Hope Gas President and CEO Morgan O’Brien said the simulated neighborhood called Safety City has six homes and streets with utilities. The training center will serve continuing education as well as entry-level workers looking for a career.

“It’s a state-of-the-art training facility that will allow Hope Gas employees to learn every skill set needed to work in the natural gas industry,” O’Brien said recently on WAJR’s “Talk of the Town.”

Safety City will also be the location of the Hope Academy, according to O’Brien. Hope Gas has worked with area public schools, skilled unions, local fire departments and higher education institutions to fully maximize the available learning opportunities.

“It’s a multi-tiered program where we will partner with vocation/technical colleges around the state of West Virginia, and we’re creating summer programs to hire young people to work at Hope Gas in the summertime,” O’Brien said.

The neighborhood provides the conditions where any “accident” or “incident” can be recreated to teach the proper response. Since the facility is purpose-built, it’s available when training is needed, not only when the facility is available.

“We can replicate any issue that a customer could have in their home in a controlled setting,” O’Brien said. “Our people can get trained in everything from a leak in your yard, on the farm, or in the street or home.”

On home is completely powered using the WATT HOME system. A fuel cell, battery, and inverter fully enabling home backup in grid outages. The system was recently certified for up to a 2kW power rating and qualifies for federal tax cuts as a critical clean power source.

“We’re going to have a home completely powered by the WATT Fuel Cell,” O’Brien said. “It takes natural gas, converts it to hydrogen, and without combustion, creates electricity.”

O’Brien said the Safety City and Hope Academy will be the starting point for many future careers and advanced technologies.

“Some people talk about the Field of Dreams, and this is the Field of Hope,” O’Brien said. “This brings a bright future to young people, keeping them here in West Virginia and hopefully showing them how to get a foot in the door of the natural gas industry.”

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Neese was reported missing from her Star City home in July 2012. She was murdered by her friends.

Rachel Shoaf and Shelia Eddy, then 18, admitted to stabbing their University High School classmate to death in Greene County, Pennsylvania. After unsuccessfully attempting to dig a makeshift grave for Neese, they covered her body with brushes, sticks, and rocks. About seven months later, Shoaf led police to the body after suffering a nervous breakdown and confessing to the crime.

Both are serving prison sentences.

Friends Like These Director Clair Titley said the installments include The Disappearance, The Betrayal, and The Truth. The crew came to Morgantown several times over a 10-month period to film the series.

“Morgantown, which becomes a character of its own in the series,” Titley said. “I think I’ve been back and forth to Morgantown nine times for filming trips.”

In this film, time was taken to meet with parents Dave and Mary, her friends, and people in the community to get a feel for what Morgantown was like in 2012.

“We’ve really engaged with her friends and the community around Skylar,” Titley said. “We really wanted to investigate what it was like to be a teenager in Morgantown in 2012.”

One of those friends is Eric Finch, who endured the months of questions during the investigation and search. Finch still lives in the Morgantown area and said the tragedy still affects him today.

“It just took so long to navigate that,” Finch said. “I think it’s important to focus on is how much it impacts you to not have an answer; even years later, you don’t have an answer.”

Finch is now a student services coordinator at West Virginia University and said the experience makes him consider circumstances others are dealing with more carefully.

“The entire situation has made me a little more empathetic,” Finch said. “Not so much for what others experienced but because of what I experienced—no one around me would know what I was going through if I didn’t tell them.”

During the three episodes viewers will hear the saga told from the inside out, according to Titley. During those nine trips to the city, they attempted to capture the incident and how it affected Skylar’s family, friends, and community.

“You get a real sense of Skylar and the real kind of person she was, but the community around her as well,” Titley said.

The post Friends Like These: The Murder of Skylar Neese appeared first on WV MetroNews.

The pothole is at the 148.5 mile marker just south of the I-68 split.

“At the 148-mile marker, we’ve had 32 cars damaged since the first of the month, and that does not count what will happen today,” Forbes said Friday WAJR’s “Talk of the Town.”

Forbes said they have been in contact with the state Department of Highways, and the weather has been the reason the hole hasn’t been fixed.

“They indicated they are trying to stay on top of it,” Forbes said. “The rain keeps the material from working properly, and it’s supposed to stop raining today.”

Motorists are advised to slow down significantly before reaching that portion of I-79 as well as allow a long following distance while avoiding sudden maneuvers.

“We’ve had an officer out on the interstate on most of the days taking property damage reports on the tires,” Forbes said. “So, we can certainly try to help.”

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Marshall County EMA Director Tom Hart said the emergency crews were dispatched at 3:15 p.m. to the Cameron Portal for four patients suffering burns. Marshall County EMS crews from both the Cameron and Moundsville stations were then dispatched to the mine.

“Three crews responded to the call, the Cameron Volunteer Fire Department was notified as well and the Marshall County Decontamination Unit was placed on standby,” Hart said.

Before arriving at the scene EMS crews were informed the incident involved at least four workers.

“When the Cameron Squad arrived on scene they were able to get a quick assessment on the patient conditions and they were receiving assistance from people at the Marshall County Mine,” Hart said.

Hart said the weather was too bad to use an air medical transport, so the patients were taken to WVU Medicine Reynolds Memorial Hospital and WVU Medicine Wheeling Hospital.

