Harrison County Students Return After Flood Delay as Superintendent Announces Departure
CLARKSBURG, W.Va. — Harrison County students returned to classrooms Wednesday after flooding delayed the start of school by one day, beginning a new year that will also mark the end of Superintendent Dora Stutler’s three-decade career with the school system.
Stutler announced Tuesday that she plans to retire effective Sept. 30, bringing an end to more than six years as superintendent and 30 years working in Harrison County Schools. She said the decision was made so she could focus on family needs related to her husband’s ongoing health challenges.
Her announcement came during an already unusual opening week.
Flash flooding Monday afternoon forced Harrison County Schools to cancel what had been the scheduled first day of classes Tuesday. Road conditions and damage at school facilities were cited by the district in making the decision.
Bridgeport High School was the hardest-hit school in the county.
The district reported water damage in nine classrooms, two entryways, the field house, locker rooms and other areas of the campus. Other Harrison County schools experienced roof leaks and minor flooding, but Bridgeport High sustained the most serious damage.
Tuesday quickly became a cleanup day.
School employees and maintenance workers were joined by families, local businesses and other members of the community to remove damaged flooring, clean classrooms, sanitize surfaces and prepare the building for students. Food, water, fans, cleaning supplies and other resources were also brought to the school as the work continued.
Inside Bridgeport High, mops, fans and dehumidifiers were put to work while damaged flooring was removed. Outside, crews worked on athletic facilities that had also been covered by floodwater.
By Wednesday morning, students were back.
The quick turnaround provided an unusual beginning to what will now be Stutler’s final weeks leading Harrison County Schools.
Stutler’s career in Harrison County began well before she reached the superintendent’s office. She started as a substitute teacher and later became a teacher, including work in the Gifted Program. She moved into administration as an assistant principal at West Milford Elementary and later served as principal at Lost Creek, Adamston and Norwood elementary schools. She spent approximately 18 years as an elementary school principal before becoming the district’s human resources supervisor.
In 2020, the Harrison County Board of Education unanimously selected Stutler as interim superintendent following the departure of Mark Manchin. She later remained in the position, leading the district for more than six years.
Her first year as superintendent coincided with the COVID-19 pandemic, requiring the district to navigate remote instruction, changing school schedules and eventually the return to regular classroom learning.
The years that followed included significant changes to Harrison County’s school system.
Among the most visible was a major consolidation and realignment of schools as the county dealt with declining enrollment and aging facilities.
Liberty High School was consolidated into Robert C. Byrd High School. Washington Irving Middle and Mountaineer Middle were consolidated into what became Liberty Middle School, while North View Elementary students were moved to the former Mountaineer Middle building, now Mountaineer Elementary.
The transition required the district to relocate hundreds of students and employees, renovate buildings, rework transportation and prepare schools for significantly different enrollment levels. At Robert C. Byrd, the district also planned a cafeteria expansion, additional classroom and shop space and other improvements to accommodate the larger student population.
School security was another focus during Stutler’s tenure. Secure entrance projects were completed or planned throughout the district, with work at Bridgeport Middle and Bridgeport High completing an effort to provide hardened secure entrances at every Harrison County school.
The district has also recorded notable academic recovery following the pandemic.
The 2026 Education Recovery Scorecard, developed by researchers from Harvard, Stanford and Dartmouth, identified Harrison County as one of the West Virginia districts “leading the way” in math recovery.
From 2022 through 2025, Harrison County ranked above 79 percent of school districts nationwide with available data for math score growth. Students averaged 0.97 grade levels of learning per year in math and reading during the same period, compared with 0.91 statewide and 0.89 among similar districts.
Stutler has also been involved in substance misuse prevention efforts through the Game Changer program and served on education and community organizations during her career. She was selected to serve on the West Virginia First Foundation board as the state began distributing hundreds of millions of dollars in opioid settlement funds.
The Harrison County Board of Education praised Stutler’s leadership during its 2025 evaluation, particularly her handling of the district’s major school consolidations and the work required to prepare schools for the transition. The other board members echoed Board President Frank Devono Jr.’s positive assessment following the evaluation.
In June 2026, following her most recent annual evaluation, the board and Stutler agreed that she continued to meet expectations as superintendent while identifying areas that would remain a focus going forward.
Her tenure is ending during a challenging period for the district.
In July, the West Virginia Board of Education placed Harrison County Schools under partial state intervention following an on-site review focused on board effectiveness, county operations and special education. State education officials cited concerns about the number of professional and service personnel positions above the state funding formula, the sustainability of those staffing levels and issues involving board effectiveness.
The intervention gave the state superintendent authority over portions of district operations, including administrator and principal hiring, major financial decisions and some county board actions. The district has since continued reducing staffing and operating under a spending freeze as it works with state education officials.
Preliminary enrollment reported this week stood at 8,852 students, 43 more than the district reported at the end of the previous school year. Harrison County Schools also reported that 15.75 positions had been eliminated since May 19.
Taken together, Stutler’s tenure has included navigating a pandemic, overseeing one of Harrison County’s largest school consolidations in decades, school security and facility improvements, documented post-pandemic academic growth and, in its final months, significant financial and governance challenges that the district will continue addressing after her departure.
“It has been a true honor and privilege to serve the students, staff, families, and communities of Harrison County,” Stutler said in announcing her retirement. “I am deeply grateful for the opportunity to work alongside such dedicated staff over my 30-year career.”
Her retirement is expected to take effect Sept. 30.
For Harrison County students, Wednesday finally brought the first day of a new school year after an unexpected flood delay.
For Stutler, it brought the beginning of the final weeks of a career that started in a Harrison County classroom and will end in the superintendent’s office.
