NEW MINGO CONSOLIDATED SCHOOL BEING BID - Battle Lost By County Citizens

(05/11/2009)

The long battle has ended over the closure of all of Mingo County's high schools, consolidating them in one new building to be built on a mountaintop coal strip site. Mingo County School Superintendent Dwight D. Dials has announced the opening of bids for the new Mingo Central High School, widely opposed by most of the county citizens, but decided upon by the state during their long-term take-over of Mingo schools. "The state has a track record of closing community schools when they take-over," said Thomas Ramey, Executive Director of Challenge WV. Mingo citizens have continued to elect board members who oppose the consolidation, but their decisions are negated by the state takeover. Four high schools, Williamson, Delbarton, Matewan and Gilbert are being closed. "The consolidation not only ignores the research that children perform better in small, community schools, but in the Mingo County case, hundreds of students will be placed on long school bus rides over some of the state's most tortuous roads," Ramey said. Dials said a pre-bid event is scheduled for May 14 and a groundbreaking on the school site is scheduled for June 8. An August 2010 has been listed as the target date for completion. The school will be located next to the yet to be built King Coal Highway which connects Bluefield with Williamson, on a site which opponents say is above a number of closed underground mines, one of which is on fire.

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