* Wood County Schools has made progress in the effort to keep students safer online by implementing the Cyber SWAT (Safety While Accessing Technology) initiative. This is just another part of the district’s efforts to fulfill the requirements of the Children’s Internet Protection Act, meant to shield kids from obscene and harmful content. “In 2024, it came into play and basically said, ‘Hey, West Virginia Department of Education, you need to develop a safety while accessing technology education program,’ hence the Cyber SWAT,” said Jonathan Farley, director of information technology. “The Skyll program was selected to satisfy the requirement of Senate Bill 466 by the West Virginia Department of Education. Wood County had no play in that.” Skyll offers digital safety lessons through interactive choices, to help students experience real-world consequences. Though it is a shame to have to think of this as a vital part of our children’s education, it is. And it sounds as though Wood County schools is right on track to help students learn how to protect themselves.

* Supporters of West Virginia University live all over the country. Ohio did the right thing, then, in understanding there would be plenty of Buckeye State residents who wanted to show off their allegiances with a WVU license plate. The plate will feature the “Flying WV” logo. Across the top will be the outline of the state of Ohio and its “Birthplace of Aviation” logo. At the bottom will be the phrase – “Let’s Go Mountaineers!” Surely the offering will make a little money for the Bureau of Motor Vehicles, as fall 2025 figures show Ohio students are the fourth-most populous group of out-of-state students in Morgantown. “I can’t wait to be driving up and down Interstate 71 or back home to Wheeling on Interstate 70 and just see the ‘Flying WV’ on an Ohio plate,” said Neil Armstrong, president of the WVU Alumni Association in the Cincinnati and Dayton areas. “We’ll now have a driving billboard through the state of Ohio for our school.” The plate will also give drivers one more excuse to yell “Let’s go!” when trying to get everyone into the car for a road trip.