A pyramid of trophies tops the cabinets in the band room at the new Herbert Hoover High School, in Elkview. They’ve all been won in the past seven years — while Hoover hasn’t had a building to call its own.
“We proved that brick and mortar doesn’t make a school, boss,†band director Meleah Fisher told Hoover Principal Mike Kelley. “On so many levels.â€
Fisher has been at Hoover since 2000. Seven years ago, she stood with country music star and West Virginia native Brad Paisley in 8 inches of floodwater and mud inside the band room at the old school, in Falling Rock, after the devastating June 2016 flood that killed 23 people and displaced over 2,000.
Today, students will walk past pictures salvaged from the old band room as they enter their new one, and Paisley will open the new Hoover stadium Saturday night with a concert after a scrimmage against John Marshall High School. The Hoover band will play to start the festivities.
“I think it’s kind of full circle that we’ve been able to bring him back,†Fisher said.
Fisher’s band was one of the first groups to get going again after the 2016 flood. Her kids needed the normalcy, she said.
At band camp that year, they didn’t have to hear their parents talk about FEMA or flood insurance.
“They were able to be a kid,†she said, “and we were making music.â€
That first school year, Hoover shared facilities with Elkview Middle School. For the past six years, they’ve used modular buildings connected by covered, open-air hallways in the middle school parking lot.
Fisher’s band room, which also served as her classroom for guitar and film studies, would get a little crowded. But she doesn’t complain about the experience.
“We just put one foot forward,†she said. “I was thrilled to have those portables. It was a place to call home.â€
Whether it’s sharing a space, using portables or even practicing in a church parking lot, Fisher has taken it all in stride.
“That’s part of education; you’ve got to adapt,†she said. “Because you know however many kids I have in the band, that’s however many different learning styles I have.â€
Fisher brought her students into the new band room for the first time last week.
“When I told them, ‘Welcome home,’ there were tears,†she said. “They were excited. They just took it in, and they were so quiet. They were so respectful.â€
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The new facility is massive. The main academic building at the school is over 186,000 square feet, with 28 traditional classrooms and six science classrooms. The athletic complex has 21,000 square feet of athletics-related buildings.
Biology teacher and volleyball and softball coach Missy Smith described the awe she felt when first seeing the gymnasium.
“When I walked in the gym the first time, I sort of got chills because it’s amazing to see,†she said. “Our kids deserve this. They’ve been working hard to get here, and they’re more than the school, but it’s nice for them to have a home.â€
In the past six years, Hoover has won five state championships in softball with Smith as coach. The school also made it to the football state championship last year for the first time in history, and it won a golf state championship.
Fisher commended the school leadership during the transition period, particularly Kelley.
“I feel strongly that he was meant to be our principal. He’s been very hands-on. To me, that’s important,†she said. “I think he’s maybe pushed some people when we needed some pushes to get things going up here.â€
Smith said Kelley, the administration and Kanawha County made sure she had all the equipment she needed to be successful.
Ground was broken at the new Hoover location in Elkview in January 2020. However, COVID-19 and supply chain issues hampered construction. Because the project is federally funded, there also have been regulations and red tape to contend with.
Smith said she initially didn’t think construction would take so long.
“Then, having come over during the process of the building, and now looking at the scope and the size, I understand why it was such a process,†she said, “because this place is amazing from top to bottom, from end to end.â€
Smith especially likes the new athletic facilities, saying everything fits together “like a cohesive campus.â€
Fisher admitted that the experience of not having a building has been hard at times.
“You’ve got to learn how to handle hard,†she said. “I think that’s been a big life lesson for any of our students that came through from the Class of 2017 to the Class of ’23. We’ve got to be stronger than our excuses.â€
While there’s more life lessons ahead, this year’s Huskies will get to learn them in a state-of-the-art facility they can call their own.
“We have proved, academically and athletically and artistically, that brick and mortar doesn’t make a school,†Fisher said. “It’s the kids. It’s the staff. It’s the teachers. It’s the community.â€
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