CHARLESTON – Nearly seven months after the West Virginia Board of Education issued a state of emergency at Martinsburg North Middle School, school and district leaders received praise for the progress made in improving the troubled school.

The state Board of Education received an update on the Department of Education’s intervention at Martinsburg North during its monthly meeting in Charleston Wednesday.

The state board declared the state of emergency for Martinsburg North in May after a team from the state Department of Education conducted a targeted school environment assessment at the school in April. The visit was spurred by the results of an October 2023 School Learning Environment Survey that found that 53% of students at the school reported feeling safe versus the statewide result of 80%.

During their April visit to the school, state regulators reported that students and staff felt unsafe at the school, with unfair and inconsistent discipline. Team members observed threatening and hostile behavior from students along with use of inappropriate language, with behaviors either not being effectively addressed by teachers and staff or not addressed at all. When behaviors were addressed, students ignored teachers/staff with no consequences.

Team members said the school uses multiple platforms to collect data on student behavior and interventions, creating confusion and transparency issues. These issues have prevented the school from developing a schoolwide behavior plan.

In the classroom, regulators said teachers did not use effective classroom management strategies, describing what they saw as “chaotic, destructive, and occasionally hostile.” They did not observe the use of standards-based instruction and said learning activities provided to students were below grade-level standards or not relevant.

Staff members at the school reported to regulators that there was a lack of instructional leadership by administration officials, with some teachers reporting never having seen an administration official in their classrooms this school year. During the visit by department staff, they reported an administration presence at the school in the morning that decreased throughout the day. During interviews, the administrative team was unable to explain roles, responsibilities, and expectations.

As part of the state of emergency, the department directed Berkeley County Schools to use their state Comprehensive Support and Improvement (CSI) funds to hire a school improvement specialist. The department also worked with Berkeley County Schools to put together a detailed action plan.

“I worked very closely with Berkeley County district staff, and we put together a comprehensive corrective action plan,” said Kelly Massinople, the school improvement coordinator assigned to Martinsburg North. “I will mention that overwhelmingly I hear from teachers as I’m in the building that the culture has really changed since the last year. They feel very supported with respect to discipline. There is a focus on instruction and in learning.”

Since then, the Berkeley County Board of Education hired former Cabell County School Superintendent Ryan Saxe to lead the county school system. The board hired Kevin Pittsnogle as the new Martinsburg North principal, replacing Rebekah Eyler who was put on administrative leave earlier this year.

Jeffrey Kelley, assistant superintendent of district and school accountability with the Department of Education, said meetings in September with Saxe, Berkeley County Board of Education President Jacqueline Long, and Vice President Melissa Power have been positive.

“My takeaways from that meeting were that Superintendent Saxe and his staff were executing a plan, which addresses the concerning conditions we observed last April,” Kelley said. “Additionally, Ms. Long and Ms. Power were fully supportive of Superintendent Saxe in this endeavor…and welcome support from the West Virginia Department of Education. Ultimately, they want what is best for student learning.”

Pittsnogle said his first mission was looking at the student discipline issue, data collection, and classroom management.

“We’re really focusing on discipline and just really holding kids accountable, and holding teachers accountable to holding kids accountable,” Pittsnogle said. “That has led us to a lot of positives this year. We’re still nowhere near where we need to be as far as day-to-day, but everyday it’s getting better.”

Pittsnogle also said he is working to change the public perceptions about Martinsburg North in Berkeley County and show that it can be a good school.

“We get to have conversations with kids. We’re visible in the classrooms, we’re visible in the hallways, and we’re doing everything we can to show the kids the positive aspects,” Pittsnogle said. “There’s a bad perception around North and I don’t think it’s correct. I think if people get into schools and actually talk to the kids and see the kids that the perception will change. And that’s what we’re trying to do on social media right now. We’re getting out the positives that are happening every day so that people see that our kids are not the kids that they’re made out to be.”

“It is so refreshing to hear about the guts of what goes on in a school,” said state board member Debra Sullivan. “You’ve really brought it to life…You’ve really had an opportunity that we don’t often take in our schools, which is to sit back and really clear the decks and imagine what it could be. And you have done that. ”

“When this issue was brought to our attention last year, I was very critical,” said board member Paul Hardesty. “As critical as I was, then I want to be complimentary now because you owned the problem. You recognized the problem and you’re well on your way to fixing the problem.”