The type of chemical involved has not been disclosed.

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After receiving a satisfactory evaluation, the board declined to renew her contract. The BOE said she exceeded the standards for two goals and met the standards for three others and then, weeks later, voted 3 – 2 not to renew her contract.

During a special meeting Thursday, the BOE again voted 3-2 to offer her a one-year contract extension after a 90-minute executive session.

“They did come back to the table, and they reconsidered the offer and voted on that,” Heston said on WAJR’s “Talk of the Town” Friday. “I am just focusing on this next year and how I can help Marion County Schools.”

In the days leading up to the special meeting, speculation was rampant on social media about the possible reason. One reason was a board member, James Saunders, had a handpicked candidate and acknowledged that during the special meeting. He then said the interest in that candidate was at the time Heston was interviewing for the job five years ago. Saunders also reminded the public the BOE has no legal obligation to reveal why a contract would or would not be renewed.

“It really isn’t about Donna Heston for me, and this month has not been about Donna Heston, but I like to focus on Marion County Schools and getting us out of this idle period we’ve been in,” Heston said.

Two schools in the district have earned National Blue Ribbon honors during her tenure, and the district has employed technology like facial recognition and metal detectors to enhance security. Academically, they’re leveraging vocational and technical options while still providing a traditional public education.

“Just this week we had an aviation summit where we brought in people from the industry to talk to our middle school about career opportunities available in the state of West Virginia,” Heston said. “Those are the types of things we like to see in the headlines about Marion County Schools.”

Many of the aging facilities in the district have created financial challenges. Federal and state grant dollars are being used to complete the improvements in many of the 21 facilities in the district.

“We continue to operate them with a budget that has constraints on it because you’ve lost student enrollment,” Heston said. “We’ve been creative—the last five years we’ve sought School Building Authority funding, we’ve sought grants, and we’ve sought federal grants for safe entrances and safety upgrades.”

Heston said this fall she will meet with the BOE to agree on a new set of goals, and the possibility of consolidation will enter that conversation.

“I’ll enter into that process this fall with this board of education, and they’ll set goals for me,” Heston said. “I certainly will do as I did for this last evaluation and every evaluation before that, and I will do it with the data.”

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The BOE decided last month not to renew Heston’s contract past this June 30 after giving her an evaluation that said she met three goals and exceeded two others.

Board member James Saunders made the motion at a special meeting Thursday to reconsider the contract decision and clarified to the public what they are legally required to do. He said the board “may” use the evaluation results to determine employment decisions, and they have no obligation to the public to explain why.

“If the board does not vote to renew a contract, strictly speaking, the county board is not required to give any reasons for that,” Saunders said.

Over the last several weeks social media was alive and well with several theories as to why the decision was made—one of those assumptions was that a board member had a candidate waiting in the wings.

“I think it’s unfair to that certain friend because five years ago I did want him to be the superintendent, and he would make an excellent superintendent,” Saunders said. “It’s very unfair, and I apologize to him that those things were talked about.”

The BOE voted 3 – 2 to offer Heston a one-year contract extension that would begin July 1.

“I’ll only pray that given a second chance the superintendent and the BOE can work closely together and the superintendent and employees can start over fresh and make things happen for our great county, Marion County and for our kids,” Saunders said.

Over her five years of service, the district has added safe school entrances and made strides to refurbish buildings and athletic facilities that are decades old and in need of repair. Two schools have won the National Blue Ribbon honor: Jayenne Elementary School in 2023 and Pleasant Valley Elementary School in 2024.

***The quotes in this story were previously attributed to Kevin Rogers in error. 

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Victor Chess is accused of misconduct with a 7-year-old girl at the North View Elementary School and was arrested in May 2024 by West Virginia State Police.

The case was orignially set for trail next week, but a continuance was granted at the request of ther prosecution.

The pre-trial hearing is scheduled for July 22, and the trial is scheduled to begin on Aug. 17.

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The bill, sponsored by Sen. Rollan Roberts, R-Raleigh, has passed the full senate and is being considered by the House Education Committee. Members have heard two days of testimony this week.

There are questions about how the change would impact retirement. House Education Chair Joe Statler, R-Monongalia, said they are working with retirement experts to make changes needed. That part of the bill is still a work in progress.

“The contract for teachers,” Statler said. “Which also I have some amendments that came into play that were looking at—hours versus days does affect the retirement, so we have to look at that and see how to sync all that up.”

Statler is not convinced education time and services will be lost. One system in the state told Statler if they went to a four-day schedule, the fifth day of those weeks the staff would still be required to report.

“We’ll also bring in the rest of the staff,” Statler said. “The cooks will be coming in, the bus drivers will be on duty, and the aides will be coming in, so technically you could do some other things using the people around the system.”

Sen. Mike Oliverio, R-Monongalia, said the bill creates a major concern if districts go to four days of school a week, some of the most vulnerable students wouldn’t have things like school lunches and access to services.

“I’ve tried to encourage our folks over there on the House Education Committee not to take it up,” Oliverio said. “It drastically reduces the amount of instruction time—my math, and no one disagrees with my math, shows about 23 fewer days of instruction.”

