The Ohio County Commission partnered with Quaker Steak & Lube to present a spectacular Independence Day celebration this Wednesday beginning at 6 p.m.
As the nation prepares to celebrate its 248th birthday, the Ohio County Commission and Quaker Steak & Lube at The Highlands have partnered to present a fun-filled Independence Day Celebration this Wednesday evening at The Highlands.
Live music with Miller-Smith-Mazure will begin at The Lube at 6 p.m., and the eatery will offer bounce houses, face painting, and a foam party for the children in attendance. The Wheeling Miners will be on hand at Quaker Steak for a “Meet & Greet,” and at dusk, the region’s most impressive fireworks display will be presented by the Ohio County Commission.
“It’s going to be a wonderful family event thanks to our partnership with the folks at Quaker Steak, and that’s what Independence Day in our country is all about,” said Ohio County Commission President Don Nickerson. “We always offer one of the best fireworks displays in the Upper Ohio Valley, and there’s really no better place than The Highlands to watch this kind of celebration.
The Lube will host local band Miller-Smith-Mazure – “MSM” – this Wednesday beginning at 6 p.m.
“It’s always so much fun to see how excited the kids are at such a great event,” the Commissioner explained. “And once the fireworks begin, everyone’s face just lights up in amazement, and that’s the biggest reason why we, as the commissioners, are so excited to be a part of the event every year. It’s about our country, absolutely, but it’s also about the people who choose to live right here in Ohio County.”
Christine Thomas, the marketing director for The Lube for more than a decade, said this year’s event is expected to be bigger and better than in years past.
“We’re excited because we’ve added some new things to this year’s event because the fireworks at The Highlands always are the best in the valley thanks to the Commission,” she said. “‘MSM’ is one of the best bands in the valley, and the kids have always loved all of the activities we have here for our special events like this one.
“Along with the bounce houses and all of the different activities for the kids, we’re also going to have a number of vendors that will be set up in the parking lot,” she explained. “We’ll also food and beverage specials inside the restaurant and we’ll have a beer tent outside, too.”
The fireworks at The Highlands celebration promises to be one of the largest in the Upper Ohio Valley.
Quaker Steak & Lube at The Highlands stages several special events throughout each year, including live concerts, fundraisers for local causes, and also a number of special functions during the holiday seasons.
“We’ve always made it about our community here at The Lube, and we feel like our local residents don’t really look at us like a chain or franchise restaurant because of what we try to do for the people here,” Thomas said. “We love our community and want to be a part of it, and that’s why our management team is all local, too.
“Plus, if you haven’t been here at The Highlands for our fireworks displays, you’re missing the best one in the area because the skies are so huge up here,” she insisted. “This is going to be a great way to kick off the Fourth of July weekend, that’s for sure, and we hope everyone comes up early, takes advantage of all of the free parking, and celebrates our country’s birthday with us.”
One of several zoo interns this summer has handled the Hellbenders a lot this summer at Oglebay's Good Zoo.
As part of a collaborative effort with Williams, the West Virginia Division of Wildlife, West Liberty University, and the Wilds, Oglebay Good Zoo reintroduced over 100 Eastern hellbenders to the local streams and rivers where the hellbenders originated as eggs.
The hellbenders, hatched and raised at the zoo since 2018, were released into two streams in Northern West Virginia over the past three weeks.
The Eastern hellbender, North America’s largest salamander, can grow up 30 inches in length. These elusive creatures thrive under large boulders in streams and rivers throughout the Appalachian region. Since the 1970s, their populations have been in decline due to sedimentation of streams from deforestation, disease, and historic misconceptions that led to unnecessary killing, despite the species being non-poisonous. Historically, hellbenders inhabited over 40 streams and rivers in West Virginia, and now, the species is only present in approximately a dozen streams or rivers, most of which occur within the federally protected lands.
Williams, an energy infrastructure company, has long supported the zoo’s program to raise and reintroduce hellbenders back into local streams and rivers. “We understand the importance of safeguarding biodiversity and protection of vulnerable species like the Eastern hellbender, which has been successfully reintroduced in West Virginia thanks to the important work of the Oglebay Good Zoo,” said Mark Gebbia, the company’s VP of Environmental, Regulatory and Permitting. “Hellbender populations are an indicator of clean streams and rivers. When hellbenders are healthy and thriving, so is the environment.”
