The West Virginia Department of Education (WVDE) has received notification from Wetzel County Superintendent Cassandra Porter that pursuant to W.Va. Code §18-4-10 (5), all students and staff of Paden City High School will be relocated with the beginning of the 2024-2025 school year. Her stated reasoning for this relocation was due to the health risks associated with Paden City High School being in an area designated by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) as a Superfund Site.
After reviewing the applicable W.Va. Code and the EPA Superfund Health Reports, the WVDE is confident in Superintendent Porter’s authority and the provided reasoning behind the decision to temporarily close Paden City High School and relocate its students and staff.
Looking beyond the EPA’s “acceptable” risk level, the reports indicate multiple environmental condition changes that could alter the current level of risk. Given the unknowns of potential environmental changes and the heightened environmental sensitivity that students in their developmental years face, this course of action is reasonable and fully supported. These risks are unacceptable when there is a readily available solution to keep students and staff safe.
