Public encouraged to attend conference



West Virginians for Better Transportation will host a statewide transportation conference Nov. 10 at the Country Inn & Suites/Mountaineer Conference Center in Beckley. I want to invite all West Virginians to register to attend and to learn more about the future of our state’s roads, bridges and highways.

West Virginia’s transportation system is facing a crisis, and major funding challenges are upon us. According to a report released this past summer, the West Virginia Department of Transportation estimates that $9.75 billion will be needed through 2018 to improve road and bridge conditions, enhance economic development, provide needed safety measures and relieve traffic congestion. However, it is projected our state will have only $5 billion available during this time.

Will Congress bail us out? Not likely. Currently, West Virginia gets about $500 million each year in federal highway funds. But, given the massive increase in the federal debt due to the recession, Congress will have problems finding new dollars or raising federal gasoline taxes. Also, significant increases in the cost of transportation construction materials will make it more costly to undertake new, adequately-funded transportation projects.

Now more than ever our citizens and our leaders — elected officials, business leaders, labor leaders, etc. — need to come together to develop a long-term solution.

I encourage interested citizens and groups to attend this conference so they can hear from Congressman Rahall, Gov. Manchin and other state leaders and to express their support for a safe, modern transportation system for West Virginia.

To register, go to www.keepwvmoving.org.



Joe Deneault

West Virginians for Better Transportation

Charleston



Discipline, support equal better results



The buildings are safe, but old and well worn. In places the flooring is well past its prime, and leaky roofs and windows have been repaired many times over. The lack of teachers cause the staff to be stretched thin in order to make sure that college prep classes are taught. There isn’t adequate space to do physical education, art, or music; yet, somehow it is being taught.

I’m not talking about the Fayette County public schools. I am referring to Greater Beckley Christian. As I listen to the argument about how the defeat of the bond issue has set the county back, I can’t help but think about the little Christian school in Prosperity that did such an excellent job of preparing my children for college and beyond. Poor test scores are not a product of decaying buildings. They are the product of discipline and accountability in the classroom. They are the product of parental involvement and support. They are achieved through a process that unites students, parents, and teachers with a single goal.

Before you start to talk about how expensive private education is, think about this: the county spends between $8,000 and $9,000 per student each year, while tuition at GBCS is around $3,000. Yet somehow they manage to produce higher test scores, a high percentage of Promise Scholarship recipients, teach college prep classes, and graduate their seniors with 12 hours of college credit.

All of this is the product of a system that puts the student first and teachers who demand the best from each student. Return discipline and accountability to the classroom, and the results will follow.



Scott Lawson

Prosperity