By Esteban Fernandez, Times West Virginian
FAIRMONT, W.Va. — Marion County voters will decide whether the Marion County Board of Education’s list of spending priorities will receive funding.
Board of Education members voted unanimously Tuesday to place a 5-year, $19.6 million bond onto the primary ballot in May. Prior to the vote, Board of Education President Donna Costello urged the county to come together to support the bond, citing the need to support students over any intra-county rivalry.
“If you’ve got your ear to the ground you know there is a huge divide in this county, whether it’s east to west or west to east or up north,” Costello said. “At some point in time, we have to get over that divide and look at the county as a whole.”
Costello brought up concerns that came up during last year’s final Board of Education meeting during her remarks. Regarding athletic spending versus academic spending, Costello said athletics are as much an integral part of education as academics.
She commended board member George Boyles, as well as the bond committee as a whole, for finding a way to ensure that academics and athletics received an equal split of funding in the bond proposal. Costello also stressed the board’s desire to not repeat the mistakes of past boards and to follow through on the promises they’ve made to fulfill the needs of the county’s students.
“I do hope that the voters will find these worthy,” Costello said. “Help us prove to you that we can do these projects. And again, we’re not dismissing other needs. This was just a first step.”