McDowell County Schools asks families to weigh in on safety survey

McDowell County Schools is asking parents, students and staff to spend about five minutes on an anonymous safety survey as it tries to measure whether local schools feel secure enough for the county’s more than 2,300 students. The district posted the survey on May 21 and said it will use the responses to track progress toward an 85% safety satisfaction goal.

That turns school safety into a concrete benchmark, not just a broad concern. The district’s strategic-plan materials say its mission is to “unleash the potential of every student every day!” and list “a positive and safe environment” and “purposeful relationships” with families and the community among its core beliefs. Amanda Fragile Peyton is listed as the contact for strategic-plan feedback, putting the survey inside the district’s broader planning process rather than treating it as a one-time questionnaire.

The survey also comes with a built-in accountability question: what will McDowell County Schools do with the answers? The district’s own goals already tie safety to larger targets for academics, attendance and relationships, and earlier planning documents show that family input has mattered before. Goal-setting materials referenced a 2024 Relationships First Survey conducted in June 2024, while earlier strategic-plan documents pointed to a similar survey from May 2023. That means the district has been using community feedback across several planning cycles, and this round of answers could help decide whether the next changes land in staffing, building security, discipline practices or emergency response.

The board that will ultimately act on those priorities is a five-member elected body. Georgia West serves as president and Angela Robinette as vice president. In a county system this small, where each change can ripple through Welch, Kimball, War, Bradshaw and the surrounding communities, family responses may carry more weight than they would in a larger district.

State policy is pushing in the same direction. The West Virginia Department of Education runs an annual safety and security survey of county boards under state law, and the Legislature approved standardized school safety mapping data and a requirement for two school counselors per 1,000 students beginning in 2025. That places school safety, mental health support and emergency planning on the same policy track.

The local stakes are sharpened by the district’s economic profile. Federal education data list median household income in the district at $29,980, with 41.5% of families below the poverty level and 69.4% receiving SNAP benefits. Broadband reaches 81.5% of households, but not all families have the same access to online communication, which makes a short survey one of the few direct ways for the district to hear from the county before fall decisions are set.