The Oglebay Good Zoo has collaborated with the WVDNR on hellbender research for over two decades and made history in 2007 as the first zoo in the world to successfully hatch Eastern hellbender eggs in human care. This milestone continues to drive conservation efforts, ensuring the survival and resurgence of this unique species in its native habitat.
About Oglebay Good Zoo – It is the only institution in West Virginia that is accredited by the Association of Zoos and Aquariums (AZA). The Good Zoo provides conservation education programming to over 13,000 students annually and participates in AZA breeding programs for over 20 rare or endangered species. The Good Zoo also collaborates with the West Virginia Division of Wildlife to conduct conservation research associated with the rare Eastern Hellbender Salamander and to rehabilitate nearly 50 ill or injured wild eagles, hawks, and owls in the Upper Ohio River Valley annually. Learn more at oglebay.com/good-zoo.
About Oglebay – Located in Wheeling, WV, Oglebay is a 2,000-acre public park, offering year-round recreational activities and overnight accommodations. Studied by planners worldwide as the only self-supporting public municipal park in operation in the United States, Oglebay stands as a successful tribute to Earl W. Oglebay, a notable achievement of the Wheeling Park Commission, and a credit to the many benefactors and organizations involved in its growth. Learn more at oglebay.com and follow us on Facebook, LinkedIn and Instagram.
The Ohio County Board of Education met this morning to welcome two new members.
This morning, Honorable Judge Sims swore in East Ohio Regional Hospital Administrator, Bernie Albertini, and retired Ohio County Schools employee, Anne Hercules, for their respective four-year terms to the Board of Education.
After taking the oath, nominations for the restructuring of the board took place. Albertini nominated David Croft for the presidency, a two year term. Molly Aderholt seconded the nomination making Croft the new BOE president effective immediately.
The residents of Moundsville were denied a chance to vote on the OVRTA bus levy because four council members were against putting the voice on the November ballot.
Nothing. Not a word.
The only returned message from the emails sent one week ago to the four Moundsville council members who voted to refuse Moundsville residents their right to vote on a busy levy was a “Failure Notice” for the one transmitted to Councilman Eugene Saunders.
He doesn’t use his city email, I’ve come to learn, so the City shut it down instead of paying for it. So much, I guess, for the 21st Century for Mr. Saunders, but the others apparently received the note with my request made in the name of the people of Moundsville:
Please reply with a short explanation as to why you decided to vote against placing the OVRTA Bus Levy on the Moundsville ballot this November 5th. Please be advised your explanation will be published on LEDE News on June 30th, and if you fail to reply, that will be reported. … Thank you for your time.
Well, here we are on June 30th and the report is … crickets.
But the silence generates even more questions:
Do any of the council members utilize their email addresses? If so, do they respond to the messages when the sender requests them to do so?
If the city’s landlords plan to raise rental rates, why not allow the renters to decide for themselves if they wish to pay more for their apartment or house?
Are the council members maintaining their silence in the hope I will stop asking them to fully explain their reasoning for voting against the public’s right to vote on the bus levy?
Because I won’t.
So, City Clerk Sondra Hewitt soon will be receiving a FOIA (Freedom of Information Act) request from me requesting several pieces of information concerning meeting minutes, transcriptions of all public conversation as it pertains to the bus levy, and copies of any information (ridership numbers, costs associated with ballot placement, planned bus stops, tax rates, etc.) provided to the council members by members of the Moundsville city administration prior to the June 18th council vote.
That way, if the council members do not wish to simply reply and explain their reasons, at least the residents of Moundsville can evaluate the amount of city assistance requested by each of the council members – besides conducting fake votes of Facebook, of course – before they voted on such an important matter.
If and when any of the four council members – Hunt, Wood, Saunders, and Chamberlain – responds, the correspondence will be published, and once the FOIA-requested information is received, it will be shared, too.
That’s because the public should know the reasons why the four council members decided to make the public’s decision for them.
The presidential debate this past Thursday has Democrats wondering about their current candidate,
Sometimes I think I’m living in a dystopian film, in a warped society where we send warriors out to fight our battles for us, and the winner of this one-on-one combat chooses which set of ideologies will prevail until the have two warriors face off again.
