Photo by Britney Williams, courtesy Coal River Mountain Watch.
Manchin administration officials have tried pretty hard to deflect the Marsh Fork Elementary School issue onto local education officials in Raleigh County. But now, the issue is squarely in the state’s hands …
The Raleigh County Board of Education voted last night to ask the state School Building Authority for funding to relocated Marsh Fork Elementary from its current spot, less than 300 feet from a Massey Energy coal processing plant and just down the hollow from a gigantic Massey slurry impoundment.
According to the story in the Beckley Register-Herald:
Pressure to build a new Marsh Fork Elementary School lies in the hands of the state School Building Authority after the Raleigh County school board voted 3-0 with two abstentions Tuesday to submit a request to the SBA for a new school.
School board president Rick Snuffer and members Jack “Gordie” Roop and Larry Ford voted for the request. Members Patricia Waddell and Cynthia Jafary abstained from voting.
“I just hope the School Building Authority will see the merit in the project and be willing to fund it,” Snuffer said.
And apparently, Massey Energy President Don Blankenship has agreed that his company would help with the relocation.
An Associated Press account published in today’s Gazette reported:
Richard Snuffer says Massey chief executive Don Blankenship told him Massey could help secure land or prepare a site for a new Marsh Fork Elementary.
Snuffer says Blankenship phoned him Monday and also said the county must first agree to pursue a new school. The board was to meet Tuesday to select a project to propose to the state School Building Authority.
The Register-Herald story put it this way:
Snuffer said Blankenship phoned him Monday. The conversation resulted in no promises, and Blankenship didn’t volunteer any financial support for a new school.
“We had a very civil discussion,” Snuffer said.
“He said he supported a new school, but they didn’t offer any monetary support.”
Blankenship mentioned the possibility of offering “in-kind services” to the board, Snuffer said.
“He talked about possibly some site prep. Donating some dozers … If there was a piece of property they owned, they talked about, and I don’t think there is, but he said if there was, they could possibly look at that. I was hoping they would be willing to commit more resources to the project,” Snuffer said.
And Snuffer also had this to say:
I think it’s too important to the children down there. A lot of parties have been involved in this and there’s been a lot of finger-pointing. When it comes down to it, I was so proud tonight that all forces joined because it’s for the children.
In other words … for the sake of the kids …
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[...] Blogs @ The Charleston Gazette – » Marsh Fork Elementary: It’s in the state’s hands now blogs.wvgazette.com – view page – cached Manchin administration officials have tried pretty hard to deflect the Marsh Fork Elementary School issue onto local education officials in Raleigh County. But now, the issue is squarely in the… (Read more)Manchin administration officials have tried pretty hard to deflect the Marsh Fork Elementary School issue onto local education officials in Raleigh County. But now, the issue is squarely in the state’s hands … (Read less) — From the page [...]
Who’s in the state School Building Authority? In other words, how likely is it that a new school will actually be built?
I encourage all that can have an effect on the outcome of funding for a new MFE school to focus on the need of the children and community. Aside from the close proximity of the mining complex, the school is old, outdated. The walls are cracked. There has been at least one incident of an asbestos issue. There is coal dust in all the class rooms and on the school property, including the playground. Everyone knows that. Just because someone makes a statement that coal dust has historically been present in coal communities does not mean that we shouldn’t strive to provide a modern educational facility for our children away from a location where there is a great concentration of coal dust and mining activity. Our community deserves a new school. The students, teachers and staff deserve a new school. It is time.