Education

HB 4005, "Skills to Work," creates a state-funded Youth Apprenticeship Program for West Virginia students aged 16 or older in 11th or 12th grade. It allows these students to earn high school credit and job skills certifications through structured apprenticeships in fields like manufacturing, healthcare, and office technology, requiring 135 classroom hours and 400 on-the-job training hours per program. The bill mandates schools to partner with employers to develop approved apprenticeships, with standards including progressive wages, performance evaluations, and school approval. It also clarifies that apprenticeships cannot include hazardous occupations prohibited for minors under federal and state child labor laws. The program must be fully implemented across all school systems by the 2025-2026 school year.

SB 890 changes West Virginia's public school calendar requirements from day-based to hour-based standards. It replaces the 180-day instructional requirement with a minimum of 900 instructional hours per year and changes the teacher employment term from 200 days to 1,600 hours. The bill allows counties to use up to 25 hours of alternative instruction (like remote learning during closures) toward the total hour requirement and permits flexible scheduling for educator development time. These changes directly affect all public school districts, teachers, and students in West Virginia by shifting how school calendar compliance is measured.

SB 804 exempts middle and high school students participating in extracurricular sports in "good standing" from mandatory physical education requirements. Specifically, students listed by their coach at the end of each sport season are not required to complete the standard PE classes for that school year (middle school: daily PE for one semester; high school: a full credit for graduation). The bill directly affects athletes who maintain coach-determined good standing in sports. It does not alter overall PE requirements but creates this specific exemption based on athletic participation. The change applies to students in grades 6-12 who meet the coach's criteria during their sport season.

SB 745 prohibits specific food additives in West Virginia school meals, banning dyes like Red 40 and Yellow 5 starting August 1, 2025, and additional preservatives like BHT and artificial sweeteners starting August 1, 2027. It limits added sugars to no more than 5% of daily calories and requires a minimum fiber-to-carbohydrate ratio of 1 gram of fiber per 10 grams of carbs in school meals. Schools must post full ingredient lists for all breakfast and lunch menu items online. The bill directly affects all West Virginia public schools operating nutrition programs, aiming to improve meal nutritional standards.