Oliverio said education outcomes are improving because of things like the Third Grade Success Act, requiring aids in grades 1 through 3 classrooms at a cost of about $100 million to the taxpayer. Lowering the time required in the classroom is moving the public education system in the wrong direction.

“I’ve had people come to me and ask why don’t have school all year long, why don’t we have programs after school, why don’t we have more programs in the summer, or programs during winter break,” Oliverio said. “I don’t like the bill, and we’ll see where it goes from here.”

Some of the most vulnerable will be impacted the most. Not only lunches, but there are special needs students that rely on the care they receive when they go to school. Also, the time lost working with teachers and socializing with other students.

“Then I think of the students with disabilities,” Oliverio said. “Often times the only place where they really get full services is in the school system, where they’re prepared to do that, and again, it’s taking 23 days a year away from the student with disabilities.”

The bill is expected to be on the House Education Committee agenda Friday.

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There were no injuries.

An overflow of liquid nitrogen near Clark Hall was reported at 11:13 a.m. and the all clear was issued 11:28 a.m.

The overflow involved the chemical liquid nitrogen. Liquid nitrogen can cause severe, instant frostbite and permanent tissue/eye damage upon contact.

Normal campus operations have resumed.

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The bill, HB 5319, was approved on a 62-32 vote after a Tuesday floor debate.

Bill sponsor, Del. Geno Chiarelli, R-Monongalia, explained the bill is strictly targeted on criminal vagrancy and those who are a threat to the community. The first violation comes with a written warning; a fine of not more than $500 is added with a second offense, and a 30-day jail sentence could be added in the event of a third offense.

“We try to paint every single person experiencing homelessness with the same brush—they just need a little help, they just need a hand up, and this might get me in trouble, but this is not true,” Chiarelli said. “I can take you to places in Morgantown and Monongalia County where people don’t want your help, they don’t want a plate of food, and if you’re not giving them money, they might take it from you.”

Del. Evan Hansen, D-Monongalia, told delegates the homeless issue is a local issue that should be handled by a county commission or city council. Many people in the homeless community are suffering mental and physical health issues that need help, not punishment, Hansen said.

“I don’t think criminalizing homelessness is the right approach,” Hansen said. “I don’t think the right approach is putting people in jail because they’ve fallen on hard times.”

Del. Hollis Lewis, D-Kanawha, said it should be the government’s role to help, not take punitive action against those in need. He also said we need to care for people by funding relief organizations and pursuing policies that encourage affordable housing.

“A lot of them do have mental health issues, and a lot of them do have substance use disorder, and if we’re going to be punitive and fine them, it’s just going to make the problem worse,” Lewis said.

Chiarelli talked about the impact the years-long homeless problem has brought to the Morgantown area. Many people have begun to avoid areas like downtown because of the possibility of encountering a less cooperative member of the homeless community.

“They’re less interested in participating in the publicly available things that are in my county because their dog might step on a needle or their child might run into to someone harassing them at the public library,” Chiarelli said.

House Judiciary Committee Chairman J.B. Akers, R-Kanawha, said the bill clearly separates the homeless from the residents who appear to be homeless by choice. Akers expressed disappointment that his fellow lawmakers didn’t believe police officers don’t have the proper judgement when they encounter a homeless person.

“It’s kind of insulting to me that the police are going to walk up, warn, and then fine someone who you can see is simply on the streets because they have nowhere to go and they’re not hurting anyone,” Akers said.

The measure will now go to the full Senate with 10 days left in the 60-day regular legislative session.

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Board Vice President James Saunders made the motion at Monday’s BOE meeting to reconsider and the vote was recorded as unanimous.

The BOE decided last month not to renew Heston’s contract past this June 30. She’s been in the position for five years. In that time, the district has started the repair and rehabilitation of facilities or parts of facilities that are mostly all 80 to 90 years old, with the exception of a few. The improvement also included athletic facilities and the addition of Safe Schools entrances to all of their buildings.

In the classroom, two elementary schools have earned the National Blue Ribbon honor: Jayenne Elementary School in 2023 and Pleasant Valley Elementary School in 2024. Also, an educator for West Virginia State Teacher of the Year was named from Pleasant Valley Elementary School in the same year.

The Marion County Board of Education has schedule the special meeting for 1 p.m. Thursday.

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Deputies said they stopped a car driven by James Clark, 42, of Shady Spring, after he crossed the centerline on U.S. Route 250.

Deputies said they observed Clark almost strike another vehicle in front of Philip Barbour High School.

Deputies initiated the stop but Clark didn’t pull over immediately, deputies said.

Deputies immediately noted his status as a CPS contractor and noticed slurred speech and a young child in the back seat.

When deputies got Clark out of the vehicle he told then he was on the clock and transporting a juvenile following a supervised visit.

During a conversation with deputies, Clark said earlier in the day he had taken his prescribed Suboxone and Neurontin. Clark was then taken for a blood draw at the Broaddus Hospital.

Clark has also been charged with child neglect, creating risk of serious risk of injury and is being held in the Tygart Valley Regional Jail on $13,000 bail.

Clark is employed by Uplifting Families who has a contractual relationship with the West Virginia Department of Health and Human Services.

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Dion Jamel Flowers Jr., 29, was taken into custody without incident at a residence on Northwest Dr. at around 7:20 a.m.

