Mercer County Schools

Today, Mercer County ninth graders joined freshmen from Wyoming and Monroe counties at Bluefield High School to hear from nationally recognized speaker Dr. Adolph Brown. Dr. Brown shared his inspiring story of resilience and encouraged students to commit to graduating high school—reminding them to enroll, enlist, employ, or become an entrepreneur, “even if” they face obstacles along the way. Thanks to GEAR UP SWV, students will continue this commitment by signing a Class of 2029 Commitment to Graduate banner at their individual schools. #LoveMyWVSchool

📚 Today, our Elementary and Title I Supervisors — along with Princeton Primary’s Principal Kelli Stanley and Oakvale’s Principal LaCosta Hodges (aka Mercer County Literacy Leaders) — dove deep into literacy at the WVDE Roll Out.

As part of WVDE’s “Ready, Read, Write, West Virginia” initiative, our schools are implementing LETRS / Science of Reading strategies to strengthen early literacy instruction.

WVDE and Marshall University’s Region VI Literacy team visited Princeton Primary and Oakvale to see these strategies in action and talk with staff about how they’re transforming reading instruction.

Together, we’re committed to ensuring every student in Mercer County has a strong foundation in reading — so they can “read to learn” for life.
#LiteracyMatters #ScienceOfReading #WVDE #ReadyReadWrite

Our Elementary Supervisor Amber Riffe, Title I Supervisors Rhonda Rogers and Pamela Clark, along with Athens Principal Shelley Weiss and Silver Springs Early Learning Center Principal Emily Smith (aka the Mercer County Numeracy Navigators) are attending the WVDE Regional Roll Out today. They’ll be diving deep into the Unite with Numeracy initiative — bringing back strategies, tools, and inspiration to further strengthen math instruction across our schools. #LoveMyWVSchool

✨ Teamwork makes the dream work! ✨
Central Office staff had the opportunity to learn from Mike McClanahan of Ad Valorem, LLC in today’s session, “Overcoming the Dysfunction of a Team.” These monthly trainings help us grow stronger together, building trust, communication, and collaboration so we can better serve Mercer County Public Schools. A valuable day of learning and connecting! 💙📘

It’s National GEAR UP Week! Today, Bluefield High School 9th graders are sharpening their skills at the GEAR UP SWV Mastery Prep Boot Camp. Let’s get ready to conquer the SAT and build a strong foundation for the future! #NationalGEARUPWeek #GearUpSWV #FutureReady #SATPrep #LoveMyWVSchool

The Network 2025–2026 is off to a strong start! Yesterday evening, teachers reflected on how we’re already connected and how we’ll keep building those connections while sharing helpful resources all year long.
Huge thanks to Amy Harrison, Alysha Lester, Jozette Cooper, and Leigh Ann Owens for an excellent session on the ins and outs of teacher tech platforms.
Whether you’re brand-new or nearing retirement, you’re welcome in The Network! Have questions? Reach out to Amber Riffe (amber.riffe@k12.wv.us) or Angie Groseclose (agroseclose@k12.wv.us).

✨ The Mercer County Board of Education proudly recognized our three Orange Frog Happiness Advantage trainers — Dr. Kristal Filipek, Emily Huddle, and Amber Riffe. 🌟

The Mercer County BOE recognized Melrose Elementary's custodian Carl Lester as part of the 110% Club

🎉👏 Congratulations to the Mercer County Technical Education Center for being named one of the Top 5 Career & Technical Education Centers in West Virginia!

They were recognized at the 2025 CTE Administrators’ Conference at Stonewall Resort. 🌟

WV State Superintendent Michele Blatt shared,
"These schools and districts set the bar for excellence in Career Technical Education, proving that CTE is a driving force in preparing students for both college and careers. Their commitment to their students and the greater community is exemplary, and I congratulate them on these achievements."

We are incredibly proud of MCTEC’s commitment to student success and the community! 💙💛

#LoveMyWVSchool #MCTEC #CTEExcellence #FutureReady

Bus 659 is running 15 minutes late this morning, Monday September 22nd. This affects Bluefield Primary, Bluefield Intermediate, Bluefield Middle and Bluefield High.

