Photo by Craig Howell Hancock County Schools Superintendent Walter Saunders said that, despite the district’s difficulties, there are no plans to close or consolidate schools for the 2026-27 school year.

NEW CUMBERLAND — It’s been a little more than two months since the West Virginia State Board of Education took control of the Hancock County School District, and some local school board members said they are becoming frustrated about the situation the district finds itself in.

“You have no input and the state is going way deeper than what their original statement detailed,” said Chris Gillette, president of the local board, ahead of Monday’s 5:30 p.m. meeting at the John D. Rockefeller IV Career Center.

That’s been the case since Jan. 16, when state officials stepped in to take control of the district, citing, among other items, overstaffing it said was related to use of Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief Funds that has been provided through COVID-related programs to support personnel costs and other projects.

“We do not have voting privileges,” said board member Jim Horstman. “I still run my district — I get calls all of the time, and I answer them the best that I can.”

Walter Saunders, who was named the district’s superintendent, replaced Dan Enich in that spot. Saunders had been serving as director of federal programs and assessments for Ohio County Schools before he was named to the post. The state moved in to take over the administration of the district after its debt exceeded $10 million.

That means members of the board of education have no say in how the district is run.

Saunders said everything is being done according to the state code book.

“I think that policy and people’s perception are not the same thing,” he explained.

Jeff Davis of Education Consulting Team LLC and Uriah Cummings, school financial operations officer for the state Department of Education, delivered a review that looked at the district’s finances for several months during the Feb. 2 Hancock board meeting. After comparing the differences between the Fiscal Year 2024 and Fiscal Year 2025, they said much of the issue appears to have happened within the last year.

It was noted factors contributing to a decrease in the county’s fund balance — in itself a loss of approximately $7.7 million — could be attributed to the loss of COVID-related funding of $3.6 million used to support personnel salaries and benefits, which then had to be supported by the general fund, an increase in benefit costs of $975,634 which was associated with increases in PEIA, a yearly debt service of $510,000 for the lease associated with the turf and lighting project at Oak Glen High School, increases in costs by $465,000 per year in food service, a $1.1 million overrun on the physical education expansion project at Weir High, an additional $266,000 beyond state funding to purchase school buses, $584,311 on textbooks and more than $357,000 on out-of-state placement payments for charter schools.

That, plus a decline in enrollment that left the district with 3,300 students and, according to the state, with approximately 140 more employees than formulas allowed, helped the financial issues to grow.

Saunders, while delivering a report to the state board of education last week, said the staffing concerns were among those that are being addressed.

“Employees who have been identified for reduction in force or transfers have been formally notified, ensuring clarity and transparency for staff as we move forward,” he said during his presentation.

Saunders said Wednesday a key date is approaching.

“April 1 is the deadline for reduction in force and transfer letters,” he explained. “After that time, we will meet with principals and with the directors to work on our staffing models for the 2026-27 school year based on student need.”

The depths of the issues the district has been facing came to a head during a Nov. 16 board meeting, when the board voted 4-0 to terminate Joe Campinelli, who had served as the director of finance. At the time, Enich said the district was working with state officials to address budget concerns, the decline of student population and the loss of state funding that accompanies that.

More Hancock County School coverage here: https://www.theintelligencer.net/news/top-headlines/2026/03/no-hancock-school-closures-planned-for-2026-27/