West Virginia Board of Education members Wilson, Dunlevy oppose Amendment 4

WHEELING — Two West Virginia Board of Training members from the Northern Panhandle say board members have an excellent working relationship with the state Legislature, and that the proposed Constitutional Modification 4 on the Nov. 8 poll is pointless.

Robert Dunlevy of Wheeling and Dr. James Wilson of Glen Dale every have greater than 25 years of expertise making selections about schooling coverage.

Modification 4, if handed, would require all guidelines instituted by the state board to be despatched to the Legislature “for overview, approval, modification, or rejection.”

The actions of all different state businesses in West Virginia are required to come back earlier than the legislature for overview, with the State Board of Training being the one exception.

However Wilson stated there’s the Legislative Oversight Committee On Training Accountability (LOCEA), which opinions schooling coverage. It’s made up of members of each the Home and the Senate.

A retired dentist, Wilson has been a state board member for 5 years. He has additionally served 20 years with the Marshall County Board of Training.

“I don’t assume it’s vital,” Wilson stated of Modification 4. “We’ve at all times felt there’s a partnership between the Legislature and the state board.”

He defined most frequently the insurance policies set forth by the West Virginia Division of Training are produced after the Legislature has handed a regulation “directing us to develop a coverage”

He used faculty bus security for instance.

“We put the division to work, they usually delve into all the fabric that’s obtainable about faculty bus security, and we use it to create faculty bus security coverage,” he stated.

The coverage is subsequent despatched out to LOCEA. The Senate president and the speaker of the Home get a duplicate to overview, as do the chairs of each the Home and Senate schooling committees.

On the similar time, the general public at giant is ready to learn it on-line and supply their ideas and feedback on the way it could possibly be made higher.

“I can inform you the individuals on the division pay very shut consideration to the feedback of the Legislature and the general public, although a few of these feedback are extra in-depth than others,” Wilson defined.

One current coverage change resulted in additional than 300 feedback, with 50 corrections finally made to the coverage attributable to these feedback.

Each the total Legislature and the Legislative Oversight Committee On Training have their alternative to weigh in on coverage, Wilson continued.

“If Modification 4 goes into place, the Legislature would have the authority to overview, amend, or dispose of a coverage with none enter from the state board or the general public,” he stated. “To me, that appears to offer the Legislature supreme energy – making their relationship with the state board lower than a partnership. The Legislature would usurp the policy-making course of.”

Wilson stated he has believed the state board to have “a fairly good working relationship” with the Legislature.

He famous when there was a problem raised by a state lawmaker, the board most frequently has put them in contact with the right particular person on the State Division of Training for a solution, or maybe directed them to an official on the county stage.

“I’ve by no means seen that there was an issue between the Legislature and the board,” he stated. “Most frequently, we’re fairly affordable about issues.”

Dunlevy agreed the Legislature and State Board presently work effectively collectively.

“I’m against it,” he stated of Modification 4. “For one, we’ve got 9 members on the board who make the principles and laws for colleges within the state.”

And all members have the information to make these selections, he continued.

“We’ve got all been within the schooling discipline, and we’re extra able to making selections than legislators,” Dunlevy stated. “No disrespect to the legislators, however they shouldn’t be in command of the tutorial system.”

Secondly, the West Virginia Legislature is a part-time legislature, he famous.

“If we make a coverage change … it’s not like they’re assembly each day,” Dunlevy stated. “It is probably not till they meet in January or February earlier than they overview it, and we could have to take faster motion.”

However Dunlevy believes state lawmakers are “doing the very best they’ll with what they need to work with.”

“I simply consider they need to maintain schooling separate from the opposite issues they’re going through,” he added.

Dunlevy is presently within the fourth yr of his second stint on the State Board of Training. He beforehand was appointed to a five-year time period on the board and has a complete of 9 years of expertise as a state board member.

Earlier than that, Dunlevy served 20 years on the Ohio County Board of Training.

“In my expertise, once they ‘ve come earlier than us and wished to speak about coverage they’d considerations with, we’ve sat down and talked about it,” Dunlevy stated of state lawmakers. “I’ve supported them one hundred pc. Our doorways are at all times open, and their doorways are at all times open.”