INSTITUTE, W.Va. — The West Virginia University State Board of Governors gave approval Friday to BOG Chairman Mark Kelley to enter into a new contract with State President Ericke Cage.

It’s a five-year deal and will need final approval from the state Higher Education Policy Commission before June 30 when Cage’s current contract expires.

Cage has been president at WVSU for two years. He told MetroNews Friday the five-year contract is a great vote of confidence from the BOG.

“I’m just excited to have the opportunity to continue as the university’s president, to continue to advance the great work we have done to move West Virginia State forward,” Cage said.

Cage said the success of the last two years has included adding new academic programs, bringing new resources and relationships WVSU and helping to raise the university’s profile in the state and across the country.

Gov. Jim Justice and several legislative leaders were on the State campus earlier this week for a ceremonial bill signing that will bring a $50 million new state Agriculture lab to the WVSU campus that will coincide with university establishing a School of Agriculture.

“That is going to be a game-changer not just for West Virginia State University but for the entire state of West Virginia,” Cage said.

State will face the challenges that other colleges and universities face over the next five years but Cage said he believes the HBC, land-grant institution, has positioned itself to be able to grow during that time.

“I believe the future of higher education is very much focused on the needs of our clients, our customers, and in this case our customers are the students, the taxpayers, the businesses,” he said.

Cage expects growth in State’s doctorate degree programs, agriculture research and training and cyber security in connection with a partnership involving Marshall University.

Cage said WVSU will also lean into what he calls “tailor-made industry solutions.”

“We’re going to partner with industry, sit down with them, and shape programs and solutions to the workforce challenges they face,” Cage said.

WVSU is currently in discussions with Nucor Steel to develop an operators training program.

“I think the future at West Virginia State University is very bright,” Cage said. “Most importantly, we are never going to lose sight of our connection to this community.”

A native of Halifax County, Virginia, Cage was previously serving as the university’s chief operating officer and managing the day-to-day operations of the university for then president Nicole Pride. Pride resigned July 30, 2021. Cage received the permanent appointment in March 2022.

The state Higher Education Policy Commission will likely meet next week to approve the new five-year contract.

West Virginians are at greater risk of pipeline explosions, environmental pollution, and climate catastrophe than we were a week ago. Last week the Federal Regulatory Commission approved the Mountain Valley Pipeline to go into operation after a decade of community resistance, six years of delayed and costly construction, and numerous violations along the construction route. 

The approval comes only one day after the developer, Equitrans Midstream, stated that the project was “mechanically complete.” By the end of the week, the developer turned on the pipeline to begin transporting the fracked gas. The $7.85 billion, 303-mile and 42-inch diameter pipeline resulted in costing more than double the initial proposal of $3.5 billion. A pipeline of this length and diameter has never been tried in our mountainous region. Yet, the present and future cost of this pipeline goes far beyond finances.

The federal green light comes just a year after so-called “climate” President Joe Biden signed legislation to raise the debt ceiling. Stemming from a deal with Democratic Senate leaders, the bipartisan debt ceiling agreement included a congressional mandate to expedite the completion of the Mountain Valley Pipeline despite environmental compliance issues and associated legal setbacks. Beyond being a quid pro quo to advance Sens. Joe Manchin and Shelley Moore Capito’s fossil fuel interests, this legislation demonstrated the fragility of our country’s government in both executive and legislative overreach of its regulatory and judicial decisions. 

The Mountain Valley Pipeline poses unique risks to local communities and ecosystems going into service this summer due to the steel pipes used and then neglected in development. Steel pipes are particularly prone to corrosion when exposed to oxygen, sunlight, and water even coated with epoxy. Equitrans Midstream left sections of pipes out to the elements for years increasing concerns of explosion potential. 

This safety risk is not theoretical — during hydrostatic testing on May 1 in Virginia, a section of the pipeline installed in 2018 ruptured and released water and sediment into local streams and properties. Residents near the burst shared that there is a lack of communication from federal and state agencies about the pipe failure. If the pipeline fails this standard pressure test mere weeks before requesting to go into service, can it truly be safe to transport highly flammable fracked gas through the places where West Virginians live, play and work?

Even more, the pumping of fracked gas through corroded pipelines poses an additional risk of groundwater infiltration of methane and radioactive materials produced in fracking, along with significant greenhouse gas emissions. This environmental pollution threatens the air and water of local residents, landowners, farmers, and business owners. 

At a national and global scale, we know that climate change is not just a distant threat but happening now. It is well established science that extracting and burning fossil fuels are the source of human caused climate change. The only way to avoid even worse impacts is to stop approving and advancing fossil fuel projects. Even the International Energy Agency, an intergovernmental organization created in response to the 1973-1974 oil crisis and with deep roots in the oil and gas industry, made clear in 2021 that new oil and gas projects must stop immediately. 

It should not be controversial to say that people residing along the Mountain Valley Pipeline deserve to live without fear of a pipeline explosion or the leakage of methane and radioactive waste, and we all deserve a livable future in the face of climate change. It is not too late for the federal government to remedy their rash decision to circumvent judicial review, dismiss the separation of powers, and expedite permits for a pipeline proven to cause harm. 

The fight against the Mountain Valley Pipeline and fossil fuels, in general, is far from over. While the Biden Administration has taken more climate action than any president in American history, the bar of success is as low as the depths of the Marcellus and Utica Shale, where gas from the Mountain Valley Pipeline is said to be sourced. 

By declaring climate change the emergency it is and following through on his commitment to address climate change as the “number one issue facing humanity,” President Biden has a responsibility to answer for his detrimental decisions shaped by fossil fuel interests. If he doesn’t, young voters, like myself, will ensure that his administration pays that price through this November’s election.

BLUEFIELD, Va. (WVVA) -In honor of West Virginia’s 161st Birthday the Mercer County Convention and Visitors Bureau set up at Thursday evening Ridge Runner game at Bowen Field.

The first 250 guests got to enjoy free cupcakes along with special giveaways throughout the game.

They also debuted their new selfie station for the community to capture moments at local events.

Executive Director Jamie Null of the Visitor Bureau hopes the community will use the station and share their creations with Visit Mercer County.

“We wanted something interactive for folks to do when they come to events that were set up and we really wanted to reach the younger generation,” said Null. “We have got this selfie booth, and it goes around to local events, and you can take pictures, you can use AI, props, you can do boomerangs, videos, and then you can text yourself the video. We hope that people will share it on social media to show what type of fun they’re having at Mercer County events.”

Null says the selfie station will be at Mercer Counties Cool Cruisin’ Nights on Mercer Street and Mercer County Fair.

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