(WKYT) – A Lincoln County elementary school will close its doors after serving the Waynesburg community for over 60 years.
The Lincoln County Board of Education voted to close Highland Elementary School during a meeting on Thursday night, a decision that disappointed parents in attendance.
Now they can only cherish the memories of the beloved school, a place to some that felt like home.
“Having a child in Highland Elementary was like having a child go to their grandmother’s house or their aunt’s house. It was truly family there,” said Lyndsey Mason, who is the mother of a current student and a former one herself.
However, Lincoln County Schools said the building now needs major repairs, including septic and electrical work, plumbing and other upgrades.
Several board members said at Thursday’s meeting that they only learned in recent weeks just how serious those issues are.
“We’d have to install fire suppression systems – which I can’t believe we didn’t have that anyway – that blows my mind, but there are no sprinklers in that building. So the fact that is not in there is a safety violation,” said board member Phillip Coots.
Board members said Thursday that previous boards had kicked the can down the road, leaving them to inherit the problem.
They told the community they faced three options: close the school, upgrade the wastewater system, or build a new school.
In the end, the board voted to close Highland.
Breaking the collective heart of community members.
“I’m extremely heartbroken. I was hoping that our board would have a little more consideration and a better plan going forward. We didn’t get many answers to the questions that we had tonight,” Mason said.
Others wonder why nothing was done sooner.
“This situation is not new. It is something that has been going on for 15 years, documentation of 15 years at Highland Elementary School,” said Austin Smith.
WKYT asked member of the school board for comment on their decision to close the school, but they declined.