Thumbs up to those who know the value of infrastructure

Aug. 17—Making good use of its remaining American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) funds, the Raleigh County Commission this week tapped $450,000 to assist the Bradley Public Service District with a $5 million sewer project that will extend service to an estimated 100 households.

Dave Tolliver, commission president, is to be credited with his unwavering focus over the years of providing basic infrastructure to all residents of the county — not an easy chore given the mountainous landscape, a sparse population and the expense. But he has been adamant, especially with extending water lines for hookups to all houses across the rural recesses of the county.

Two thumbs up anytime a government body takes care of its constituents' basic needs — and makes life a little less of a burden.

----The number of kindergarteners across the country to get their school-required vaccinations has declined after the Covid pandemic — to no one's surprise. Even here in West Virginia, where the rate has been higher, the percentages slipped a bit.

Again, no surprise.

During the 2021-2022 school year, according to reporting by Lori Kersey with West Virginia Watch, coverage for all required school vaccinations nationally was around 93 percent, lower than the 94 percent reported in the previous school year. In 2019-2020, 95 percent of all U.S. children were vaccinated.

Among West Virginia kindergarteners, vaccination rates decreased for each required vaccine between the 2019-2020 school year and the 2021-2022 school year. Still, the rate ran from 96 percent to 98 percent for each immunization, a success health leaders say is due to the state's strong public health policy. That's worthy of a thumbs up, especially if we can turn the trend line up in the wake of Covid-19.

West Virginia is one of five states that does not allow religious or philosophical exemptions for school-required vaccinations. And all West Virginia students entering school for the first time must show proof of immunizations for diphtheria, pertussis, tetanus, polio, measles, mumps, rubella, varicella and hepatitis B.

This is one thing the state does better than most all others and must continue to do so, especially in the face of obstinate pushback and resistance to Covid-19 vaccinations. State health officials and civic leaders need to be unrelenting in touting the importance of vaccines and boost confidence in the general population to make informed decisions and know the importance that immunizations play in keeping all of us healthy.

----There's nothing quite like starting a new school year — in a new school.

We are excited for Stratton Elementary School children who will get their first look inside the $20 million building when its doors open to the public for the first time at an official ribbon cutting at 11 a.m. today. After more than two years of construction, the new Stratton is pretty much ready to go.

What we hope this community never forgets and makes certain to pass along to all generations is the history of the former Stratton, built in 1938 as a segregated high school for Black students. And, like Yvonne Seay, who lives on G Street next to Stratton and attended the school when it was a junior high, we, too, would like to see the school's history incorporated into the new building — including profiles and pictures of local African-Americans who excelled in the classroom, on athletic fields and as teachers and administrators and staff. As Seay has proposed, the gym and health center as well as other rooms and facilities inside the school could be and should be named in their honor.

We all know that much was lost, including a trove of athletic trophies, when the district desegregated Stratton — 13 years after Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka. Well, now is the time to make sure that the correct historical context is put back in place and taught to all school children.

There is no time like the present to learn the lessons of the past and, in the present, celebrate excellence to secure a better future for all.

That, in essence, is the power of education.