Flowers is wanted by the Jackson County (MI) Sheriff’s Office for murder, four counts of assault with the intent to murder and various firearms violations.

Flowers and two other suspects are accused of being involved in a shooting in Jackson, Michigan last May.

Two other suspects, Montez White, 27, and Tyrek Rice, 28, were taken into custody by US Marshals in Ohio earlier this year.

Federal officers were assisted Monday by the West Virginia State Police Special Response Team (SRT), the Mon Metro Drug Task Force, ATF, and Monongalia County Sheriff’s Department.

Flowers will be held until his extradition back to Michigan.

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Captain Dustin Lambert the fire was reported at 8:57 p.m. and required a full call out of the city fire forces.

“We had to recall both shifts that were off duty to backfill,” Lambert said. “Initially our priority is to attack the fire, then we prioritize swapping our firefighters out to make sure they don’t get exhausted, and also staffing our city stations to make sure we can handle other responses.”

Lambert said firefighters and three engines arrived within minutes to find the 100-year-old brick wood structure fully involved.

“When they arrived with a couple minutes they found heavy fire on the second floor of the building,” Lambert said. “It was already substantially involved when they got there.”

The building had been used to store a large volume of antiques. Since the building had been repurposed to store antique furniture many of the doors were blocked. Firefighters had to quickly determine which doors could be used in order to continue the offensive attack.

“That slowed them down a little bit,” Lambert said. “When we show up to a fire we don’t know which doors are used and ones that are not, so they had trouble making access to the building through some doors that aren’t typically used.”

After about 30 minutes safety concerns switched the firefighters into a defensive mode. The fire determined to be under control at midnight, but crews remained on the scene well into Friday addressing hot spots in the building. Pennsylvania Avenue remained restricted to one lane through Friday morning.

“But, they were in offensive mode for about 30 minutes,” Lambert said. “The amount of fire load, or the amount of things inside the building was pretty substantial and that led to a pretty good sized fire, so after about 30 minutes they switched to a defensive mode.”

Lambert said investigators are sifting through the rubble to determine the cause. The building and contents are thought to be a total loss.

“There was nothing suspicious after we investigated it further and interviewed witnesses,” Lambert said. “As of right the exact cause is not determined it will still be investigated further, but there was nothing suspicious about it.”

The JG Lampkin Funeral Home was founded in 1929 and served the Black community for nearly 100 years.

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Del. David McCormick, R-Monongalia, said House Bill 5437, the Vape Safety Act, is an effort to remove dangerous unverified materials that are primarily marketed to kids.

“That’s what this bill is all about, really,” McCormick said earlier Friday on WAJR’s “Talk of the Town “. “These kids are getting hooked on a lot of this stuff, and they’re being marketed to and there’s language in there about that.”

McCormick said the bill establishes a product registry that would include requiring the products to be approved or pending approval by the FDA. More operational licensing and oversight, including a fee system to allow shops to operate and increasing the standards for obtaining a license to operate a vape shop. The bill also restricts the ways the products can be marketed and advertised.

“They’re texting and emailing kids to get them to come to the shops,” McCormick said. “They’re marketing things with bubble gum, Cookie Monster, cereal, and candy canes, and that’s who we’re trying to get rid of.”

Many of the provisions in the bill are modeled after the location, advertising and signage regulations currently in place for neighborhood video lottery parlors.

During Friday’s floor debate, Del. Hollis Lewis, D-Kanawha, said a store in his district is lighted with bright colors and cartoon images, in some cases seemingly targeting younger people.

“Who are they trying to attract with that? Are they trying to attract us? I don’t think so,” Lewis said. “By having flashing lights looking like a darn carnival, and it’s up to us to do something about that.”

Several other delegates who spoke in favor of the bill Friday said it targeted “bad actors” not those who are abiding by the law.

Elliott Pritt, R-Fayette, who is also a school teacher, said that several vape cartridges are confiscated from students daily. During his daily duties he smells evidence of the use of vapes in the school regularly.

“I do bathroom duty at my school, and I’m going to tell you, walking into the bathroom between class changes, it’s like strawberry fields and blueberry haze—every single day.”

McCormick said there’s also a Senate version, SB 1000, that he would support if his bill doesn’t survive in the upper chamber.

“Everyone in this building agrees we need to tamp down and get rid of the bad actors,” McCormick said. “This bill is not putting people doing the right things out of business; people who are doing the right things the right way are going to be fine.”

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The blaze was first reports along Pennsylvania Ave at 9 p.m. Thursday. Initial reports said entrances were barricaded hampering access to the structure.

Firefighters remain on the scene as of Friday morning.

The JG Lampkin Funeral Home was founded in 1929 and served the Black community for more than 90 years.

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West Virginia Contractors Association President and CEO Jason Pizatella testified that five workers in construction zones were killed last year. Over the last five years, there have been more than 1,700 work zone crashes that have killed 15 workers.

“We as an industry have had a number of fatalities in recent years,” Pizatella said. “On the private side, we’ve had one, and the state had one last year on the turnpike, losing a parkway employee where speed was a factor.”

The bill would increase fines for those cited for going 15 miles an hour or less over the speed limit from $200 to $500, and for 15 miles an hour and over, the fines jump from $200 to $1,000. Maximum jail time for the misdemeanor increases from 20 to 30 days.

