McDowell County heads back to in-person classes
WELCH, WV (WVNS) – It has been quite the journey, but McDowell County students and teachers are finally getting back to school.
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Transportation has been one of the biggest adjustments for McDowell County Schools.
The start of Daylight Saving Time forced McDowell County Schools to alter their school schedule. This was done in order to help bus drivers safely drive around the county with more daylight. The official school day is now starting one hour later than normal and ending an hour later than normal to ensure students get a full day of school.
Amanda Peyton is the assistant superintendent of McDowell County Schools.
She said they have been working closely with the West Virginia Division of Highways on the matter of transportation.
'We also have to think about where students stand on the side of the road. We have mounds of mud in places [because of the flooding]. So, we have to make sure we have safe bus stops for students,' said Peyton. 'Our drivers did dry runs before we ever went in and picked up the first child. They identified where safe turnaround spots [are]. Our drivers called each and every family, that we had to alter their best route, to say, 'This is where we are going to meet. Do you have the means to get your child to that just until the conditions get better?'
McDowell County Schools applied for a waiver to officially end their school year on June 6.
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'We are planning [on having] summer school, so that will allow us some extra time this summer for those students who wish to attend. The other part is making sure that we look at spring break. We are applying for a waiver from the state superintendent and one of our waiver requests will be to pull back spring break as an instructional week for students,' added Peyton.
In total, McDowell County schools have missed six weeks of school because of the flooding, as well as the harsh winter.
Peyton told 59News their biggest focus right now is getting kids back into school and trying to get them caught up on their education. She estimated that at least 75 percent of students have returned to school since their reopening.
They are currently trying to create individualized education plans for those who still cannot make it to school.
'Those plans are still being created with families. We are having to look to see if they have Internet. Every child has a device. [If] they do not have Internet to access, that becomes a problem. So, [for] some of those we might have to look at different personal situations. If a student is in another county [because of being displaced by the flooding], do they have Internet at that house that they're living at? So just everything is really personalized right now,' said Peyton.
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Peyton explained they are doing more of these personalized learning plans with students on the western side of the county. There are students all over the county who are currently having to use these plans.
Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
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