Chua

ELKINS — A Randolph County Board of Education member — who said at a recent meeting that he felt threatened by the state to vote a certain way about school closures and consolidation — is now clarifying his comments.

Dr. Phil Chua reached out to The Inter-Mountain Monday regarding statements he made during the Sept. 16 BOE meeting, when he said he felt threatened by the West Virginia School Board Authority after watching a live stream meeting.

During the Randolph County BOE meeting Chua said, “I felt at times they were talking directly to us, and that included their lawyers. And they made it very clear that if we do not vote to try and balance our budget, that we would be charged with a misdemeanor. They made that very clear that was going to happen. These are the people who are supposed to be representing us at the state level — very threatening.”

In a letter Chua sent to The Inter-Mountain Monday, he wrote, “The State BOE did not put on the educational seminar, it was the West Virginia School Board Association… The WV School Board Association provided the educational session. And the lawyers who were explaining the potential consequences and penalties for creating a greater than the 2% causal budget deficit are advisers for the county boards.

“Following state code is not compulsory, but not following state code has consequences via West Virginia code 11-8-26 and 11-8-31, which can include misdemeanor charges, fines, and potential fiscal liability,” Chua said. “Those are the consequences that elected county board members face if they fail to make the budget.”

Chua said the School Board Association asked him to clarify his previous public comments.

“The School Board Association would like to make it clear that they did not intend their remarks to be threatening, but as a guide to the potential pitfalls of not taking actions that would result in a balanced budget,” Chua wrote in the letter.

“The State BOE does not make West Virginia code, it is the lawmakers of West Virginia who put this in place. Advice was provided during the educational process, but this does not mean the State Board requested any direct action.”

Randolph County Schools was placed in a State of Emergency by the West Virginia Department of Education in June. The school district will remain on probation for a total of six months, and faces the possibility of a state takeover if it cannot create a balanced budget or show progress by December.

The first of three public hearing dates for proposed school closures and consolidation will be on Wednesday, Oct. 8 at the Elkins High School theater. That hearing is scheduled to begin at 5:30 p.m. and will focus on the proposed closing of Harman K-12 School and North Elementary School.

A public hearing on the closing of Pickens K-12 School is set for Tuesday, Oct. 14 at 5:30 p.m. in the EHS theater.

The third and final public hearing, on the closure of Coalton Elementary and Midland Elementary, is scheduled for Tuesday, Oct. 28 at 5:30 p.m. at the EHS theater. 

The next regular BOE meeting is scheduled for Tuesday, Oct. 7 at 5:30 p.m.