West Virginia
Alarms continue to sound over future of public education – WV MetroNews
They say the definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting a different result.
At this point, Paul Hardesty, President of the West Virginia Board of Education, must be on the precipice of losing his mind. During a recent call with reporters, Hardesty again emphasized the dire financial outlook for the state’s public schools. Enrollment continues to decline, and more school closures and consolidations may be coming next year.
It’s not the first time Hardesty has sounded the alarm.
Hardesty has repeatedly pointed out that public schools are withering under the current school-aid formula and burdensome regulations.
Some state lawmakers have received the message but during the 2026 60-day legislative session, while there was more discussion that legislative action is needed to address growing financial strains, ultimately, there was not enough political will for state lawmakers to take any action.
Senator Amy Nicole Grady, R-Mason, chairs the Senate Education Committee and is a public school teacher. She has spent the last three years trying to educate her fellow legislators about the frustrations teachers and school officials deal with on a daily basis.
“We know it’s nothing new. It’s something we have discussed for at least three years now, knowing that we need to move forward and change that formula in some way. But how we change it, that’s the challenge,” Grady said during an appearance on Metronews Talkline.
Grady recognizes the “how” is the major stumbling block for legislators who must make difficult decisions and must then face unhappy constituents.
“It’s very, very difficult, and this is something that’s big that really takes a lot of thinking, and it can require a lot of hard, difficult decisions, and you also have that model of self-preservation.
“A lot of people are thinking, this is hard for me to make this decision. I don’t want to make this decision because it could mean my seat. But when it’s the right thing, it’s the right thing regardless.”
House Education Committee Chairman Joe Statler, R-Monongalia, has also been on the front line trying to build a case for legislators to support major changes. Statler has repeatedly emphasized the gap in special education funding, where costs continue to outpace revenues.
The number of special education students continues to grow, now making up nearly 21 percent of the student population.
It is not only the legislature that has not found the political fortitude to address public education. It has not been a priority for the executive branch either.
Gov. Morrisey focused his political capital on accelerating the elimination of the personal income tax and preventing changes to the Hope Scholarship.
You can’t help but question whether the lack of action is due to a lack of political will or indifference to public schools’ failure. There’s no doubt that outside interest groups, many of which have supported legislative campaigns, have indicated a preference for alternative education choices.
Either way, if lawmakers continue to ignore the tidal wave of financial failures in the public education system, they will have abdicated their constitutional duty to provide West Virginia students with a “free and efficient” education system.
For the first time since the 2015-16 season, the West Virginia Mountaineers women’s basketball roster will feature a West Virginia native.
Wheeling product Alexis Bordas transfers in after having a tremendous freshman season up the road at Duquesne, where she averaged 15.5 points (ranked fifth in the A-10) and 3.1 rebounds per game while shooting 34.6% from beyond the arc. At season’s end, she was named to the A-10 All-Rookie Team.
Morgantown’s Olivia Seggie was the last West Virginia-born player on the women’s hoops roster.
Of course, WVU was Bordas’ dream school. Pretty much her entire family went to school here and grew up coming to Mountaineer games, so Mark Kellogg probably didn’t have to do much convincing once he made it known that they wanted her.
“Chase Harler’s from Wheeling, so I came to a lot of his games. Jevon Carter, my brother, loved him. We watched a lot more of the men back then, but Kysre Gondrezick, she was someone that I always watched.”
When asked what it’s like to finally be in a Mountaineer uniform and practicing with the group, she responded, “Yeah, it’s great to finally be here and get to meet all my teammates and become such good friends with them already. It’s been super fun, and just seeing the difference from day one to now, and how much we’ve progressed already, it’s super exciting to see.
“All the fan support last night, we had an event, and just seeing all the fans and how it’s June, and everyone’s already so excited and rallies around this team,” she added. “I know it’s extra special being from West Virginia, and I’m sure lots of little girls will look up to me and hope to be playing here one day, so it’s great to be a role model for them, too.”
Nine times last season, Bordas registered 20+ points, and of course, as a true West Virginian would, she had her best performance against the Pitt Panthers, dropping 38 on them in an 84-69 win. She went 11/22 from the field in that one, including a 10/18 day from three-point range.
Bordas is a high-volume shooter from range, as 58.8% of her attempts came from downtown last season. When you shoot 34% from there and can maybe hit the high 30s, no one will care about the shot diet being so reliant on the three-ball.
Under the new rules, Bordas will have four years of eligibility remaining.
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CLENDENIN, W.Va . (WSAZ) – Gov. Patrick Morrisey visited Clendenin West Virginia Saturday during Summerfest.
10 years ago a devastating flood swept through the community.
The governor announced $450,000 of funding for a Streetscape project during a commemoration for the June 2016 flood. The funding will go toward Clendenin’s main street – improving sidewalks, landscaping, and other pedestrian amenities.
Funding for the project comes from the Transportation Alternatives Program – a federal initiative to fund smaller scale transportation projects.
Copyright 2026 WSAZ. All rights reserved.
It was a phenomenal year for the West Virginia Mountaineers on the diamond, and even with the season having been over for over a week now, the honors continue to roll in.
On Friday, second baseman/catcher Gavin Kelly and left-handed starting pitcher Maxx Yehl were both named First-Team All-Americans by D1Baseball.com. It is the first time in program history that two Mountaineers have been recognized as First-Team All-Americans in the same season.
Gavin Kelly
Kelly was essentially everyone’s pick to have a breakout season for the Mountaineers in 2026, but I’m not sure anyone expected him to do it the way he did. He hit nearly .400 all year and went on a power surge out of nowhere toward the end of the season, becoming one of the top home run hitters in the country over the last month or so of the year.
Kelly was named a Golden Spikes Award semifinalist, the MVP of the Morgantown Regional, and is currently participating in the Team USA Collegiate National Team training camp in Cary, North Carolina. For the year, he hit .382 with 19 home runs and 63 RBI, cementing himself as a top draft prospect in 2027.
Maxx Yehl
Maxx Yehl was one of the best stories in all of college baseball that didn’t get talked about nearly enough. He was forced to sit out the 2025 season as he was recovering from Tommy John surgery, and prior to this season, Yehl worked exclusively out of the bullpen. The plan all along was to eventually stretch him out into a starter, and in his first year in the role, he was one of the best in the entire country.
Steve Sabins and Co. did a good job of playing it safe with him early, letting him only go two and four innings in his first two starts before turning him loose. There were a couple of moments where Mountaineer fans had to take a deep breath after he was removed from two starts, one of which was in the Morgantown Regional against Kentucky. He bounced back strong and two days later, pitched a gem against the Wildcats, helping the team advance to the super regionals for the third straight season.
Yehl finished the season with a 9-3 record, an ERA of 2.13, and 112 strikeouts to just 26 walks. He was also the first WVU hurler to win Big 12 Pitcher of the Year since Alek Manoah, who did it in 2019.
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