HUNTINGTON, W.Va. — Berkeley County Schools has a new superintendent, current Cabell County School Superintendent Ryan Saxe. Here’s the motion from board member Damon Wright at Monday night’s Board of Education meeting:
The board approved a three-year contract. The Berkeley County BOE announced in May it would not be renewing the contract of Superintendent Ronald Stephens.
Saxe, a Cabell County native and an alum of Cabell-Midland High School, returned home to West Virginia from Florida in 2017 take the superintendent’s job in Cabell County.
“I think the allure of coming back to my West Virginia roots and providing leadership to Cabell County Schools is just something that I take such pride in,” Saxe told MetroNews at the time.
Saxe has been in the middle of a controversy in recent months in connection with school system funding for the public library system and Huntington parks. Voters rejected a school system excess levy in May and negotiations have been underway to determine the level of funding for the two groups in the next try for the excess levy renewal in November.
Berkeley County Schools is dealing with its own controversy. A state of emergency was declared by the state Board of Education in May in connection with behavioral and academic progress issues at North Martinsburg Middle School. The state BOE approved a plan of action last week.
This story based on reporting by WVMetroNews reporter Jeff Jenkins and Panhandle News Network Reporter Al Gaige.
