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You could hear groans all over Randolph County this week when Superintendent of Schools Dr. Derek Lambert told the county Board of Education that declining student enrollment may lead to more school closures.
Lambert said Randolph County Schools is looking at a projected loss of 240 students this school year, which translates to roughly a $2 million reduction in funding, or approximately 30 staff member positions.
He told the BOE that "finding another 30 positions to reduce, while maintaining our current number of schools, is going to be extremely difficult, if not impossible."
That’s the statement that elicited the groans from weary parents, teachers and school staff members.
Both the Harman K-12 School and North Elementary School were closed for fiscal reasons at the end of the 2025-2026 school year, with the schools’ final classes taking place on June 5. Those two school closures are projected to save the school system roughly $1.7 million.
But now, just four months later, another $2 million needs to be found to keep Randolph County Schools running? The county-wide groans signified feelings of frustration, and maybe even hopelessness.
But deep down, we all knew this was coming. The Randolph BOE has had to consider closing schools for years now. Declining student enrollment - spurred on by the expansion of the Hope Scholarship - has only made the situation more dire, and impossible to ignore.
Our community needs to steel itself for the school closure discussions to come. Just last year, Coalton Elementary and the Pickens K-12 school narrowly escaped the chopping block. It’s logical to assume that they - and perhaps other schools - will be looked at for potential closure once again this year.
Similar situations are taking place across West Virginia this fall. Also this week, Harrison County Schools Superintendent Dr. Sheena Van Meter said that her school system will soon be evaluating whether school closures will be necessary because of declining student enrollment.
It has become a dreaded annual occurrence - the fall/winter Season of School Closure Discussions. Unfortunately, but perhaps inevitably, we are about to enter that season once again.