Editor, News-Register:

Together we achieve!

The West Virginia Department of Education this past week released the newest statewide proficiency scores for 2025. The scores for Ohio County Schools in total were basically the same as last year. My hope is that this year, just this once, our elected board of education members demand an explanation as to how our countywide math proficiency scores go from 66% in 3rd grade to 37% in 6th grade to 27% in 11th grade.

That’s right, only 27% of our graduating seniors at Wheeling Park High School are considered proficient in math by West Virginia’s own metrics. In Ohio County, the trend is that the longer the kids are in school, the worse they get in math.

I don’t need to hear blame (unless there is blame). I want to hear an explanation. Not we are trying harder, not we are still analyzing the data, not one thing about COVID, not overall we improved over last year, and not we are trending in the right direction.

Please actually address what appears on its face to be a troubling FACT. I want to know why in the opinion of both the Superintendent of the year AND the Principal of the Year why only 27% of kids at Park are considered by the State of West Virginia to be proficient in math when we spend over $18,000 per year per student in Ohio County.

Tell me something; it’s your job. I am just asking that just once the Board of Education force these two individuals making over a quarter million dollars a year combined in taxpayer-funded salaries actually speak to this troubling data.

I don’t care if I like the explanation, just give me one.

David Delk

Wheeling