HINTON W.Va. (Hinton News) – Hinton Area Elementary is on the prowl for excellence in several ways, including teacher retention, decreasing the chronic attendance rate, and improving test scores in reading and math. Our theme this year has been “Accept the Challenge”. While challenges are great, we choose to focus on what is in our control to impact change and continue to move forward.
Three years ago, we had nine vacancies that had to be filled with long term substitutes or people who had not had education classes because there was a shortage of teachers. In addition, we had hired teachers who lived in surrounding counties previously who we would get trained and provide experience to and then they would leave for better pay, better benefits and to be closer to home when a job opened up. We have managed to recruit from within Summers County and have had several teachers go through an alternative certification program to become fully certified. We have had such a strong staff this year and have had much better teacher retention rates in the last couple of years. In addition, HAE has had the honor of having the Summers County Teacher of the Year for the past two years and the Service Personnel of the Year a couple of years ago.
Chronic attendance rates in our county have climbed dramatically since Covid, but we are now seeing improvements. Chronic attendance is when a student misses ten percent or more of the school year. We knew we had to do something to change the mindset of all stakeholders to emphasize the importance of being in school. Our Communities in Schools Coordinator has worked with families to provide resources and to do home visits.
Messaging has gone out on the effects of poor attendance, incentives for good attendance have been provided, and the school counselor has started the Perfect Attendance Luncheon this year where parents can come eat lunch with their child at the decorated tables to celebrate. Students track their own attendance in their Leadership Binders to help them take ownership of their data. As of April 1, 2026, our chronic attendance rate has decreased 11.67% from 39.9% last year to 28.23% currently. If students are not in school, we cannot teach them. We will continue to work on further reducing the chronic attendance rate with help from the families of our students.
Test scores are also improving in ELA, math, and science at HAE. The number of students who scored mastery last spring increased by 7% for ELA, 4% for math and 11% for science when compared to the previous school year. We have many action steps in place within our strategic plan to keep the momentum going. We are currently updating our strategic plan for the next school year, and all stakeholders are invited to provide input by contacting Mrs. Gumm or attending a PTO or LSIC meeting.
Hinton Area Elementary has good things happening and is proud to be a part of the Hinton community. While there will always be challenges, we are committed to improving the education of our students and are appreciative of the community support we have had and continue to enjoy. We will continue to “Accept the Challenge” to further school improvement efforts.