“The way this statute is written, it would only apply to a work zone that is active with flashing lights,” Pizatella said. “This would only apply in a work zone with a lane restriction and a law enforcement officer is physically present.”

Pizatella told committee members the fines in that section of state code have been increased in about 30 years. Further, the judge would have the authority to levy a fine up to the maximum based on the severity of the violation.

“These fines were last reviewed by the legislature in the 1990s, so we thought increasing them would be appropriate,” Pizatella said.

Bill Flanigan, R, Ohio, said he’ll add an amendment to add distracted driving to the bill. Distracted driving and excessive speed are two major factors in serious work zone crashes.

“I would love to put an amendment together that would include distracted driving on this bill, and I can wait for the floor to do that; that will be fine,” Flanigan said.

Pizatella said this measure and the enhancements to the move-over law, adding tow trucks and construction vehicles, are part of their overall strategy to increase safety.

“It’s not before the committee, and it won’t be this year, but we’re continuing to work on it and refine it,” Pizatella said. “The addition of new technology and methods for law enforcement to enforce speed restrictions.”

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Kaleb Michael Bulva, 36, of Beckley, West Virginia, and Michael Tyler Smith, 31, of Kings Mountain, North Carolina, were passengers in the vehicle that crashed on I-59 South near Deerfoot Parkway. No other vehicles were involved.

Troopers said the crash happened at 11:28 p.m., and both men were pronounced dead at the scene.

There were two other occupants in the vehicle.

Troopers continue their investigation.

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Members of the Three Rivers Drug Task Force, assisted by police officers from Fairmont and White Hall, conducted a search of a room at the Country Club Motor Lodge in Fairmont on Wednesday in an effort to gather evidence for other investigations.

In the room, police encountered Marcus Garland, 54, and then found paraphernalia, a duffel bag containing a large amount of currency, and dealer-level quantities of fentanyl and methamphetamine.

Authorities said Garland used the room as a staging area in order to break the drugs down and sell them nearby.

The room was paid for by an unidentified co-conspirator who traveled with Garland from Baltimore, transporting large quantities of dangerous drugs into West Virginia.

Garland has been charged with two counts of possession with intent to deliver a controlled substance, felony drug conspiracy and being a drug kingpin. He is being held in the North Central Regional Jail on a $300,000 bond.

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This year’s bill, HB 5319, which was first discussed Tuesday, called for enhanced penalties to those trying to camp in public places, an effort to target some of the homeless population.

A committee substitute to bill returned softer language including a first warning instead of charges.

Del. Evan Hansen, D-Monongalia, spoke against the bill. He said dealing with homeless is a local issue.

“It’s a real issue that needs real issues,” Hansen said. “My concern is that criminalizing homelessness the way this bill does is not the answer.”

Hansen reflected on testimony from a resident who became homeless because of a serious medical diagnosis and subsequent high cost of care. Residents suffering from homelessness need services and help, not punishment, according to Hansen.

“I think we need to have empathy for people who are homeless for reasons like that, and we need to have empathy for people suffering from substance abuse,” Hansen said. “Every human life is precious.”

Morgantown City Council passed a camping ban that ultimately was decided at the ballot box by voters. The process involved local groups on both sides of the issue, a petition, and the election that resulted in public approval of the ban.

“There are a lot of heated feelings on both sides of the issue, but that’s democracy,” Hansen said. “That’s how it’s supposed to work with local problems; you need local solutions.”

Because each municipality is unique, a solution dictated from Charleston won’t be effective. Legislators need to give municipalities the tools and resources they need and allow them to address the problem.

“Municipalities across the state can do the same thing without this committee or this legislature telling them how to manage their own affairs—it’s a local issue,” Hansen said.

In Monongalia County, most of the people served in homeless shelters are from outside the area. Both the city and county fund the shelter and warming shelter, and the county contributes an additional $1 million for social services annually.

“Instead of this legislature having an attitude that these are dirty Democratic cities and we’re going to tell them what to do,” Hansen said. “There should be an appreciation for the fact that these are generous people in generous cities that are taking care of people from across the state.”

The bill passed the committee on a voice vote.

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The BOE couldn’t come to an agreement earlier this month to extend the contract of five-year Superintendent Donna Heston. Her contract runs until the end of June.

Marion County BOE President George Boyles said Wednesday they’d like to have a new superintendent chosen by that July 1 date.

“Our goal is to retain the current superintendent until June 30, 2026,” Boyles said.

The school board met in executive session for more than an hour Wednesday and emerged with more questions about the new job description. The edits to the job description are in process and will be disseminated as soon as they are available, Boyles said.

“We talked about a couple of things, and those will be posted as soon as we come to a conclusion of that and any other relevant data will be posted as well,” Boyles said.

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The bill, HB 4425, was presented to the committee Tuesday afternoon. Committee Chairman Joe Statler, R-Monongalia, is the lead sponsor.

The bill would reverse the provision allowing for students to transfer from one school to another without losing eligibility.

Statler said the rule change approved in 2023 has caused quite a stir in communities and schools.

“We know from parents and other people some like to allow students to transfer,” Statler said. “It does sometimes load up some teams and cause others to have some problems.”

