McDowell County, WV (WOAY) McDowell County parents have been asking why Friday’s curriculum development day isn’t being converted into an instructional day.
County school officials say the answer comes down to state law.
West Virginia requires a 200‑day contracted employment term for school staff. You can think of those 200 days as being split into two buckets that must stay balanced.
Bucket one requires 180 days dedicated to direct student instruction, while bucket two requires 20 days reserved by law for duties other than teaching.
In McDowell County, those 20 non‑instructional days are already designated.
They include seven holidays, one election day, six outside school environment days, four Curriculum Development days, and two prep days used to open and close schools.
The district says that’s why officials can’t move a Curriculum Development Day into the instructional bucket.
State law requires those 20 non‑teaching days to remain in place.
