| Calhoun Schools is one of five state county systems targeted by the West Virginia Board of Education during a meeting this week as having major budget deficits.
Following comments made by state board member Lloyd Jackson, state media asked is school takovers are coming since the fiscally fraught counties are in the state board's sights.
State board members said Braxton, Calhoun, Mason, Monroe and Preston counties have budget deficits considered critical by state code, while Clay, Pendleton and Webster counties are experiencing more "casual" deficits.
"The problem is when the adults get it wrong, the kids are the ones who suffer," said Jackson. "Ultimately, this hurts everyone."
"This is the number-one symptom of counties you have to take over. You've got to catch these things quickly because if you let them get out of control, get ready to take them over because this is where it starts," Jackson said.
In June, 2012, Preston County was $2.4 million in the red, while Braxton and Calhoun counties had deficits of more than half a million each.
Calhoun Superintendent of Schools Roger Propst told the Hur Herald Friday he will comment about the shortfall and what is being done about it.
The state board approved the counties' plans to eliminate their deficits, detailing how they have reduced spending and how they will continue to save money, according to the Charleston Gazette.
Joe Panetta, superintendent of finance for the Department of Education said counties without an excess levy to offer additional funding for schools are at risk, while some counties refuse to reduce staff.
Gus Penix, director of the Office of Education Performance Audits, said many of West Virginia's rural counties have seen gradual declines in enrollment, resulting in less funding from the state.
See related story CALHOUN SCHOOLS COULD FACE CUTS IN PERSONNEL - Declining Enrollment A Problem
Last year, after numerous reports said West Virginia schools have some of the nation's worst academic outcomes, the state board indicated they were developing a policy not to take over county school systems.
When the state has taken over county school systems over administrative problems, academics, and school building deterioration directed toward consolidation, most of those counties saw little if any improvement in academic achievement.
Gov. Earl Ray Tomblin said education reform is a top issue for his administration and for WV legislators.
During his state-of-the-state address, he said:
"Education Week, in its annual survey, Quality Counts, gave us an F for student achievement, ranking us 49th nationally. That is not acceptable."
"The only true national test, the National Assessment of Educational Progress, ranks us below the national averages in 21 of 24 categories, and many of our scores have slipped lower over the past decade. That is not acceptable."
"Our graduation rate is only 78 percent which means almost 1 in 4 high school students do not graduate on time. That is not acceptable."
"We have the highest percentage of young people ages 16 to 19 not engaged in school or the workforce. That is not acceptable."
"Education in West Virginia must change. And that change begins now."
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