Co-sponsor Del. Jeff Stephens, R-Marshall, explained the West Virginia Schools Secondary Athletic Committee would handle transfers the way they were done before the 2023 law was passed. Stephens said the WVSSAC would process waivers as they have in the past. Information showed the WVSSAC passes about 68 percent of athletic waiver requests, the education committee was told Tuesday.

“This would be a complete repeal to take it back to where it used to be,” Stephens said. “As it used to be, you could apply to the WVSSAC to get a waiver.”

The president of the West Virginia Behavioral Healthcare Providers Association, a former state senator, and the parent of high school athletes, Mark Drennan said 2023 change has made competition unsafe. Many games under the new policy have been disappointing, uncustomary blowouts, he said.

“Communities revolve around Friday nights,” Drennan said. “You hear about Friday night lights and being with your communities, but when the kids playing for those teams are not from those communities, people stop caring about it.”

Statler said HB 4425 puts the WVSSAC back in control of the transfer process.

“This puts it back to the way it was prior to any legislation,” Statler said. “Allowing transfers the way they were with the WCSSAC more involved in the system than the way it is now.”

The bill is advancing through the House as a “Rules Bill,” meaning it is exempt from the amendment process. The procedure meets the goal of clearly repealing the 2023 law and placing the process back into the hands of the WVSSAC, Statler said.

“Under the rule bill, sections and law amendments cannot be made, and that’s the way we elected to put that bill through the House,” Statler said.

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The bill, HB 5319, was presented Tuesday and forwarded for markup and discussion.

West Virginia municipalities have struggled with the growing homeless population. Several have passed camping ban ordinances.

Bill sponsor, Del. Geno Chiarelli, R-Monongalia, explained the penalties that had increased from the proposal submitted during last year’s session.

“The first violation is a misdemeanor punishable by a fine of up to $250; a second violation within 12 months is a misdemeanor punishable by up to 30 days in jail; each day the violation continues counts as a separate offense; and unauthorized shelters are declared a public nuisance that can be abated at the violator’s expense,” Chiarelli told the committee Tuesday.

The 2025 bill, which did not gain final approval, included an order for police to provide information about places to stay, social services, and a warning on the first offense. During an exchange Tuesday with Del. Evan Hansen, D-Monongalia, Chiarelli explained the 2026 version is drafted to address homelessness primarily.

“There’s basically no provision in here that requires a homeless person to be given information about where they can shelter?” Hansen asked.

“There’s nothing in here specifically about that,” Chiarelli said. “But, I would say the bill does not contemplate homelessness in any capacity—it’s just illicit camping.”

American Civil Liberties Union of West Virginia Advocacy Director Rusty Williams shared a personal story about how a cancer diagnosis resulted in homelessness. One day, he was a musician and a tattoo artist, and the next, he was battling for his life, undergoing cancer treatments.

“I ended up on the street as a result of getting cancer, not because I made a decision that put my life on a different track,” Williams said. “I ended up living on the street because I got sick in the richest country in the world.”

Williams said the possibility of a $250 fine on the first offense could be enough to overwhelm some in the homeless community. The cancer treatments he thought were the worst thing that could have ever happened to him until he had no place to live.

“When I was on the street and had a law enforcement officer approach me, which happened frequently, and issued me a $250 citation and a misdemeanor, I would have killed myself without hesitation,” Williams said.

Williams told committee members many people on the streets today are facing a similar situation caused by the health care system. In closing, he explained that they too could find themselves in a similar situation.

“Because of the materialistic nature of our society, we’re all navigating the world like we are just temporarily depressed millionaires, but the reality is you are one health care situation from living out on the streets yourself,” Williams said.

The bill could be on the judiciary committee’s agenda as early as Wednesday.

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Rick Allen Cordes has been charged with first degree murder in connection with the April 19, 2024 shooting at their Falling Water Lane home. Detectives from the Monongalia County Sheriff’s Department learned Cordes and his wife, Jennifer Haribar had been seen at at least two Cheat Lake bars fighting with Cordes being the instigator.

Cordes called 911 on the night of the shooting and remained on scene until police arrived. He provided multiple statements to 911 dispatchers, first responders and detectives that changed several times during the investigation.

Cordes admitted there was a struggle and he had contact with the grip of the weapon. He told investigators it was possible that either his or both of their fingers pulled the trigger.

An autopsy determined Haribar died of a single gunshot wound to the back of the head.

Cordes remains in custody at North Central Regional Jail without bond.

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Del. Joe Statler, R-Monongalia, the bill’s chief sponsor, said after years of attempts at getting consensus, this group of delegates passed a bill with permanent funding from EMS using profits from the West Virginia Lottery.

HB 5168 says at the end of each fiscal year lottery profits will be used to create a $6 million Emergency Medical Services Salary Enhancement, Crisis Response, and Mental Health Treatment Fund; $3 million for a County Emergency Medical Services Fund; and $3 million for the All County Emergency Medical Services. A total of $12 million.

“This is the first permanent funding to support the EMS workers of the state of West Virginia,” Statler said during Monday’s floor remarks. “This is the first of it’s kind in the state. We’ve had it in there before in different ways, but this is permanent.”

