Here is a summary of the discussions and items presented during the Pocahontas County Board of Education Work Session held on June 16, 2026.
The meeting focused heavily on a comprehensive look at facility needs, long-term infrastructure forecasting, and matching-fund programmatic requirements across the county's schools.
1. Comprehensive Educational Facilities Plan (CEFP) & Match Commitments
The administration highlighted critical projects tied to the School Building Authority (SBA) and other external funding streams that require matching local dollars from the general fund:
SBA Project Matching Funds: The county has committed $350,000 in matching funds (typically 10-15%) for a recently approved SBA project [03:50].
Pocahontas County High School HVAC: The county is maintaining a pledged contribution of $250,000 for the high school HVAC replacement project, which was ranked two spots down on the funding list the previous year [04:09].
Marlinton Elementary School Electrical Grid: Highlighting a core infrastructure bottleneck, it was noted that HVAC systems or other upgrades cannot be installed at Marlinton Elementary until its electrical grid is upgraded [04:38].
High School Electrical Upgrades: Progress continues on the Major Improvement Plan (MIP) for high school electrical grid upgrades. A full power shutdown is scheduled for approximately one week after July 4th to finalize this work, which will conclude the major gym renovation milestones [04:56].
2. Technology Upgrades & Federal Funding Controls
Technology Director Ms. Hammonds discussed a major infrastructure refresh funded by a federal USDA grant [05:26]:
Scope: The grant provides over $1,000,000 to replace student and teacher 1-to-1 devices (laptops), which are currently 5 to 7 years old [05:43].
Local Match: The county’s required matching contribution is $57,000, which is pulled from Step 7B technology allocations [07:10, 08:15].
Regulatory Compliance: The funding release was briefly delayed due to stricter domestic sourcing compliance regulations under federal "Build America, Buy America" guidelines, making sourcing compliant electronics a complex process [06:24]. The funds have officially been released to the county [06:58].
3. High School Athletics Infrastructure
The board examined severe maintenance deficits and future alternatives for high school athletic facilities:
Baseball Field Deficits: The high school baseball field lacks handicap parking, has poorly maintained access roads, deteriorating wooden bleachers, and lacks proper public service utility hookups [11:05, 12:08]. A previous $10,000 allocation from the County Commission resulted in spending $8,000 just to pump wastewater into the high school's public service system rather than using a septic tank, leaving a remaining balance of $2,000 [11:50].
Stillwell Park Alternative: Due to the high cost of engineering a new field, the administration has reached out to explore playing games at Stillwell Park, maintaining practices at the high school to manage logistics [08:50, 09:18].
Locker Room Upgrades: While the boys' team room received a volunteer cosmetic overhaul via the carpentry program years ago, the girls' locker room and general shower facilities require extensive plumbing and tile repairs [25:24, 26:11]. Broken fixtures have historically been manually shut off or capped due to a lack of replacement parts [26:37].
4. Classroom Maintenance & Campus Security
Specific localized facility issues were detailed through walkthrough photos:
Green Bank Facility Repairs: Maintenance estimates include $30,000 for a new lab [12:51]. Other needs include replacing aging ceramic tile, repairing polyurethane/baseboard ridges around the gymnasium perimeter, and addressing floor tile upkeep [14:22, 17:14].
Classroom Cabinets & Sinks: The administration presented photos of deteriorating millwork and square-edged countertops from 1988 in kindergarten/Pre-K rooms [15:28, 16:10]. Replacement costs are estimated at roughly $5,000 for a 12-foot unit and $1,250 for a 4-foot section, utilizing rolled-edge postformed countertops [16:37].
High School Annex & Allied Health: The annex building spaces earmarked for a university-partnered Allied Health laboratory program require significant remodeling and cleaning to be suitable for student occupancy [19:03, 19:19].
Network & Facility Security: Concerns were raised regarding the high school's central network operating equipment being exposed in an unsecured, high-traffic area near the main office [19:54, 20:39]. The administration intends to use E-Rate and Step 7 funds to move switches into locked cabinets to prevent an intruder from cutting fiber or telephone communication lines [20:21, 21:09].
Night Visibility: Board members noted that security window tinting becomes ineffective at night when internal lights are on, leaving staff and evening events feeling vulnerable [13:12].
5. High School Greenhouse & Simulated Workplace Focus
A debate occurred regarding the storm-damaged high school greenhouse [28:04]:
Insurance & Staffing: The greenhouse structure collapsed and will be rebuilt using insurance recovery funds [29:53, 30:54].
Curriculum Integration: A core priority is shifting the agriculture and agribusiness pathways toward a fully functional "Simulated Workplace" model where students run the greenhouse as an active business entity [29:07, 29:21].
Logistics: Board members raised questions regarding who will oversee the daily maintenance, watering, and floor-heating systems during winter transitions and summer months when classes are not actively meeting [29:58, 31:49]. The administration noted that because head custodians are on 261-day contracts, summer logistics will be coordinated through building principals [32:27].
6. Personnel & Summer Project Limitations
The maintenance department noted that grand plans for summer renovations face severe labor shortages. For example, a recent posting for four temporary summer painter positions yielded only a single applicant, forcing the county to scale back expectations to what current staff can realistically complete [27:36, 27:44].
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