ELKINS — The Randolph County Commission were asked to provide funding to contribute to the care of the new therapy dog at Elkins High School this week.

The EHS Communities In Schools site coordinator, Mark Rosencrance, gave an informational presentation to the commission during its regular meeting this week at the James F. Cain Courthouse Annex.

Rosencrance came before the commission to discuss EHS’ new therapy dog, Tora, and talk aboutwhat kind of impact the CIS program has had on students in the school.

Rosencrance was seeking input from Commissioners David Kesling, Chris See and Cris Siler on finding funding help for the dog’s care.

“In talking to the community, someone mentioned to me that I should talk to the county commission about (Tora),” Rosencrance said. “There is ongoing training for the four handlers we have and it gets pretty pricey. There is also food and vet bills, and those things are kind of ongoing…

“If you know of any entity or an organization in the community that I should connect with, or if the county in some way would like to support any of our initiatives, or have any suggestions for me, I’m open to it.”

Kesling asked Rosencrance if he had talked to the City of Elkins about receiving funding help for Tora.

“I know the city has made a lot of money this week off that 1 % sales tax,” Kesling said. “So they should be able to help out with some funding… But we appreciate you coming in, we will take it under advisement and we will let you know.”

Siler then asked if the dog serviced more than one school in the county, to which Rosencrance replied, “Yes, we are allowed to take her on visits to other schools and we will be doing that after we get her scheduled to do so.”

Rosencrance said he has faith that the community will step up and help with Tora’s care, noting that Jim Jackson from Elkins Fordland already donated $1,000 toward her care.

Tora was placed at Elkins High School thanks to First Lady Cathy Justice’s Friends With Paws initiative, which places certified therapy dogs in various CIS schools across the state. EHS is one of seven schools that are receiving a dog this fall.

“Tora is Japanese for tiger, and we have four handlers for our new therapy dog with myself included,” Rosencrance said. “The idea behind her is to boost students’ desire to be in school. She can also be used to help students when something is going in the wrong direction for them.”

Rosencrance said the CIS program was put in place at EHS about a year ago and that it is his job as site coordinator to build relationships between students and their family. He said it was also necessary to find community resources, whether it be on the behavior health side, or the business side.

“The idea is that students have needs, and teachers need to take the time to teach, and administrators need to take time to do administrative duties,” Rosencrance said. “But students have needs, and it can be anything from them being hungry, to their shoes are wet and leaking and they need a new pair. Or it could be a basic need where they need to talk to a counselor. The idea of the site coordinator is to be that liaison, that broker, between the student and their need and the community resources.”

Rosencrance also talked about how EHS has been combating attendance issues at the school.

“Attendance has been a real challenge, especially post pandemic, because philosophy kind of changed because people were staying at home doing things and got comfortable with that,” he said. “But we are trying to get attendance up and keep kids in school on a regular basis.”

Rosencrance said he has been working with teachers at the school and coming up with initiatives for students with good attendance, such as winning gift cards from businesses including Walmart and Pizza Hut.