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Newspaper Archive of
The Hinton News
Hinton, West Virginia
August 7, 1990     The Hinton News
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August 7, 1990
 
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,+ / ~t .m Z (Continuing the Hinton Daily News & The Weekend Leader) Water Festival Volume 89 No. 15 Hinton, West Virginia Tuesday Aug. 7, 1990 25 Cents ool + ~By Fred Long ity for new construction is "our tax It was another split vote but the dollars and what is mine I don't S~mers County Board of Educe- want you telling me how to spend it. tion, Thursday night, approved the And I don't like these crooked, dirty building facilities plan that calls for politiciansin Charleston and Wash- a new high school at Base Lake and ingtoncomingdownhereandtelling the consolidation of some rural me how to spent tax payers money." schools. Neely called the money for the $7 The plan, which calls for closing million high school a carrot on a Forest Hill and Pipestem schools stick that is "so corrupt that it will and the junior high schools at Tel- destroy us in the process. I don't cott and Sandstone, had been placed want that kind of a carrot." before the public one week ago for a Neely offered his motion and comment period prior to sending it Mathewssecondedsayingheunder- to the state's School Building Au- stood Neely's'feeling. I sympathize thority(SBA)forpossiblestatefund- with him about closing pur county ing for a new $7 million high school, schools. It would be a shame not to Theplanalsocallsforconvertingthe allowhimtogetthisonthefioor." At present high school building into a the same time Mathews indicated junior high middle school after the that his second was not a signal that new building is constructed, he agreed with the motion. Thirty According to Board president Bill years ago had to sit in this audi- Dillon the majority of the the corn- ence and see some plane for a beau- ments, whichincluded severalpages tiful (high) school go dawn thedrain. of petitions and letters, were "in l had no opportunity that night to do favor" of the plan. anything. My hands were tied. Not Sara Brown, the head teacher at so tonight. Regardless of how I will Forest Hill, said in making her voteonthisiseuelwantMr.Neelyto comment that she wished+the ele- have anopportup.iW+~toputiton the mentary schools could stay open "it floor. I for one will vote for a plan to would be so unfair to prevent all have a new high school in Summers students from profiting with a new County because this time I have an high school just so we can keep a opportunity to do something about couple of elementary schools open ... it." so go for our greatest need, the high Neely told the audience, after school." getting the second, that "the only Vicki Hinerman, head teacher at reason that I ran for this Board of Pipestem school in making her Education" was because of what he comment also asked that the "plan called "corrupt" county government remain submitted as it is presently "dating back to the Dillon days." written, q worked for the state road when On a 4 to 1 vote, sending the the Dillon's were here," Neely said, audience into a rousing burst of "and I was obligated to vote a demo- applause, Board members approved the original plan that had been s~d~itted to the area Regional Educa- tion Service Agency (RESA I) last March and three weeks ago was placed "on hold" after winning the top position in the six county region for state funding. But the vote didn't cratic ticket. I was obligated to haul voters. Every dollar that I made I was obligated to put into a political campaign fund. All of these obliga- tions; but, you know something, I kept my mouth shut and when I went to vote I voted my conscience and that is what I am going to do come until after Board member :tonight. Charles Neely delivered a strong, and at times arrogant, speech against the plan. "I can't go along with the majority, he told the room full of spectators most of them supporters of the plan. "I know I'm going to make enemies anyway I go, but I would rather be your enemy than to be my own." When former Board president John Lilly offered a motion that was seconded by Bud Shanks to go for- ward with the plan; Nsely, in a dic- tatorial manner, interrupted Board President Dillon just as he was bring. ing the motion to the floor and told Lilly that he could not make the motion because Lilly, the most out- spoken proponent of the plan, had voted against placing the plan on hold. Although Dillon said he be- lieved Lilly could make the motion he refused to recognize it and, after censuring Lilly for bringing up a point of order, permitted Dr. Bill Mathews to place the identical mo- tion before the members. Lilly asked for permission to sec- ond and after getting an okay from Dillon made the second and the motion passed with Neely the only member voting against it. But before all of this took place Neely had offered emotion to amend the plan to remove its consolidation clients and submit one that called l~r~onstruction of a new high school only. The meeting went this way. "Everybody in Summers County,~ Neely said, is saying"I'm opposed to a new high school at Barksdale. This. is a lie. I don't care whois say/ngit." He said he is in favor of a new high school but ~the part that