NEW STATE SCHOOLS CHIEF: ; Board chooses Marple

Jorea Marple will serve as the next state superintendent ofschools, the state school board decided in a unanimous voteThursday.

After an hour-and-15-minute closed session, board member LowellJohnson made the motion to hire Marple. Board Vice President JennyPhillips seconded it.

Marple, 62, is currently deputy state superintendent and a formerKanawha County teacher, administrator, principal and superintendent.She is the wife of state Attorney General Darrell McGraw.

She is also the first female state superintendent in WestVirginia history, according to education department spokeswoman LizaCordeiro.

"I'm humbled and I'm excited and I'm passionate about theopportunity to work with our incredible teachers, personnel,administrators, parents, the community, government officials andhigher education," Marple said after the board vote Thursday.

"We all have a part in this process of providing the educationopportunities to support great kids who do great work to live ascitizens in this complex world of ours," she continued.

Marple said this week has been a difficult one for her: She losther mother, herself a longtime educator, on Monday. She describedher mom, who would have been 95 in March, as a "strong individual"and "devoted teacher."

"Being strong, she would have wanted me to do what I did thisweek," she said.

Marple will assume the position after current superintendent TedMattern leaves Feb. 28. She will be paid $165,000 a year.

"I was pleased with how well the board worked," Board PresidentPriscilla Haden said Thursday evening. "She is the logical person tomove the state forward.

"It's been a lot of hard work," Haden continued. "I am extremelypleased that this adventure has ended."

Board members started interviews with the final three candidatesThursday morning, convening at 9 a.m. and promptly calling for aclosed session.

All board members participated in the interviews, including ex-officio members Mattern and Brian Noland, chancellor of the stateHigher Education Policy Commission. Member Burma Hatfield attendedvia teleconference from her home in Mingo County.

The board met last week to choose questions for the interviewsand decided all three candidates would be asked the same questionsin the same order. That meeting also took place behind closed doors.

Members invited their first candidate, West Virginia UniversityBoard of Governors chairwoman Carolyn Long, into the boardroomaround 9:15 a.m.

Candidates could opt to open their interviews to the public, butthe boardroom doors remained closed throughout Long's two-hourinterview.

Long spoke to the Daily Mail shortly after.

"I thought it was extremely engaging," she said.

She said the board's questions were "very inclusive," covering"all of the normal things one would have to deal with as asuperintendent," including leadership qualities and budgetaryconcerns.

Long said the board did not give her any feedback.

The board interviewed Mark Manchin, the executive director of thestate School Building Authority, at 12:15 p.m. and Marple about 2:20p.m. Both chose to open their interviews.

Board member and former first lady Gayle Manchin began eachinterview by asking candidates about their educational "vision," howthey might improve West Virginia schools.

Mark Manchin laid out a multi-pronged plan.

He said he wanted the state to adopt a "comprehensive literacyplan that connects reading, writing, thinking, listening andspeaking skills across the curriculum."

"The foundation we're building our house on is crumbling. Andthat is literacy," he said.

Manchin said his literacy initiative would strengthen teacherlicensure and preparation policies "to ensure that the latestliteracy research is used in our classrooms."

He said he also would work to decrease the state's high schooldropout rate by providing "multiple pathways" to graduation. Underhis plan, which includes strengthening the state's alternativeeducation programs, Manchin said high school dropouts would fallfrom 4,000 a year to 2,000 a year in four years.

"We have loads of kids that are good kids. They simply don't fitin. They're round kids and we try to fit them in square holes," hesaid.

Manchin also said he would bring high-speed Internet access toevery school in the state, comparing the push to President FranklinD. Roosevelt's initiative to get electricity into rural America.

In her interview, Marple said the state superintendent's primaryresponsibility is to "raise students' aspirations," increase theirlevel of knowledge and provide the support they need to besuccessful in school.

That also includes supporting teachers, she said.

"As superintendent, one of my major responsibilities is toprovide those resources, the time and support for the classroomteacher," she said.

"If you haven't taught lately, it's a very difficult job," Marplecontinued. The job gets even more difficult as poverty levels in thestate rise, she said.

Marple said the state education department could make teachers'jobs much easier by increasing the amount of online resourcesavailable to teachers. She said educators also have to have time tocollaborate with their coworkers.

Board members also asked the candidates how they would ensurecounty school systems managed their money correctly. He said whenthe Office of Education Performance Audits finds a problem with aschool system, it's usually in their pocketbooks.

Marple said the state already has measures to ensure districtshandle funding appropriately, but breaking down barriers betweenadministrators and schools would help, too.

As Kanawha's superintendent, Marple said she closed threeadministrative office buildings and placed those staff members inschools.

"They became much more interested in what was happening in thebuilding because they were involved in it," she said.

She said as state superintendent she would encourage countysuperintendents to spend as much time as possible in schools andprincipals to spend as much time as possible in classrooms.

Manchin said counties don't have much discretionary income, asmore than 90 percent of state funding flows through the schoolfunding formula for specified uses. He cautioned againstmicromanagement.

"We must be careful about driving top-down too much. I think ourjob is to ensure they have the resources," he said.

Member Wade Linger asked candidates how they thought theeducation department was currently performing and how they might"advance the ball."

Marple said West Virginia students have made significantimprovements on the Westest 2 but "having 42 percent of our studentsproficient is not where we need to be."

She said the state needs to raise teacher pay so qualifiededucators will come to West Virginia schools and stay. She said thestate also needs to provide a way to track students and monitortheir progress.

"They're going to be able to see if Johnny's attending, how he'sdoing, and how he perceives he's doing," she said. "Supporting thosekinds of structures are fundamental to moving the journey forward."

Manchin said he commended the state on its Global 21 initiative,which promotes critical thinking and technology skills in schools.

"I just think that maybe we've jumped a little too far. I'mhearing a lot from superintendents and educators...'Give us a break,let's catch our breath,'" he said.

He said he would not enter the education department "with an ax,"however.

"We are going to refocus our priorities," he said. "Change can begood. Change can move the status quo. That's how we move this stateforward."

Contact writer Zack Harold at 304-348-7939 or zack.harold@dailymail.com.