The fact we are doing this today, with a couple of geezers standing up in front of our nation making outlandish claims makes me pinch myself to make certain I’m awake. Is this really happening?
Is this the best our nation can do? The competition is macabre at best.
We all know there are two competing schools of thought. Big Government and Huge Taxes vs. Limited Government and allegedly lower taxes. Two completely different types of governance.
With each side sticking to its guns, there is no compromise, just a bit of wiggle on taxes, and it’s back and forth every few years. So, we spend a lot of money figuring out the most tax advantageous way to arrange our lives until the current tax cuts expire. Talk about not being “fair,” but we always punish our best and brightest, don’t we? Aspirational America is no longer about the brightest and best but instead about the most politically connected.
I’ve been told that I say that “Trump is a New Yorker” too many times, and maybe it’s how he acts. The TRUMP brand has always been about shiny and bold, and just a little “over the top.” Like the man. But that is how you need to roll when you’re playing in the city that never sleeps.
On Thursday night for the presidential debate, former president Donald J. Trump had his businessman’s face on, including that look of incredulity that each of us has when we are faced with an excessive load of untruth. The non-stop lies coming from President Joe Biden were nothing short of incredible. The Trump “you’re full it of” face was on for most of the two hours.
It’s obvious that Biden has never been in a grocery store or had to fill up the family car in recent months. The costs are staggering due to inflation, and wages have not kept up. The average family really does not care that some obscure employment metric is three-tenths of a percentage point better under him than it was under Trump.
Of the excuses from the left trying to justify Biden’s performance, one sticks out in my mind – “Biden has a cold.” Really now, after a week secluded at Camp David to prep for this, a mere cold took down the leader of the free world in a debate?
Thank God we weren’t in the middle of multiple international conflicts and domestic unrest caused by inflation. Or are we?
I think it’s obvious that we need a brawler in the White House for a bit. A troubleshooter who’s not afraid to take on the entrenched bureaucracy. Someone who has done the job and has had time to reflect on his “Wins-Losses-Ties” from term one. Someone who clearly calls it like it is.
Much like physicians, the best ones usually have really poor bedside manners.
When I look at a politician, the litmus test is always, “Would I like to have dinner with that man?”
I think an incredibly interesting conversation would be had breaking bread with Donald J. Trump.
Sure, he’s a bit of a braggart. That goes with the territory (another way of saying ‘He’s a New Yorker’). He connects with the common man, and that makes him seem much more real.
The debate was a demonstration of two old men, one with words and the other with mumbles (from a person who is clearly not as sharp as he once was). The debate proved that Biden is completely incapable or leading the greatest country on the face of the earth, and that Trump has reached the limit of what one human should have to endure as far as attacks and untruths.
In pugilist terms, when it was obvious that Trump had Biden bloodied and beaten, he didn’t let up. In normal times, he would have. Continuing the fight served no purpose, save for one.
The former president needed to get some of those frustrations out, and he did so by showing no mercy. In retrospect, I don’t blame him. I hope the political operatives who organize such things know better than to subject the American people to another one of these spectacles.
It was, in every way, disgraceful.
Unless the Democrat Party decides to risk blowing itself apart by replacing their presumptive nominee at the last minute, this is the pairing for the general election. We know what we have to deal with in November and I’ll be passing out clothespins that may help with the stench in the voting booth.
Is it possible that, maybe, we are getting the government we deserve?
W.Va. Gov. Jim Justice wis the Republican candidate in the race for one of two seats in the U.S. Senate.
In the world of politics, jabs and pointed remarks are often expected.
For example, this past week during his weekly briefing, the W.Va. Gov. Jim Justice suggested the soon-to-be-former mayor of Wheeling, “Get a life.” This comment came after the mayor took to social media to criticize the Governor’s presence at Independence Hall on West Virginia Day, June 20. Interestingly, the mayor of the host city was not present that day while Debbie Jones, the manager of Independence Hall, was doing a fantastic job with the day’s festivities.
Did this comment mark a notable escalation, or did it indicate the governor’s views on the outgoing mayor and signify irrelevance in the equation?
In this fast-paced, immediate-gratification world, and especially that of modern politics, social media is a powerful tool for politicians to engage with their constituents, rally support, and challenge their opponents. However, not all politicians use it as a virtual, digital battleground.
