise, to gain more than $70 million to update all of our school buildings, to establish maker spaces in our classrooms, to begin one-on-one instructor sessions, to make sure every student has the technology they need for their classes. She did those things, and I don’t think she gets enough credit, but she deserves it.”
Pandemic Politics
On again, off again. Masks, that is.
The five members of the Ohio County Board of Education voted in favor of parental preference when it came to face coverings in school buildings at the beginning of the current academic year, but then the majority flipped to a mask mandate after complete classes were quarantined, and schools were closed.
Most of the second half of the 2020 school year was operated virtually after Covid-19 was sweeping through the United States. Although West Virginia was the last state to report a confirmed case of the coronavirus, Miller was tasked with adapting online learning and developing packet education, food distribution, and wifi hotspots in every school and in 10 additional community locations.
The superintendent, Jones, and their Central Office staff members accomplished those challenges in a mere three days so the students and educators missed only one day of instruction.
Once W.Va. Gov. Jim Justice lifted his school closure order, he and officials with the state Department of Health and Human Resources then developed a colorful Covid map that determined days when in-class instruction was permitted. Not only was Miller dealing with those daily changes, but she and the school system’s principals had to track students through law enforcement because some children were not interacting with their teachers online.
Ohio County was “red” on the Covid map during the New Year’s weekend, so students will be masked when school resumes Monday morning.
“When the pandemic began, it became about everything we were doing because it was still our job to educate the children while things were changing day-to-day. Everything shifted to Covid because some days we were closed and virtual only, and other days our school buildings were open,” Jones explained. “Initially, we had to develop ways to improve how we were teaching remotely, but during this whole time we’ve had to watch all of the developments so we could be prepared for pretty much anything.
“But that’s Kim’s leadership. That’s what she had one since my very first day as the assistant superintendent,” he continued. “Recently, our Board of Education meetings have handled the business of operating a school system, but they also have become about quarantining and masks, and then we developed a compromise that everyone can live with, and the board passed it. Now, those restrictions have been adjusted since, so we’ll redevelop our plan so we can concentrate on our bond projects, our teachers, and our students’ education.”
An Eyewitness
Soon after Miller was hired as the superintendent, she began interviewing candidates for the assistant superintendent position. Jones was one of them.
The two are different but also the same in many regards.
Both are parents of children that are students in the system. Both have been athletes, coaches, teachers, and administrators.
Where they differ most is temperament.
“We’ve been doing this for six years now, and I have to say that her best quality is her positivity regardless of what is happening in the world, in our county, or in our school system,” Jones insisted. “She has always led people in a positive direction no matter what challenging things that come along while operating a school system. She handles those things really well while attempting to keep everyone centered on the goals that have been established.
“I don’t know if I would have accepted this position if it wasn’t for how positive Kim is each and every single day,” the assistant superintendent added. “There have been times when something has taken place, and I believe it was going to be a very tough time, but she’s managed to make those situations into something to learn from and to improve on for the future. It’s really been an amazing thing to watch.”