💡⚽ Special shout-out to the Princeton Fire Department for lending a hand for PSHS Soccer! Thanks to their help, we were able to change out bulbs and ballasts to keep our fields shining bright for our athletes and fans. We appreciate your support and teamwork! 🙌 #CommunityPartners #PSHS #PrincetonFD #Teamwork

🌟 Day 2 of The Orange Frog Happiness Advantage brought the rest of our Central Office team together at the Seminar Center!

Once again, we thank Dr. Kristal Filipek, Emily Huddle, and Amber Riffe for guiding us through this journey. 💡🐸✨

Together, we’re learning that happiness fuels success—and we can’t wait to spread that energy across Mercer County Schools! 💙

#LoveMyWVSchool #HappinessAdvantage

#MercerCountySc #OrangeFrog #HappinessAdvantage #DynamicDistrict

Mercer County Schools will host a FAFSA File-It Event for high school seniors and their parents on Tuesday, October 21, 2025, at the MCTEC Seminar Center from 3:30-5:30 p.m. #LoveMyWVSchool

🎓✨ Today, juniors and seniors from Mercer County Schools attended the WVACRAO College Fair hosted at Concord University! Students had the opportunity to explore booths from colleges and universities across the state, ask questions, and start planning their futures. 🌟📚 We’re proud of our students for taking this important step toward their next chapter after high school! 💙💛 #MercerCountySchools #CollegeFair #FutureReady

🌟 The first day of The Orange Frog Happiness Advantage kicked off today at the Seminar Center with our Central Office team! A big thank you to presenters Dr. Kristal Filipek, Emily Huddle, and Amber Riffe for leading the way. This program reminds us that happiness isn’t just a result of success—it’s a driver of it. 💡🐸✨ We’re excited to spread positivity and create a ripple effect of happiness across Mercer County Schools! 💙 #MercerCountySchools #OrangeFrog #HappinessAdvantage #DynamicDistrict

👏 Thanks to Scott Hill at Pipestem State Park for hosting the Mercer County Schools Steering Committee! By working with local business leaders, we’re building bridges from education to workforce and preparing students for college & career success. 🎓💼

📲 Rooms Update
Parents & Guardians, please make sure you have the newest version of the Mercer County Schools app installed on your phone. Some families may not be receiving teacher messages because an old version of the app is running.

✅ Check the App Store (Apple) or Google Play (Android) to see if an update is available.
💡 Need help logging into Rooms? Email your name, your child(ren)’s names, and your cell phone number to mercerroomstechhelp@groups.k12.wv.us
— we’ll get you fixed up quickly!

#MercerCountySchools #RoomsUpdate #DynamicDistrict #LoveMyWVSchool

💻✨ Happy IT Professionals Day to our incredible Mercer County Schools Technology Department! From fixing glitches to keeping our systems secure, you’re the real-life superheroes behind every login and every “Have you tried turning it off and on again?” moment. Thank you for keeping us connected, powered up, and ready to learn! #MercerCountySchools #TechHeroes

🌟 Big news! Starting tomorrow, our Orange Frog trainers — Director of Special Education Emily Hiddle, HR Director Dr. Kristal Filipek, and Elementary Supervisor Amber Riffe — will be sharing what they’ve learned with Central Office staff. The Orange Frog / Happiness Advantage program teaches us that happiness isn’t a reward for success — it leads to success. 🧡🐸 By spreading joy, optimism, and positive energy, we can all become “Orange Frogs” together! #MercerCountySchools #OrangeFrog #DynamicDistrict #LoveMyWVSchool

Yesterday, Superintendent Ed Toman and Assistant Superintendents Dr. Ernie Adkins and Rosemary Mitchell met with President Daniel Hodges and Vice President Danielle Lee, members of Education WV (formerly MCEA).
We are grateful for these monthly meetings, which keep an open line of communication between the teachers’ organization and district administration. They provide an opportunity to share updates, listen to teachers’ concerns, and work together for the success of our students and staff.
#MercerCountySchools #Collaboration #DynamicDistrict #LoveMyWVSchool