Latest news with #MercerCountySchools
Yahoo
17-05-2025
- Climate
- Yahoo
School year will be a few days longer for some
tazewell, va. — Some area students will be spending a few extra days in the classroom next month. That's due to instructional days that were lost due to the weather. But it wasn't just a bad winter and snow that contributed to a loss of instructional days this school year. A February flood, and the remnants of Hurricane Helene last September, also caused school closures. In Tazewell County, days had to be added to the end of the school year to make up for the loss of instructional time due to the various weather events. The last day of school for students in Tazewell County will be Thursday, June 5, according to Tazewell County School Superintendent Dr. Chris Stacy. The last day for teachers is Friday, June 6. 'We missed some school for weather, flooding and a hurricane,' Stacy said. 'It was quite a weather year. This is the first I can ever remember us missing school in September.' The original school calendar for the 2024-2025 school year had school ending in late May. The remnants of Hurricane Helene slammed into the region on the morning of September 24, 2024, toppling thousands of trees and power lines across the region. It also caused localized flooding. Thousands across the area were without electricity for more than a week. Stacy said several schools in the Eastern District of Tazewell County, including Graham High School, lost electricity following the storm. In neighboring Mercer County, the last day of school for students is June 10 and the last day for employees is June 16, according to Amy Harrison, data and information specialist for Mercer County Schools. Although the school year will stretch into the first 10 days of June, the instructional days lost due to the weather were recovered during spring break, according to Harrison. 'We did not have to extend the school year because the number of snow days over our built-in days in the calendar were taken during spring break,' Harrison said. While some students will be in the classroom a few days longer, seniors will soon be graduating across the region. In McDowell County, graduation is set for May 22 for both Mount View High School in Welch and River View High School in Bradshaw. In Mercer County, graduation will be held May 30 for Montcalm High School, Bluefield High School, Princeton Senior High School and PikeView High School. In Monroe County, graduation is also set for May 30 for seniors at James Monroe High School. Contact Charles Owens at cowens@
Yahoo
07-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Meadow Bridge Regional School Band excels in band performances, prepares for long-awaited new room
MEADOW BRIDGE, WV (WVNS) – After years of holding classes without a traditional band room, the Meadow Bridge Regional School Band will finally have their new classroom any day now. Mercer County Schools makes Teacher Appreciation Week extra special The Meadow Bridge Regional School Band has grown rapidly over the past eight years. Currently, the band consists of 99 members – 69 middle schoolers and 30 high schoolers. They went from an old shop room to a boys' locker room, and most recently they held classes in a custodial closet right next to the gym. Construction has been going on at the school, with the addition of a new state-of-the-art band room in the works. Band Director Dr. Travis Friddle told 59News, despite their current situation, his high school band got a 1 (the best possible score) at the Spring Festival For Performance Evaluation and Assessment, or, as they call it, Ratings. Dr. Riddle's middle schoolers had it even tougher, as they were limited to only one practice before ratings. They received a 2. 'It honestly brought tears to my eyes because I look back at the struggles of it and I have said this to my students, 'I am here for one reason, and it is the kids.' If it were not for them, there would be no way to survive this. There would have been no way. They are very good kids. They really are. This school is very unique,' said Dr. Friddle. Some longtime band members like senior Alec Thomas have endured all the changes with Dr. Riddle. Thomas' dedication to music and the program has opened new doors for him. He will be attending Marshall University for their music education program next fall. 'It has been hard. It's been long, but it is definitely worth it just to see the end of it. Just the nice, very nice band room that we have [is amazing]. To know that the students that I have played with for the past seven years have actually get to experience [it is even better],' said Thomas. Meadow Bridge Regional School Band prepares to take on football season and more, against all odds Dr. Friddle explained this new band room will have acoustical tiles surrounding the room, the floor is wood and will have a partition wall that leads into a multipurpose room – which can hold 200 people. He plans on using the room for band concerts in the future as well. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WVNS.
