Pause school closures and consolidations in West Virginia
The Issue
I’m a mom in Wyoming County, where families are fighting to keep Glen Fork Elementary and Middle School, Herndon Consolidated Elementary and Middle School, and Road Branch Elementary and Middle School open. I started this petition because families across West Virginia deserve the same chance to protect their local public schools.
When a school closes, children can face longer bus rides and leave behind teachers and staff who know them. Families need to know whether the receiving schools have enough classroom space and staff, and how students with disabilities will continue getting the services they rely on. They also deserve to see how much a closure is expected to save after accounting for transportation and other costs.
West Virginia needs a school funding formula that reflects what it costs to educate children in rural communities. When enrollment drops, counties still have to run buses over long distances, staff classrooms, and maintain buildings. State leaders should address those costs before more communities lose their schools.
We ask the West Virginia Legislature, the Governor, and the West Virginia Board of Education to work together to:
Pause public school closures and consolidations statewide, including those already approved but yet to take effect, until lawmakers fix the school funding formula.
Update the funding formula to account for the actual costs of educating students in rural counties, including transportation, staffing, and keeping school buildings open.
Strengthen Hope Scholarship rules and oversight. Tighten eligibility requirements, verify that public funds go toward approved educational expenses, and require regular, documented reviews of student progress. Publish county-level data on participation and spending, and assess the program’s effects on public school enrollment and funding before expanding eligibility or increasing awards.
Give families time to review the facts and propose alternatives. Publish projected savings, bus ride times, receiving-school capacity, and plans for students with disabilities before any closure moves forward.
Please sign and share this petition. Whether your school is facing closure now or could face it in the future, your community deserves a voice in what happens next.
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The Issue
I’m a mom in Wyoming County, where families are fighting to keep Glen Fork Elementary and Middle School, Herndon Consolidated Elementary and Middle School, and Road Branch Elementary and Middle School open. I started this petition because families across West Virginia deserve the same chance to protect their local public schools.
When a school closes, children can face longer bus rides and leave behind teachers and staff who know them. Families need to know whether the receiving schools have enough classroom space and staff, and how students with disabilities will continue getting the services they rely on. They also deserve to see how much a closure is expected to save after accounting for transportation and other costs.
West Virginia needs a school funding formula that reflects what it costs to educate children in rural communities. When enrollment drops, counties still have to run buses over long distances, staff classrooms, and maintain buildings. State leaders should address those costs before more communities lose their schools.
We ask the West Virginia Legislature, the Governor, and the West Virginia Board of Education to work together to:
Pause public school closures and consolidations statewide, including those already approved but yet to take effect, until lawmakers fix the school funding formula.
Update the funding formula to account for the actual costs of educating students in rural counties, including transportation, staffing, and keeping school buildings open.
Strengthen Hope Scholarship rules and oversight. Tighten eligibility requirements, verify that public funds go toward approved educational expenses, and require regular, documented reviews of student progress. Publish county-level data on participation and spending, and assess the program’s effects on public school enrollment and funding before expanding eligibility or increasing awards.
Give families time to review the facts and propose alternatives. Publish projected savings, bus ride times, receiving-school capacity, and plans for students with disabilities before any closure moves forward.
Please sign and share this petition. Whether your school is facing closure now or could face it in the future, your community deserves a voice in what happens next.
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Petition created on November 10, 2026