Del. Hollis Lewis, D-Kanawha, supported the bill, which passed 95-0, but called it a partial solution to chronic financial problems for some struggling EMS units.

“In some places this is the only medical service that some people have,” Lewis said. “It’s long overdue. We have provided state appropriations for this service, which it should be provided for fully. So this is a good first step, but it also insufficient.”

Del. Buck Jennings, R-Preston, said this bill will be vital for their area, where the county commission has had to take emergency actions to help local EMS units make payroll. Commissioners are considering enacting a new fee to fund EMS operations—there is no immediate word on how this bill would affect that decision, if at all.

“Thank you! “Thank God, we finally got something done,” Jennings said. “I’ve only been trying to get this funding since 2018—that’s how long I’ve been here.”

Over the last five years several EMS units have folded due to financial pressures.

During floor debate, Lewis pointed out that every time an ambulance completes a call, the agency takes a $500 loss.

Statler agreed.

“We have a lot of struggling systems that have failed,” Statler said. “I hope this patches that and gets them back on the road so when we travel up and down the highways in West Virginia, we’ll have someone ready to respond if we have an accident.”

The funds will be administered by the Director of the Office of Emergency Management and the counties will be evaluated on a wide range of metrics. The funds will be dispersed based on the level of need for each county, the impact on counties that have a special levy for emergency medical services, and recruiting challenges created due to interstate competition.

“They have to match the funds,” Statler said. “A lot of counties do it different ways—some of the counties have money from severance taxes, and this will allow that to count.”

The measure now heads to the state Senate for consideration.

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Henkins said the system tries to mitigate disputes or situations that could boil over before they do. In the background, officials review facilities and develop response plans in case the worst-case scenario should play out.

“We’re trying to be preventive instead of reactive, and both of those go hand-in-hand,” Henkins said on WAJR’s “Talk of the Town.” “We have to do our job to be preventive in many cases, and we’re working very hard on a crisis plan.”

The facility analysis includes mapping and providing video of all 19 buildings that can be given to first responders ahead of time. If the call for help were to come, police and fire personnel would have access to all those details through an app on a phone or a laptop.

“We have cameras, multiple cameras on every corner of every corner of every school,” Henkins said. “So, with the digital mapping program, it’s going to give us the advantage of being able to cover our facilities quicker in a crisis situation.”

When the district receives threats, Henkins said they are all taken seriously no matter where they come from. When threats are received, the plans developed at the district and building level are immediately put into motion.

“They can shut a system down very quickly because we have to react, we have to take action, we can’t just assume it’s a scam,” Henkins said. “Those get very serious very quick.”

The district also has a mix of School Resource Officers (SRO) and School Safety Officers (SSO). The two groups are a mix of active and retired officers that are visible during arrival, departure, and recess times through partnerships including the Monongalia County Commission and Monongalia County Sheriff’s Department.

“We’ve been able to use the code that allows us to hire retired law enforcement officers and we have a great group of gentlemen right now that love being school resource officers,” Henkins said.

Some of the buildings have regularly assigned officers that work with the student population to be preventive or respond to an emergency if needed. As the budget allows, it is the intention of the district to add more officers.

“We also have a gentleman that is a roamer,” Henkins said. “We hired an additional person that roams, so when officer A isn’t at school B, then our roamer fills in at that school, so there’s a presence at every school every day.”

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The WVU Board of Governors met incoming Provost and Vice President of Academic Affairs Beverly Wendland for the first time during its meeting Friday.

Wendland, an accomplished cell biologist, most recently served as senior advisor to the chancellor at Washington University in St. Louis, Missouri; she begins work in Morgantown July 1. Before her official start, she’ll lead the national search for a new vice president of research.

It’s one of a number of searches that are underway at WVU.

Interim Provost Paul Kreider provided the BOG an update on filling three dean positions.

Steptoe & Johnson attorney and former CEO Susan Brewer has led the WVU College of Law since the departure of Amelia Smith Rinehart last July. Kreider said Brewer will stay through the end of the year, and the search will be extended. Josh Hall, the dean of the Mylan Puskar Chambers College, will spearhead that effort.

“The steadfast leadership that interim dean Susan Brewer has provided the WVU College of Law over the past seven months will continue, and she will remain in her role until December 31, 2026,” Kreider said.

At the Eberly College of Arts and Sciences, Gregory Dunaway will leave his post as dean on June 30. Kreider said the search will continue under the direction of select faculty and staff.

“The Associate Provost for Undergraduate Education, Evan Widders, was appointed to co-chair the search committee with College of Creative Arts and Media Dean Keith Jackson,” Kreider said. “Greenwood Asher is partnering in the search with us to attract a competitive pool of finalists.”

The search for the next Dean of Libraries and Press is winding down. Four candidates have been interviewed on campus, and the selection is expected to be announced in the next couple of weeks.

“Earlier this month we hosted the four candidates for the Dean of Libraries and Press,” Kreider said. “We had a great deal of engagement in each session with the candidates, and I want to extend my thanks to everyone that participated.”

WVU President Michael T. Benson gave a detailed report to the BOG Friday.

Benson said the university plans to continue to pursue membership in the American Association of Universities (AAU). He revisited a 1962 speech delivered by President John F. Kennedy when he talked about the boldness of making a commitment to go to the moon.

