Let The Message Be Clear:
I want to respond to the many inquiries pertaining to the status of when we are eligible to take advantage of the occasional Governor-issued additional holidays and other "days off". At this time, more specifically, Monday, July 3rd. Please see below:
"The West Virginia Department of Education (WVDE) offers an attractive holiday and leave package to eligible employees. (Several holidays are listed and ends with the phrase 'Any other dates proclaimed by the President or Governor as official holidays'.)"
The key word to note is: "eligible". Employees of the Taylor County Board of Education, or any other county school system, are not employees of the West Virginia Department of Education. Hence, our employees are not considered to be state employees. Therefore, we are not "eligible" employees in this instance.
Clarification:
June 20th is "West Virginia Day" and recognized in Code.
July 4th in a federal holiday.
Unfortunately, July 3rd is not a federal holiday nor recognized in Code.
This means that operations on Monday, July 3rd should continue as scheduled with a reminder that anyone who prefers not to report to work on that day would have the option to utilize one of his or her Annual Leave days in exchange for doing so. I appreciate the work each of you address throughout the school year. This option will provide the opportunity to use a vacation day that he or she may lose if not used by the end of the forth-coming 2023-2024 school year.
State Code is very specific regarding which days are considered "paid holidays" for school systems. As such, (while probably not the more popular decision), unless and until that circumstance changes, I prefer to err on the side of caution, rather than risk creating difficulties for non-compliance with policies/expectations that are in place.
Thank you for your attention to this matter. Have a great weekend,
Dr. John E. Stallings, Jr.
Superintendent, Taylor County Schools