During his tenure as mayor, Elliott frequently used social media to share his thoughts and commentary. Throughout this campaign, for United States Senate, he has been making comments about his opponent, frequently on X. Many of these have been negative.
The Governor does not approach the people of West Virginia or his role as the Chief Executive of the state in the same way. Gov. Justice has always come to the people, mostly through media briefings, and has seen his popularity grow by doing such.
Was the Governor’s simple comment, “Get a life,” meant to frame Elliott as out of touch, undermining the mayor’s credibility, and rallying support among his own base?
Justice’s approach to politics is what many claim to desire, deeply rooted in his identity as a businessman and problem-solver, rather than a conventional, career politician.
Was it said with indifference to the many social media provocations, coming from a place of strategic calculations to the broader political landscape of West Virginia?
Justice’s approach to politics is what many claim to desire, deeply rooted in his identity as a businessman and problem-solver, rather than a conventional, career politician. His experience managing large organizations such as The Greenbrier and large coal operations has likely shaped his preference for concrete action over rhetorical exchanges, particularly on digital platforms.
While the Governor still has six months left in his gubernatorial term, he could see engaging with Elliott as more of a distraction which could take away from the important job of governing the state. Justice has repeatedly emphasized his commitment to delivering results for West Virginia, such as economic development and infrastructure improvements, both of which the City of Wheeling has been the benefactor.
Another significant factor is the demographic and composition of our beautiful Mountain State. Unlike largely urban states, where social media penetration is high and this political discourse plays out online, West Virginia is largely rural with much of the population living in areas with limited internet access. Still, in areas with access, people would rather speak to their neighbors over a good glass of iced tea or lemonade.
For many West Virginians, traditional forms of communication, such as local news reports, town hall meetings, and communityevents remain more influential than X or Facebook. Gov. Justice is well aware of his constituents’ preferences and understands his political capital is better spent engaging with people directly in their communities, like he did when he was in Wheeling on June 20.
Social media platforms are often criticized for creating echo chambers where users are exposed to views that align with their own. Engaging in online arguments can be futile, as they seldom change minds but are often successful in reinforcing pre-existing beliefs. By not participating in social media bantering, the Governor ensures his message remains consistent and unpolluted by the noise of online confrontation.
Ultimately, the Governor’s decision to ignore Elliott’s social media provocations reflects a broader understanding of effective governance. While social media can be a valuable tool for certain aspects of political communication, it is not the end-all-be-all of political strategy. The Governor’s focus on long-term governance, direct engagement with constituents, and tangible results position him as a leader who is more concerned with the substantive progress of the state.
He not only maintains his political brand but also ensures his administration remains focused on the issues that truly matter to the people.
It will be interesting to see how this campaign unfolds over the next several months. Elliott has been traveling the state and will be able to campaign full-time, barring family obligations as a husband and father, as his term as mayor ends today.
Will the Governor pay increased attention to his digital remarks? Only time will tell.
The clearing of the 1100 block of downtown Wheeling was filled by The Health Plan's headquarters.
It’s taken nearly a half century for downtown Wheeling to almost come full circle after the opening of the Ohio Valley Mall on October 4, 1978.
The under-roof shopping center debuted that day near St. Clairsville with several shops consumers had only heard about, like Foot Locker and Merry-Go-Round and Spencer’s. But the mall, constructed and still owned by the Cafaro Co. of Youngstown, also featured a number of retailers local residents knew very well from visiting Main and Market streets in downtown Wheeling.
There were anchor stores like Sears, JC Penney, and L.S. Good and smaller shops like National Record Mart, and Thom McAn, and all were staples in the Friendly City for decades.
Wayne and Maureen lived in Wheeling for nearly 50 years before moving to the Cincinnati area to be close to family.
So, it was a bad day for Wheeling, and a puzzling one for the municipality’s then-30-year-old city manager Wayne Barte.
“When the mall was announced for that area near St. Clairsville, we knew it wasn’t good for Wheeling and our downtown. And we saw businesses leave for the mall because the mall model was what people wanted at the time. They wanted a level downtown that was all under roof,” Barte recalled. “I know the people of Wheeling rejected that downtown mall project back in the 1960s, but the mall out near St. Clairsville was a completely different project and a completely different model.
