Board restores five-minute public-comment limit in first reading and reviews district strategic goals

The Wetzel County Board of Education voted on first reading to revise policy BDDH to restore public-comment time from three minutes to five minutes per speaker, while retaining a 30-minute cap on delegation time. The chair said extending time to five minutes would reduce rushed remarks and allow speakers more complete statements; board members discussed keeping the 30-minute total and the president’s discretion to allocate time when many speakers sign up.

“People get up here and rush ... I think giving them an extra couple of minutes makes sense,” the chair said during the discussion of the change, and the board approved first reading of the revision unanimously.

Later in the meeting a presenter reviewed three strategic goals the district proposes to adopt: (1) strengthen family and community engagement and partnerships to support student learning and well-being; (2) raise student proficiency by at least 2.5 percentage points through benchmark data, targeted interventions and instructional alignment; and (3) build leadership and culture via implementation of leadership programs and the '7 Habits' framework, with an expectation that full lighthouse-school certification typically takes three years. The presenter said some schools have already begun elements of the initiative and that the board will consider adopting the district goals at the July 28 meeting.