A NEW FIELD — The Hancock County Board of Education has invested more than $2.6 million in artificial turf and other improvements to the softball and baseball fields at Weir High School and is preparing for $10.65 million in projects at all Hancock County Schools funded by a bond levy that was approved by voters last year. -- Warren Scott

Through support from the community and partnerships with area institutions of higher learning, leaders of the Brooke and Hancock county school districts have been working to improve their facilities and prepare their students for future careers.

In the last two years, the Hancock County Board of Education has invested more than $2.6 million in artificial turf, dugouts, concession stands and fencing for Weir High School’s baseball and softball fields, and more than $2.6 million to create new baseball and softball fields with artificial turf, at Oak Glen High School.

Work on the Oak Glen fields has reached completion. An opening ceremony took place on Friday.

With those projects nearly behind them, Hancock County school officials are preparing for projects at all of the county’s public schools to be funded by a $10.65 million bond levy approved by voters last year.

Hancock County Superintendent Dan Enich said funds from the bonds are expected to be released in May or June. At that time, he and other school officials hope to hit the ground running.

ON THE JOB — Students in Brooke High School’s broadcasting technologies program interviewed Molly Powell, regional apprenticeship coordinator for the Ohio Laborers Union, during a job and education fair held by the Brooke High School Career Technical Department. The program is one of 16 career-focused academic tracks that students at the high school may pursue. -- Warren Scott

Enich said that includes the remediation of land occupied by a rear section of Oak Glen Middle School. He explained a geological study has found deposits of pyrite, a natural mineral in the ground, have expanded with exposure to air and water, causing some buckling to the building, which was built in 2005.

He said the geologists have assured it won’t present a safety issue for three or four years, but he and other school officials are eager to remedy the issue in a timely manner.

The project will be supported by $975,000 awarded by the West Virginia School Building Authority.

Enich said at the same time, plans call for security upgrades at all schools, including new vestibules with weapons detection systems and security cameras.

He said, unfortunately, such measures are part of a growing trend throughout the nation, with school shootings and threats to schools becoming more prevalent.

Enich noted threats centered around Weir Middle School in September resulted in all of the county’s schools being locked down for two days as a precaution.

Two juveniles were arrested by local law enforcement investigating the threats.

Enich said the roofs of both high schools will be patched and improvements will be made to the heating, ventilation and air conditioning systems of the two high schools and two middle schools.

He said the funds will be used to refurbish the high schools’ gymnasiums and theaters, with the latter to receive new curtains, lighting and sound systems.

Enich added there are plans to update all of the elementary schools’ playgrounds and replace their asphalt or mulch surfaces with a smoother, softer base.

He said bond levy funds will support a paving project at each of the county’s nine school campuses.

Enich said the board normally budgets about $250,000 each year for such projects, and the bond levy funds will allow it to divert those funds to other needs, including the replacement of well-worn equipment used for snow removal.

Currently, federal pandemic relief funds awarded to the district are being used to create an addition for Weir High School’s physical education department, with separate rooms dedicated for dance, aerobics and weightlifting.

School officials are preparing for the relocation of the district’s alternative learning center to a larger building next door at 3539 Main St., Weirton.

Formerly home to the Top of West Virgina Convention and Visitors Bureau, the building offers much more space for instruction to students with social or behavioral issues that make them less-suited for a traditional classroom setting.

Enich said the new site will be home to the adult education program, including instruction preparing individuals for the GED diploma equivalency exam and a checkpoint for students who have been expelled but to whom the district still must provide educational services under state law.

The Brooke County School District has received a great boost from the state School Building Authority for two upcoming major projects.

The state board has awarded $6.2 million to replace much of the plumbing and related fixtures at Brooke High School, with the school district providing a $500,000 match; and $462,500 for a new roof for Brooke Primary North, with the school district providing a $50,000 match.

Steve Mitchell, the school district’s director of buildings, grounds and maintenance, said it will be the first major overhaul of the high school’s plumbing system since the building was completed in 1969.

Mitchell and other school officials await completion of the project’s designs by an architect and hope for it to start as soon as the current school year ends.

Because the school building occupies about 9 acres, the project is expected to take two years to complete, so plans are being made to accommodate the work while school is in session.

Mitchell said Mansuetto Roofing of Martins Ferry will replace the roof of Brooke Primary North, formerly Hooverson Heights Primary School, and is expected to begin preliminary work in the near future.

He said plans call for most of the project to be done during the summer break.

Brooke County Superintendent Jeffrey Crook said starting in May, the names of the county’s primary and intermediate schools will be partly restored to their former names.