“Once some of the businesses in downtown Wheeling closed and left for the Ohio Valley Mall, there were some new businesses that went into a few of the vacant buildings, and they were around for a while, but it was the ongoing population loss that was really hurting the city the most. People moved away for better opportunities,” he explained. “That led to a lot of demolitions in the downtown over the years, and a lot of parking lots, and no one was happy about that.”
The Southdale Center in Edina, Minn., was the very first modern mall when it opened in 1956, and thousands more of the under-roof outlets followed across the country. The ripple effects not only decimated retail in downtown Wheeling, but also in small downtown districts throughout the northern panhandle and East Ohio.
“You couldn’t stop it (the mall). There was no way to stop what was happening,” Barte said with a matter-of-fact tone. “Malls became the fashionable thing. It’s where everyone went; the kids, the parents; everyone, and we had to accept that it was the new way people were going to shop because there was nothing to stop it.
“And now, places like The Highlands are the more popular places to shop for whatever reasons. It’s where people want to shop now,” he said. “The Highlands, and online, of course.”
The 1400 block of Market Street currently is under construction as a part of the redevelopmemnt effort initiated by Wheeling Heritage.
Never Say Die
One after another, downtown demolitions have taken place. In fact, in the early 2010s, most of the 1100 block of downtown Wheeling was torn down to make way for potential.
While parking lots and green spaces drew criticisms from residents, the same brand of downsizing was taking place in neighborhoods, too, as a city of 61,000 in the 1940s continued to shrink to less than half that size. But Barte, now 78 and living with his wife in the Cincinnati area to be close to their son, his wife, and their two granddaughters, has grown impressed with Wheeling’s survival instinct.
“I’ve seen a lot of cities that were just like Wheeling once with the business hub in the downtown and they had the neighborhoods, too, like Wheeling does,” Barte said. “But those cities have not fared as well as Wheeling has. That may be tough for some to believe, but I’ve seen it and it’s true. Wheeling has repurposed itself. Look at what the headquarters The Health Plan put up in the 1100 block of downtown. That doesn’t happen in other places, trust me.
“We lived in our house in Wheeling for almost 50 years, and we watched the city survive,” he said. “I also worked at Oglebay for 13 years and was part of the tennis community, and my wife (Maureen) was a member of the ladies golf club, so we took advantage of some of the amenities that have kept the city relevant for a lot of people.”
Lots of changes have taken place along with Market Street block that’s located across from Market Plaza.
Live. Work. Play.
That’s the recipe for resuscitating a scarred and amputated town, and Wheeling’s city government has taken the slow-but-sure steps over the past couple of decades to enhance the riverfront, improve above- and below-ground infrastructure, to clear dilapidation while preserving the city’s history, and to evolve a commercial downtown into a residential neighborhood.
As outgoing mayor Glenn Elliott told The Intelligencer for an article that published earlier today, “All that vision starts years ago, and each mayor and council builds on what came before.”
“There is one thing about downtown Wheeling now that really strikes me and that I never expected, and that’s all of the downtown housing there is so far,” Barte said. “There are the Stone Center Lofts, the Boury Lofts, and now The Doris, and if those developments are successful, I can see more being built because people seem to really like to live in downtown districts these days.
“Now, we’ll watch what follows as far as economic development,” he said. “As far as the housing, I never would have guessed in a hundred years that quality housing would be an ingredient in downtown Wheeling. But now that it has, I expect the private sector to follow, and that’s exciting.”
Downtown Wheeling has been a work in progress since so many businesses vacated Main and Market streets once the Ohio Valley Mall opened in October 1978.
Once the downtown streetscape is completed in the summer of 2025, the city of Wheeling will check a lot of boxes – infrastructure, safety, education, and recreation – and the Friendly City could be on the cusp of, well, something better than before.
Barte agrees.
“I really have to give the folks in Wheeling credit because they’ve never surrendered. Sure, some people left, but that’s not the people I’m talking about. I’m talking about the people who stayed, and the people who moved but then went back to Wheeling. They keep fighting for that quality of life, and I think it’s paying off now,” Barte said. “They’ve reinvented the town into something that works, and it’s pretty awesome to see.
“With the parks the city has, and the river, and the four seasons, and now the new infrastructure, I think the city of Wheeling has the opportunity to grow,” he added. “I believe we can say Wheeling is headed in the right direction after a lot of years of people fighting to get here. There’s no one person or one decision that did it. It’s the determination of a lot of people through the years.”
