Photo by Joselyn King Ohio County Board of Education members Bernie Albertini, left, and Andy Garber consider discussion during Monday’s board meeting.

WHEELING — The West Virginia Legislature has passed a bill giving counties the option to base their school calendar on the number of hours of classroom instruction rather than the total number of instructional days, but Ohio County Schools Superintendent Kim Miller says the district has no plans to reduce student instructional time.

Senate Bill 890, which has been signed into law by Gov. Patrick Morrisey, changes the minimum requirement from 180 instructional days to 900 instructional hours, she told board of education members Monday night.

The bill goes into effect July 1.

“At this stage of the game — at least from my perspective — I have no intentions of altering that or coming to the board with a plan that would decrease the amount of instructional time,” Miller said. “I expect we will have local input to make that decision, but I think the instructional opportunities for our students are most important. I want to keep that in place.”

Board President David Croft noted the board is not required under the new law to adopt a 900-hour schedule.

“If my numbers are correct, we were around 1,100 (hours this year) and some change,” he said. “So if we were to follow that, we would be reducing our instructional time by 23% in a state where education is suffering. The math doesn’t make sense.”

Also during Monday’s meeting, board members voted to transfer Bridge Street Middle School Assistant Principal Brian Arbes to an assistant principal position at Wheeling Park High School effective April 14, 2026.

“It is truly an honor to be entrusted with the role of assistant principal at Wheeling Park High School,” Arbes said. “I want to extend a special thank you to Dr. Miller, (Assistant Superintendent) Rick Jones and WPHS Principal Meredith Dailer for your trust, guidance and support.

“Your leadership believed in me more than I can express, and I deeply appreciate the confidence you have placed in me.”

Board members unanimously approved a cooperative agreement with 23 other West Virginia counties to purchase commonly used food items through Griffin Food Service, with a total cost of $13,050,157. GFS is the current food provider for the county.

Ohio County Schools’ share of the cost at the end of 2025 was about $1.9 million, according to Steven Bieniek, business manager for Ohio County Schools. So far this year, the district has paid about $1.3 million and is on track with last year’s spending, he added.

The board also approved a $35,600 expenditure with NEOLA of Stow, Ohio. NEOLA will provide digital organization of the district’s policies while tracking updates and ensuring compliance with changing laws, officials said.

Croft said NEOLA will make it easier for board members to search policies and will also allow public access.

Board member Molly Aderholt was not present.

The board will next meet at 8 a.m. April 21 at the board office for a regular meeting and a levy order meeting to determine the district’s levy rate.