Teachers and students are actively being affected by the ongoing closings of their schools. School consolidation is the act of closing down smaller schools and merging them into other schools, usually caused by a lack of funding or a population decrease. In Barbour County for example, students at Belington Middle School, Kasson Middle School, and Philippi Middle School will be moved to Philip Barbour High School. Additionally, Junior Elementary School will be closed and send students to Belington Elementary School. While teachers have to relocate to different schools for their job.

“Every teacher in the county voted to give all teachers who were RIFed priority for jobs.” Crystal Sanders, a first-grade teacher at Kasson Middle School, gives insight into what teachers need to do for job security. “Teachers were required to bid on jobs, but those who were RIFed were selected for the jobs first.” 

Many teachers don’t have a reliable path for a job. Nancy Jo Mullens, a 5th-grade teacher in Belington Middle School, offers insight.

“I think most of my workmates got relocated, but many good teachers have lost their jobs and just completely given up on teaching,” Mullens said. 

This puts teachers who aren’t being relocated having to decide between moving out of state or finding a job outside of education. People fear that they will have an unstable financial future. Not only are teachers highly affected, but students are expected to have troubles as well. 

“I think the younger students will be exposed to things that they are not ready for, and the older students will lose opportunities that were available before the consolidations,” Mullens said.

Putting into perspective that younger students will be in the same school as high schoolers. Imagine being 13 years old, going to the bathroom at school to see a 19-year-old with a full beard who failed his senior year. A comfortable environment is important for developing students. It also puts older students in an awkward spot, as the school’s attention will now have to focus on both high school and middle school environments. 

Funding is a huge reason for this focus on school consolidation, as education has been neglected in favor of profits for a while now. 

“I feel like the funding issues in our state are a new trend since COVID and that drastic a reduction in school districts,” Mullens said. “I think in the next few years we will see a rebound in population as people realize that many home school students, virtual school students, and charter school students are not prepared for higher education or the workforce.” 

There is also a meaningful point about the Hope Scholarship program: a program that funds families who want to homeschool their kids. Giving $5,435 for the 2026-2027 school year, which incentivizes parents to take their kids out of public schooling to homeschool. Freedom in having the ability to choose between the two methods of education is important; however, there are worries that this focus on homeschooling is taking away from schools and their funding. 

“There is a correlation with the Hope Scholarship and low funding of schools. More people are being homeschooled.” Mullens said, “Many people keep their kids home for the money.”