Glenn Elliott is now a Democrat candidate for U.S. Senate and is running against Republican Gov. Jim Justice.
Mayor:
We wanted to extend our appreciation to you for the eight years you served the City of Wheeling and its residents, and for leading the members of Wheeling Council to act on the following issues and initiatives during your tenure.
Thank you for:
Acquiring the property where the former Ohio Valley Medical Center operated so no one else could purchase it for back taxes, strip it of everything valuable, and then allow it to rot away.
For the expansions of the façade and other commercial and residential property improvement programs.
Asphalting several of the municipality’s alleys as a part of the citywide paving program over the past few years.
Continuing the two-decades-old evolution of downtown Wheeling.
Addressing the facilities much needed by the city’s first-responder agencies.
Increasing the number of overdue demolitions in the city.
For implementing historical review criteria for dilapidated buildings before demolition.
Redirecting federal CDBG funds and general fund dollars to replace out-of-date playground equipment and to improve those neighborhood gathering places for children and adults alike.
Accepting the concept of the non-discrimination ordinance developed by the city’s Human Rights Commission and pushing it to passage.
Understanding the value of working with the finest city manager in the state of West Virginia.
We definitely didn’t always agree, and often those disagreements caused silence instead of compromise, but your two-term commitment to our city is, by far, above and beyond what most would offer and we wish you luck in your future endeavors.
Connie Cain has been a resident of Ward 3 her entire life so she's already aware of the issues facing residents.
She was winning, but then she was losing. It was that close.
And then, on Election Day on May 14th, it appeared she lost her bid – by just two votes! – to become the council representative for Wheeling’s Ward 3.
But wait! Oh!
The slimmest of margins caused a recount!
“I had to wait a week,” said Connie Cain, one of four candidates who ran in Wheeling’s Ward 3, “and it really did drive me nuts. It was a long week, trust me.”
But then her phone rang. But, no, it wasn’t the courthouse. Nope. It was a local newspaper reporter, and that’s who informed the East Wheeling native she had WON the Ward 3 council seat representing thanks to five provisional votes that all went in her favor. The election day totals showed Jerome Henry was in the lead, 199-197, but the final-final count showed Cain with 202, Henry with 199, Chris Ham with 188, and George Greenbaum with 41.
Ward 3 covers the East Wheeling, Center Wheeling, South Wheeling, and Mozart neighborhoods, and Connie Cain will become the area’s newest representative on Monday at the Capitol Theatre when the six council members and new mayor Denny Magruder are sworn into office at Noon.
Cain is unafraid to discuss the issues with local media outlets, including The River Network.
“All I could do when I got the first call was scream,” Cain admitted. “But now I’m really excited to get started so we can do some good things for the people of the city. I’m anxious for our swearing-in ceremony and the first meeting (July 2).
“I started thinking about running for council about a year ago and then decided to do it and I’m happy I did,” she said. “I’m looking forward to working with everyone and I think Denny Magruder is going to be great as mayor. He’ll get everyone working together.”
The first issue she hopes to address? Homelessness, and the impacts the homeless have had on Ward 3.
“It’s the elephant in the room. We have to talk about the homeless situation because I heard about it from most of the people in the ward during my campaign,” Cain said. “We have to figure out what’s happening now and what needs to be happening. The homeless people need services and we have those, but we have to figure out how it’s working and how it can be improved.
“This is Wheeling and we help people here,” she said. “We have to make sense of it because I don’t think that’s the case right now when it comes to the resident in Ward 3.”
Cain’s campaign included a lot of door-knocking so she could talk with as many residents as possible.
H-I-S-T-O-R-Y
Cain is 55 years old and her and her husband, Kendall, live along 14th Street in East Wheeling. She’s a mother of three, and grandmother to nine, and has worked for the First Judicial Circuit Public Defender Corporation for 30 years.
On Monday, she will become the first black woman elected to Wheeling’s City Council.
“And I love that. I love that I’m making that history, and I love that I’ll be following Clyde Thomas as the second black resident to be on Council,” Cain recounted. “Clyde was first elected back in 1971 and he served 20 years and he did a great job for everyone in the city. I want to be the same kind of council representative.
