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Don’t miss the Real ID deadline

It seems like a lifetime ago — back in 2005, as a response to the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks, Congress passed the Real ID Act. At the time, the idea was to have the program implemented by 2008, but opposition and other delays pushed the timeline. Most recently, the COVID-19 pandemic extended more than once the deadline for individuals getting identification documents that satisfy Real ID Act standards. But now, the agreed-upon deadline is approaching rapidly. It is a mere three months away. Across the country, states are urging residents who have not already done so to collect the ...

Don’t forget our local non-profits

Those who took a deep breath and exhaled upon learning a federal Office of Management and Budget memo to pause federal assistance had itself been paused might want to take another look at what happened anyway. According to a report by WCHS, some nonprofits in West Virginia are being forced to scale back and lay off employees, despite the OMB memo being rescinded. The Appalachian Center for Independent Living told WCHS it had to begin staff layoffs Jan. 31. “Despite the withdrawal Tuesday night of the OMB Memo freezing all federal grant payments, the Center has received no ...

Giving your future a chance

It would be hard to blame high school seniors and their parents for being uncertain about the financial aid landscape for post-secondary education right now. But it still might come as a surprise to know that now — and for years — fewer students are applying for available college scholarships. The National College Attainment Network examined the number of completed Free Applications for Federal Student Aid as of June 30 before each academic year, as a percentage of the number of high school seniors in each year. Back in 2018-19 (the high school class of 2018), 54% of seniors ...

West Virginia must focus on education

In one of his first actions as West Virginia’s new governor, Patrick Morrisey ordered an economic “Backyard Brawl” with our neighboring states. That’s a great goal, as the least we can do is be competitive with our border states — Ohio, Pennsylvania, Maryland, Kentucky and Virginia — when it comes to both retaining and attracting residents and businesses. But perhaps the place to start if we want meaningful comparisons with our border states would be in public education. According to the latest results from the 2024 Nation’s Report Card, as administered by the National ...

State’s child abuse information startling

The West Virginia Child Advocacy Network has released its annual statewide data report for the 2024 fiscal year. Though most of us have some idea of the damage being done to Mountain State children, the report is eye-opening and horrifying. The network’s child advocacy centers provide services in 47 of our 55 counties — safe facilities where children can interact with child protection, criminal justice and child treatment professionals. The work is done both to further investigations AND to help our kids heal. Horrifyingly, the need for such services is only growing. Back in ...

Dental health is also healthcare

We’ve all heard the jokes — nasty little jabs about West Virginians’ dental health that plenty of us rushed to call unfair and untrue. They’ve been around for generations. The problem is, there is some truth to the idea that we’ve got a problem here. According to WalletHub’s “States with the Best and Worst Dental Health (2025),” the Mountain State is not quite dead last, but close. We are 49th, ahead of only Mississippi and Arkansas. We are 38th for dental habits and care, and dead last (51st) for oral health. West Virginia is 50th for the percentage of adults who ...