Crook said in response to public requests, Brooke Primary North and South will become Hooverson Heights and Wellsburg primary schools, respectively, while Brooke Intermediate North and South will become Jefferson Intermediate and Franklin Intermediate.

“It’s something people told us they wanted, and they still call them by their old names,” he said, while adding signs outside the schools will be changed.

The names had been changed under a previous administration when three of the county’s primary schools were closed and merged with the remaining four, whose grade levels also were changed.

The county’s primary schools include grades K-2, while the intermediate schools include the third and fourth grades.

Last fall saw the opening of a new playground for Brooke Primary South. Crook said the other primary and intermediate schools will receive new playgrounds, each with a more protective surface, in the not-too-distant future.

Crook added crews with Field Turf of Pittsburgh will be installing a new artificial turf baseball field at Brooke High School, with renovations to the dugouts, backstop and press box to be made by Mitchell and his staff.

Estimated at $2 million, the field and a planned artificial turf softball field will be covered by a portion of funds raised through the sale of school buildings the district had closed.

Crook noted the area occupied by the current softball field has suffered from recurring flooding, so there are plans to relocate it to another site nearby that will be raised with dirt excavated for the new baseball field.

He said there’s been an ongoing effort in recent years to improve all of the county’s school buildings and facilities, with an estimated 230 projects completed in the last six years.

They have included new heating, ventilation and air conditioning systems for all of the schools; a new artificial turf football field at the high school and a new roof for Brooke Primary South.

The high school’s auditorium has undergone a number of improvements, including a new sound system and curtains. New seats are being planned, Mitchell added.

He said students in the high school’s career technical program created a new, larger television studio for the school’s broadcasting technologies course under the direction of their instructors, Jack Minger and Nick Petrovich.

The studio is outfitted with much of the technology, including green screen projection used by local television stations.

Mitchell said it is one of many projects which has allowed students in career technical courses to gain hands-on experience.

Broadcasting technologies is one of 16 career-focused academic tracks in which Brooke High School students may enroll.

A majority of the school’s students are enrolled in the programs, which include: Administrative support, accounting and finance, marketing management, computer science programming, principles of business, carpentry, auto collision repair, early childhood education, electrical technician, biomedical science, welding, engineering, therapeutic services (through which students may become certified nursing assistants), automotive technologies and Grow Your Own, the latter being a state initiative aimed at encouraging teens to pursue careers in teaching.

Corey Murphy, deputy superintendent of Brooke County Schools, said following graduation, career tech students may go on to college, union apprenticeships or the workforce.

“It really just depends on what the student is interested in.

“They (career tech instructors) teach them the skills they’re going to need to be successful,” he said.

Murphy added the school district has formed partnerships with area colleges and universities that allow high school students to earn free college credit before they graduate.

He said students complete courses offered online by West Virginia University and online and at their school, through Brooke County teachers who have earned adjunct instructor status, through West Virginia Northern Community College.

Crook added an agreement with Bethany College resulted in the creation of Brooke Collegiate Academy, through which Brooke High School students may earn up to 18 free college credit hours per semester.

The school district assists those students with transportation to the college, where they attend classes, and textbooks.

“It’s great for the kids, just another offering we have,” said Crook.

Kristin Bissett, director of federal programs, student services and assessment for Hancock County Schools, said, “Hancock County Schools offers a lot of options for dual credit courses. We are currently involved in the Level Up program with West Virginia Northern Community College. Through it, students can earn credits toward degrees or certifications in welding and business administration or as a certified nursing assistant. All of these courses are taught by Hancock County teachers who are certified by WVNCC.”

“We also offer a lot of additional courses that are open to all students, with many being taught by our own instructors and some taught online by WVNCC instructors.”

In addition to college level courses in English, math, history, biology, psychology and art, Hancock County students may enroll in WVNCC courses in accounting, business management, medical terminology and other areas.

Career technical courses offered at Weir and Oak Glen high schools include financial management, business enterprise, early childhood classroom assistant teacher and information management. Courses offered by the John D. Rockefeller Career Center include automotive technology, collision repair technology, diesel technology, welding technology, carpentry, graphic design, multimedia publishing, Pro-Start restaurant management, baking and pastry and therapeutic services.

“Students who go to that career center leave it with a huge impression that takes them through their careers,” said Enich, who noted a number of its graduates have returned there to share the success they’ve found in welding and other fields and offer encouragement to the school’s current students.

He added he hopes to form partnerships with emerging local industries that would involve preparation for positions in their workplaces.