“I hope seeing me on council tells other black girls that this is possible,” Cain said while smiling. “I’m surprised it took this long to have the first black woman on council, but here I am and I’m ready to work with everyone. I want all of us to work together no matter what the issue so we can help Wheeling grow. One thing I want to address is affordable housing so our kids can afford to stay here. Right now, that’s difficult for a lot of people.”
In fact, Cain will address anything and everything brought to her by her constituents.
“Of course, I can’t promise that I’ll get every pothole filled and street paved, but I do promise I’ll check on everything and get back to the resident asking the question. That’s part of the job,” Cain said. “(W.Va. Delegate) Shawn Fluharty told me knocking on doors was the most important part of a campaign, so that’s exactly what I did. I knocked on all the doors, and I talked to the people of Ward 3.
“The people in Mozart wanted to talk about crime, and the people in South Wheeling are concerned about all the new people from the new apartment buildings because of the new crime. The people in Center Wheeling just want attention from the city and so do the folks in East Wheeling,” she added. “The residents of Ward 3 want to be represented, and that’s what they’re going to get.”
Bridgeport Exempted Village School District high school principal Jack Fisher, from left, curriculum director Leslie Kosanovic and middle school principal Anne Haverty Lawson review new scheduling plans for the upcoming school year. The high school and middle school have created an additional period for intervention, tutoring and other activities.
Students will have some extra time and attention as the 2024-2025 school year kicks off, when changes to the Bridgeport High School and Middle School schedules take effect.
An additional 36-minute “flex” period has been created for each school day. Students will have access to intervention and more time to complete assignments.
The new period was made possible by adding five minutes to the end of the school day, altering the other class times from 43 minutes to 40 minutes, and reducing time between classes.
There will be no interruption to the district programs, and Bridgeport High School Principal Jack Fisher said the new period will mean an overall yearly increase of 39 class time hours.
“We actually have more instructional time,” Fisher said.
Superintendent Brent Ripley described the scheduling initiative as: “Helping kids get help.” The program will include student meetings and tutoring and will address a common need among students as they work on their assignments.
“One of the things we did in our schedule change this year is there’s a common time now where kids will have availability to get tutoring, intervention help. Every kid on any assignment they need help with,” Ripley said. “If a kid’s struggling in chemistry, they’ll be able to go to that chemistry teacher for help during this common time.”
He commended the teachers and administration for their work on the new schedule.
Ripley said this will mean more opportunities and resources to help students who are late with work complete their assignments.
“Our intent is that the work will get done. Not doing your work is not an option. You will do the work, and we will support you with quality,” he said. “We want kids in classes, taking classes. The flex gives them the support to do that.”
Curriculum Director Leslie Kosanovic said the new schedule represents a year and a half of planning by a district team of administrators and teachers.
“The overall theme is really increasing access for students to their teachers and teachers to their students. If you have a group that needs enrichment or a group that needs extra help, that can happen.”
She said the district is currently organizing how a student or students and teachers will schedule use of this period.
“It could be one-on-one or a small group, or an entire class,” she said. “It’s flexible.”
Kosanovic said the new period also dovetails with the district’s YouScience program, which includes tests for ninth through 12th graders to gauge students’ strengths and what careers they might want to explore.
Fisher said the school will be better able to support students as they meet their goals in learning and career readiness.
“This flex time is really helping us meet the goals and the needs of our students,” he said.
Kosanovic agreed.
“It ties in with the district and high school graduation goals. We want all students to be able to explore a variety of careers throughout their middle school and high school years, so when they graduate, they are prepared for whatever they choose as their next step,” she said. “Graduation is a through-point, not an endpoint.”
Middle School Principal Anne Haverty Lawson said her students would put the new period to good use, not only with assistance in homework assignments, but also activities focused on character development and making positive choices for positive outcomes.
Haverty Lawson said middle schoolers could utilize the period for a wide range of clubs such as gardening, astronomy and science, technology, engineering, art and math. There will also be a variety of optional classes dealing with subjects such as mathematical problem solving, computer coding, foreign language and history, to broaden students’ horizons. The instructors are excited for the chance to expose middle schoolers to different topics.
“All of our staff have a club that they do,” she said.
“That’s going to be integrated here and not pull away from the general instructional time,” Haverty Lawson said. “Bottom line, we are here to educate these students in a variety of ways.”