“As we talk about our AAU quest and the moon shot to try and get there is going to make us better on multiple fronts and one that we cannot postpone,” Benson said.

He said the journey to acceptance will improve graduation rates, lead to more faculty members in national academies, and result in more faculty citations in academic journals. He said the process will include an examination of processes and procedures that will improve the overall quality of the institution.

“The last three national championship games in football have all featured AAU institutions—Michigan and Washington; Ohio State and Notre Dame; and this year Miami and Indiana,” Benson said. ” If you were to collectively take their R&D dollars it’s in the billions of dollars for what they do every year.”

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Heston served in the post for five years, and her leadership spanned a portion of the pandemic, enrollment losses, and achievement.

“I had hoped to finish this chapter of my life and retire at my desk in Marion County, but I certainly respect the decision of the board they made not to renew my contract- I respect that.”

During her time in Marion County, the district has started the repair and rehabilitation of facilities or parts of facilities that are mostly all 80 to 90 years old, with the exception of a few. The improvement also included athletic facilities and the addition of Safe Schools entrances to all of their buildings.

In the classroom, two elementary schools have earned the National Blue Ribbon honor: Jayenne Elementary School in 2023 and Pleasant Valley Elementary School in 2024. Also, an educator for West Virginia State Teacher of the Year was named from Pleasant Valley Elementary School in the same year.

“We are one of the strongest districts in the state of West Virginia for student achievement, for reducing overages in the personnel formula, and for doing some much-needed safety, security, and facility improvements on a limited budget because of the loss of student funding,” Heston said.

About two weeks before her contract was not renewed, the board gave her an evaluation that said she met three goals and exceeded two goals set for her performance.

“Superintendents present information based on data, and unfortunately those are tough decisions, and at times it gets personal and difficult, and we understand that,” Heston said.

Just like in about all 55 school districts in the state, enrollment has dropped over that five-year period. The Hope Scholarship, charter schools, and homeschooling have presented options to families that Heston said should have to perform at the same standards and be monitored based on the same criteria as public schools.

“I will say we ask for an equal playing field with those options when we’re considering those options,” Heston said. “An equal playing field with funding, with accountability, and with representation—decision-making and having a seat at the table.”

Heston said the staff and students at Marion County Schools were great to work with, and she plans to continue serving the community in some capacity.

“I think it is always important with everything in public education that we look at processes, transparency, and making decisions based upon information and data instead of sometimes beliefs, personal beliefs, or politics,” Heston said.

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Board member Thomas Draggich, a retired Marion County educator, said Heston did a fine job during her time leading the school district.

“I’m thankful we’ve had her for five years and I appreciate everything she’s done for Marion County,” Draggich said. “Somebody is going to have an outstanding superintendent.”

After an executive session Monday, the BOE members could not reach consensus to extend Heston’s contract at $154,000 per year.

Heston told the Times West Virginian, “My heart is in Marion County. I would have been honored to finish my career in Marion County. Unfortunately, it does not appear that I will have the opportunity to do that.”

Heston has been the leader in the county since 2021 and signed a four-year extension in 2022. She’ll be under contract through June 30.

Draggich said Heston’s leadership was a factor in his decision to seek reelection.

“I just turned 81 and I decided to run again because the direction we were going in excited me to see Marion County go that way,” Draggich said. “She had a very good rapport with the students in recognizing them for their accomplishments,” Draggich said.

Superintendent Heston could not be reached for comment.

The special meeting Friday is set for 10 a.m.

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Barrett, R-Berkeley, said the budget document approved by the committee demonstrates a way to get the additional five percent cut to the personal income tax.

“We want to get this conversation started very early,” Barrett said Tuesday on MetroNews “Talkline.” “It was important to me to include the budget as we pass the tax cut to show there is a way to get there.”

Senator and Finance Committee member Ben Queen, R-Harrison, said he expects changes as major issues like PEIA and the school funding formula are addressed. The additional five percent cut to the personal income tax will require a $125 million offset—something that will be a challenge down the final stretch of the legislative session.

“My colleagues have taken the position that our priority is the governor’s ten percent tax cut,” Queen said on WAJR’s “Talk of the Town.” “Obviously in the world of negotiation we could fall somewhere around that.”

Queen said the Senate version reflects disciplined spending and the use of the state revenue surplus to get the additional five percent income reduction and balance the budget.”We’re not increasing spending too much more this year, but we’re also using surplus money,” Queen said. “We have about $300 million in surplus money right now that we continue to have each year.”

The Senate version uses the existing school funding formula likely to be changed during this session. The House Education Committee continues their review in search of a formula that better accounts for rural areas and special education costs.

“It’s the first time in the history of the funding formula that we have completely utilized it, including the CPI adjustment,” Barrett said. “The Jobs & Hope is restored to last year’s funding level, and there’s $1 million for pregnancy centers, so we’ve a lot of improvements in this budget.”

The work being done by lawmakers regarding the state school funding formula is ongoing. House Education Committee Chairman Joe Statler, R, Monongalia, 79, has noted the process could show funding to public schools needs to be increased.

“I will give my House colleagues an immense amount of credit for attempting to pull out the school aid funding formula and piece it together to try to figure out what the best thing for our buck is as we change the formula,” Queen said.

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