By Liz Beavers
lbeavers@newstribune.info
tribune managing editor

KEYSER — The Mineral County Technical Center has been named one of 14 vocational or career/technical centers across the state which have earned the status as an Exemplary School of West Virginia.
During a recent celebration of having reached that milestone, Principal Scott Staley surprised the faculty and staff with a second announcement: The Tech Center is one of just three technical centers in the state which will be receiving grant money for the 21st Century Career Centers That Work program.
“It’s a three-year project that will help put 21st century tools in every classroom ,” he said.
Noting that the Exemplary School status is considered “the highest level of recognition by the West Virginia State Board of Education,” Staley said the honor has been “a goal for quite a few years now.”
Assistant Superintendent Pat Mason said it was “just amazing to have these two major announcements in just a period of a few days.”
A total of 75 schools — including 39 elementary schools, 15 middle schools, six high schools and 14 career technical centers — earned the Exemplary Accreditation status for 2008-2009.
Exemplary distinction is the gold standard of educational achievement, said Kenna Seal, director of the Office of Education Performance Audits.
Schools must meet a set of rigorous standards to achieve such status, including reaching a certain level of proficiency in the reading/language arts, math, science and social studies portions of the WESTEST, reaching a student attendance rate of 94 percent or above, reaching a student graduation rate of 85 percent or above, and reaching a rate of 55 or more percent of graduates who enroll in college or other post-secondary education.
Staley noted, however, that career technical centers have additional and more strict standards to meet, including reaching a minimum of 70 percent proficiency in all concentrations, having a 90 percent placement rate, and a 65 percent in-field job placement and/or continuing education rate.
Staley was quick to give credit where it is due for the school’s success.
“The reason we’re able to do this is because of the staff in this building,” he said.
Mineral County Board of Education President Terry LaRue congratulated the faculty and staff and noted that “we have probably the best tech center in the state of West Virginia.”
Retired principal Alan Whetzel and retired assistant principal Harry Alt were present for the celebration and honored for their contributions toward helping the center attain the level of excellence.