Published: August 14, 2008 11:58 pm         

State BOE OKs Fayette’s plan to reopen Nuttall school

CHARLESTON — The most recent chapter in the six-month saga surrounding 82-year-old Nuttall Middle School was penned by the state Board of Education Thursday when it voted overwhelmingly to allow Fayette County to reopen the facility to teachers in less than a week and students in less than two weeks.

“I’m heading back to the office. I’ve got a lot of work to do,” Fayette Schools Superintendent Chris Perkins said as he dashed out of the Capitol Complex building following the 8-1 vote.

Dr. Lowell Johnson cast the lone vote to deny the county’s proposed amendment to its Comprehensive Educational Facilities Plan. The decision clears the way for Fayette County to open the school to students and staff after voting to close it in February.

County school administrators have exactly 11 days from today — including weekends — before students in grades six through eight begin pouring through the school’s doors. Teachers are expected to be on the job next Thursday. Some of the state school board members and other state officials expressed skepticism about the county’s ability to have the school ready in time to operate for the 2008-09 school year.

“There are no pristine schools in Fayette County,” said Bill Elswick, executive director of the state Office of School Facilities.

“It’s a burdensome responsibility to keep all of these schools open. They (Fayette County school officials) have met the criteria to amend their CEFP, but it’s a burdensome situation,” Elswick added, noting the building is not handicap-accessible.

Board member Barbara Fish questioned the financial state of Fayette’s school system. “It’s pretty grave, isn’t it?” she queried rhetorically.

“If we keep Nuttall open, can it open with teachers? Can bus runs be made? Can it be a smooth transition?” board member Gayle Manchin asked.

“We’ve been looking at contingency plans for either scenario. We’re ready to put those plans in place. We’ve been talking about this for quite some time,” Perkins replied.

Perkins explained that Thursday’s vote will create eight teaching vacancies at three other Fayette County schools — Ansted Elementary, Ansted Middle and Divide Elementary. The trio of schools was scheduled to absorb some of Nuttall’s staff and students following the closure and reconfiguration vote six months ago.

Nuttall Middle employed approximately 10 teachers during the 2007-08 school year.

Perkins assured state board members he would post advertisements for the teaching vacancies at the board office in Fayetteville Monday morning, adding teachers and parents would have some amount of leeway in selecting their destination for teaching and the education of their children.

Three Fayette school board members who supported reopening the school — president Dave Arritt, vice president Leon Newman and Leon Ivey — each spoke in favor of amending the county’s CEFP.

“The decision to close it was unacceptable,” Ivey declared of the step taken in February.

“This is about our children. We’re putting the burden entirely on the children, with nothing to gain,” said Ivey, who formally took a seat on the board last month after defeating Peggy Farmer in May.

“We can’t adequately take care of our schools. It’s a situation we’ve allowed ourselves to get into. This (closure) does nothing to better their (students’) education. All is not lost in Fayette County. Rome wasn’t built overnight, but they did build it,” Newman asserted.

“Changes are inevitable. We have been very lax in keeping up with the changes that are inevitable,” added Newman, who described Nuttall Middle as a victim. “That ought not to be so.”

According to Arritt, Fayette County has closed 20 of 43 schools since 1980.

“We can afford to keep it open with our budget. We’ve let Nuttall slip into bad territory (its physical condition), but it’s still a structurally sound school. The people of Fayette County want to keep Nuttall Middle School open,” Arritt said.

Arritt underscored his point by noting a new board member — Ivey — was elected in May. He opposes Nuttall’s closure. “That’s how you settle conflict. You let the ballot box do it,” Arritt noted.

“I think this sets the precedent for future closures to be revisited,” Farmer argued in reaction to Thursday’s decision. Farmer voted to close the school in February. “Frankly speaking, I just think it was campaign promises fulfilled.”

— E-mail: mhill@register-herald.com