I don't be- lieve in is being bribed." Neely .said the money that will be distributed throughou the state by the state's School Building Author- "I guess I'm going to make ene- mies either way. I wish I could please everbody in Summers County," Neely continued. I'll tell you one thing. In making you an enemy, ifI do, in expressing my true feelings- I was told in Charleston my first obligation was to the education of our children. We can not educate children without good teachers. So I'm obligated to teachers. We can not pay for schools unless we are willing to pay taxes. I'm not going to be bribed into something. "I will vote my conscience clear. I have got to live with that. I have to live with what I feel. I don't blame this Board or anyone else. When I came on this Board I didn't come here with any animosity. I came here because I feel we have some corruption within the School Board, not pointing my finger at no one. But I'm going to say this. Right here in this central office; when I filed, and over in the Courthouse when I filed, they done everything in the world to defeat me. I can prove this if it becomes necessary. "But the people that voted for me,'Neely went on, "over came that and I am obligated to all the people in Summers County and not just a few. I represent Pipaetem; sure, I live there, but I represent all of Summers County. rm going to do the best that I can for Summers County. Not me. Not anybody up here and not any in the school sys- tem ." Neely said he did not believe "busing children for two hours is the beet" for the children. He corn plained that the school system did not have the funds to purchase the property for a new school and could not come up with matching money if it would be needed. "I don't know (if match- ing money is needed) but I'm going to find out before I stick my foot in a hornets nest." After speaking for several min- utes Neely said he did not want to take up all the time and that he wanted "these boys (refering to the other Board members) to have an opportunity to speak their piece." Bud Shanks said he believed the new high school "is the best thing for the future of our students. As long as I'm on this Board Iql be in favor of a new school.~" Lilly and Dillon did not comment and Mathews called for the vote. It failed with Lilly and Shanks voting no, Mathews and Dillon ab- staining and Neely voting for it. Lilly immediately offered a mo- tion to take the facilities plan off hold and notify RESA I that the original plan could be forwarded to the state's SBA for possible funding. Shanks immediately seconded. "Amotion,~ Dillon said, ~as been made by John Lilly, seconded by--" Neely interrupted, q believe you are out of order." N ely said+be- cause of his "understanding of par- liarnentary procedure that motion would have to be made by Dr. Mathews, Bill and myself' before it could be placed on the floor. At that point Mathews made the identical motion. Dillon said the way he under- stood parliamentary procedure it "allowed any Board member to make any motion, but Dr. Mathews has made a motion to go forward with the present plan on file--" At that point Lilly interrupted saying, "Mr. President, please, is there anyone--" "John," Dillon complained, "you interrupted me while I was talking, but you go right a head." Lilly said he wanted to "raise a *point of order. Mr. Neely says I'm out of order. Anyone on the Board can make that motion." ~I just stated that," Dillon told him. "I would like to get Mr. Nsely cleared up before we go on," Lilly asked. But Neely said because the plan had been placed on hol d by the other members "we are on the prevailing side. Now either one of the Bill's or myself would have to make that motion/ Mathews asked Lilly if it were "essential~' to him to make the mo- tion and Lilly said "no, but the man saidl was out of order. I don't think rm out of order. You show me in parliamentary procedure where I'm out of order." Dillon quickly criticized Lilly for disrupting the meeting saying "we are here to discuss the comprehen- sive plan not parliamentary proce- dure!" Mathews motion would stand. Lilly asked "would I be out of order if I seconded it?" Not that I know of, Dillon said, and Lilly seconded. No one objected to Lilly making the second, but Neely said he could not vote for the plan. "Am I respon- sible to the Board?" He asked. "Am I responsible to the people? I can't go along with the majority because of my conscience. I've got to live with my conscience. I know I'm going to make enemies anyway I go, but I would rather be your enemy than to be my own. I know that everybody here, but you people did and I want right here in this Board office and ~o represent you people/ over in the Courthouse done every- Dillon said he asked for a corn- thing that they could to defeat me. I ment period because "I personall y don't knowifyou voted for me or not. feel no input had ever been given by It don't make a difference to me. the public. I think when you remove This central office didn't want me the public from public education something is wrong." He said in making that req uest "I was serious about listeni ng to the public on what they thought was right regardless of what I personally think." The com- ments were "eight to two in favor of going foward with the plan," he said. :::::::..::,:,: --,: