In the U.S., more than 9 million students school closures or canceled activities due to extreme weather during the 2024-25 school year. In western North Carolina, 76,000 students were affected by Tropical Storm Helene in 2024, with some missing up to 40 days of instruction due to flooding, power outages and damaged roads. That same year, Phoenix experienced of temperatures at or above 100 degrees Fahrenheit, disrupting school activities and creating a on learning.

Extreme and prolonged conditions like these have repercussions that build over time. Repeated closures and altered schedules make it harder for students to stay on track academically and create ongoing stress for both children and caregivers.

Such disturbances have led to learning loss, as reflected in , and the consequences often hit students already experiencing the hardest. As an on environmental injustice highlights, people of color are disproportionately more likely to live in flood-prone areas and attend under-resourced schools, with outdated HVAC systems that are vulnerable to extreme heat. These challenges, combined with unstable housing, poorer health care and limited access to reliable transportation, make it significantly harder for families and students to regain stability when daily routines are knocked off kilter.

As such disasters become more frequent, intense and unpredictable, schools and communities are going to have to grapple with these inevitable realities. Reducing carbon footprints and improving climate education are key strategies for adaptation.

For example, the Maryland Association of Boards of Education declared that in order to provide schools that are safe, functional and fair for all students, a plan should be put in place. The state also has an that brings together state and federal agencies, nonprofits and community-based youth groups to develop conservation鈥慺ocused recommendations, help teachers meet environmental literacy standards and aid districts in sustainability efforts.

New Jersey instituted and formed the to prepare public school teachers to integrate climate education across grade levels and content areas. In 2024, Colorado鈥檚 legislature approved a .

Other states, including California, Connecticut, Maine, Illinois, Oregon and Washington, have passed legislation promoting . Embedding eco-education across subjects and grade levels can prepare young people to embrace environmental stewardship. Project-based approaches like environmental monitoring, design challenges and student energy audits can deepen learning while improving campus conditions. In addition, taking deliberate steps to prepare learners for green or clean energy jobs and helping them feel confident in science and math can help ensure every student is adequately prepared for future economies.

These approaches align with KnowledgeWorks鈥� latest 10-year forecast, , which looks ahead at how schools and learning are likely to change over the next decade. The report asks policymakers and district leaders to start planning now for a future of education where learning increasingly happens outside physical classrooms and decisions and resources are managed with the understanding that worsening environmental conditions will continue to shape school operations and learning experiences.

Districts around the U.S. have been devising and establishing environmental sustainability offices, and some teachers unions have demanded that their districts establish or update them.

These plans outline commitments and connect resources and initiatives that can help insulate schools and districts from the ill effects of weather-related events. This might include installing solar panels and battery storage to keep schools open during power outages or ensuring that students have access to laptops and the internet for remote learning during closures. Training counselors and educators to address climate-related stress and the impacts of disruption and displacement on students can be another powerful tactic.

Longer term, as the forecast highlights, schools might consider flexible, year-round calendars that allow for quick adjustments during climate disruptions. Communities could partner with libraries, recreation centers and businesses to create learning hubs during emergencies in return for tax breaks or other incentives.

Alternatively, states might put in place climate readiness certifications that would require schools, especially new and renovated buildings, to meet resilience standards for infrastructure, energy systems and emergency protocols.

In the meantime, resources are available to help state and district leaders take concrete steps toward addressing the current and future impacts of climate change and related events.

Among them, a by Aspen Institute鈥檚 This Is Planet Ed helps schools and districts consider how to adapt to climate change, mitigate its impacts, educate young people about successful green economies and advance equity by prioritizing and involving communities that are most impacted.

In addition, UNESCO鈥檚 provides international guidelines for creating environmentally friendly learning environments that reduce waste, save energy and use sustainable materials.

Schools and districts play a central role in community stability and opportunity. Designing facilities, operations and instruction that can withstand extreme weather, adapt to changing environmental conditions and recover quickly when disasters strike will be critical. In doing this work, the people and neighborhoods that face the greatest challenges should be asked where the most acute problems show up and what support would make the biggest difference when daily life is interrupted.

With coordinated support from state and regional partners, districts can move from reactive responses to proactive systems: stronger buildings, adaptive calendars, clean energy infrastructure, climate-ready teaching and shared community resources.

Together, these steps can help schools meet immediate challenges while laying the groundwork for long-term sustainability. By acting now, education leaders can build a more resilient future of learning for every student.

Jeremiah-Anthony Righteous-Rogers, senior manager of strategic foresight at KnowledgeWorks and a former community organizer and program assistant in New Orleans and Washington, D.C., also contributed to this essay.

was originally reported by Jessica Kutz of . .

When Hurricane Helene swept through Kelsey Crabtree鈥檚 small hometown of Black Mountain, North Carolina, two years ago, its fierce winds uprooted a large tree that landed on the roof of her house, jolting her and her husband awake. She went into the living room and noticed a huge crack where water had started to pour in. The couple grabbed their two sons, dragged a spare mattress to their laundry room and sheltered there overnight.

Eventually, Crabtree and her family made their way to her mother-in-law鈥檚 home in Chattanooga, Tennessee. They later moved into an Airbnb, where they stayed for nearly a year. The months after the storm were a blur, she said 鈥� lots of phone calls with insurance and hands-on work to fix their home, and all of that while scrambling to care for the boys, who were two and five at the time.

Get stories like this delivered straight to your inbox. Sign up for 蜜桃影视 Newsletter

鈥淲e needed time to be childfree so we could work. We needed to be bringing money in so we could have our house back in order,鈥� Crabtree, who works as a therapist, said. 鈥淭he limited child care was really making it challenging. It was limiting my ability to see clients.鈥�

So she got in contact with Silke Knebel.

A single mom, Knebel founded the National Emergency Child Care Network a few months earlier to help other mothers who might need child care in an emergency. What constitutes an emergency is broadly defined in Knebel鈥檚 mind: It could be a disaster like Helene, It could be snowstorms, like the one that brought massive damage to a big slice of the northeast, or just the need for a few hours to recharge after a particularly stressful day.

In the last decade, weather and climate-related disasters have caused damages worth over $200 billion and affected the availability of child care in the long and short term. Hurricane Harvey in 2017 damaged over 650 child care centers, permanently closing 52 facilities. The Maui wildfire in 2023 destroyed four of the nine child care programs that were available in the city of Lahaina. Last year, the Los Angeles wildfires affected over 500 child care providers, with Altadena losing 60% of its child care centers in the tragedy.

Knebel鈥檚 desire to help others when a disaster strikes comes from her own experience as a single mom. In kindergarten, her eldest son was diagnosed with a mental health condition known as 鈥渃onduct disorder,鈥� which manifests as aggressive and behavioral issues.It soaked up a lot of Knebel鈥檚 emotional and physical energy. 鈥淚 feel for other moms, because I had weekends where I cried all day and I needed that five or six hours of [care] from just somebody showing up at my door,鈥� she said.

Her nonprofit is designed to do exactly that 鈥� deploy to families in a crisis. The organization is staffed by volunteers who have undergone extensive background checks and are trained in trauma-informed care 鈥� 鈥淲e don’t bring on 16-year-old Care.com babysitters,鈥� Knebel said. The volunteers are typically deployed in pairs to families in need, at no cost.听 Many of them are retired teachers, pediatricians, social workers, and mothers and grandmothers who simply want to help.

For Crabtree, they were a godsend. 鈥淭he kids loved the people who came out and played with them,鈥� she said. They would show up and have different games and toys and animal crackers and the kids were just so excited.鈥�

In the weeks and months after Hurricane Helene, Knebel connected over 50 families like Crabtree鈥檚 with child care volunteers. One mother had a sick and disabled husband at home听 and when the storm hit, she was left to figure out how to do basic things like find water while taking care of her children and partner. Another, a mother of four, was worried that if she didn鈥檛 return to work soon, she wouldn鈥檛 be able to pay rent, but her child care center had been closed due to the storm. Then there was the family whose nanny鈥檚 house was destroyed in the hurricane. Sometimes, the mothers who called 鈥� the callers were almost always moms 鈥斕� were just exhausted or in desperate need of a few hours away from their kids to sort through the piles of paperwork, to call insurance adjustors, to figure out how to rebuild.

The first person to call Knebel鈥檚 child care emergency hotline was, however, the manager of a local bank. One of his employees was struggling to find child care weeks after the storm. Employers 鈥渢ry to be accommodating and compassionate,鈥� she said. 鈥淏ut after a while, they’re like, 鈥極kay, you need to come to work.鈥� And that’s when the real burden and stress hits families, because the child care is still not open.鈥�

And it wasn鈥檛 the only employer she helped out. United Way of Asheville, an organization that provides disaster relief, requested volunteers to staff a pop-up child care for their employees. Also, an area school requested help for 40 teachers who all needed care for their own kids.

At the same time that parents were struggling to find care, some 148 child care centers and home-based providers had been damaged by Helene 鈥� and no one knew how or when they would reopen.

The barriers to getting child care back up and running after a disaster are immense, says Susan Butler-Staub, a senior vice president at Child Care Aware of America, an advocacy organization. 鈥淥ne of the biggest issues is finding a suitable environment,鈥� she said. 鈥淚f you’re a home-based provider and your home has been flooded or your home is gone, then can you find a temporary place that meets regulation?鈥�

If a provider is able to stay in their location, there鈥檚 usually a long list of issues they have to deal with first. 鈥淲ith a flood, you’re going to be dealing with mold in the walls,鈥� she said. In western North Carolina, where Helene hit, 鈥渢hey are still dealing with water quality issues, so you have to filter the water before you can give it to children.鈥�

But even when facilities recover, paying for child care can become too much for families. Crabtree, who utilized child care volunteers mostly to assist while she rebuilt her house, said she could only afford to pay for child care when her extended family helped cover the cost.

A few months after Hurricane Helene, Knebel was faced with another call to action: Catastrophic wildfires were sweeping through Los Angeles and families would need help in the aftermath

Knebel’s organization promptly recruited and trained around 70 volunteers and connected with mothers like Briana Pozner, who had a 2-year-old and went into early labor with twins after the fires. While Pozner鈥檚 house wasn鈥檛 destroyed by the fire, it was contaminated with lead and other heavy metals, forcing the family to move out for a few months.

Pozner and her family had already been preparing for how life would change with twins before the fires struck. She had recently enrolled her son in preschool 鈥� but then the preschool burned down. 鈥淚t was like, OK, we鈥檝e got to figure out how to get stability and figure out our son鈥檚 school.鈥�

In Los Angeles, the impact of the wildfires on child care was devastating. Cindy Esquivel, program manager at the Low Income Investment Fund, a nonprofit that provided small grants to child care providers recovering from the wildfires, said that many home-based providers were still struggling to reopen. In some cases, they lost their homes and their businesses in one fell swoop.

Finding the money for them to rebuild has been difficult. Of the 136 grantees that Esquivel surveyed after the disaster, 40% did not have insurance. Many home-based providers also rent their homes and in the aftermath, rents skyrocketed in the region, making it difficult to find a suitable and affordable location.

Private child care providers do not qualify for FEMA funding. They can apply to the Small Business Administration for low- interest loans, but the process for approval is long and bureaucratic. Instead, a lot of funding comes from foundations and grant-making organizations. States have also chipped in, but the amount available varies by state and is usually a drop in the bucket compared to need, say experts. It鈥檚 an industry that, in the best of times, is already underfunded and operating at capacity.

A friend who had been volunteering with Knebel鈥檚 organization suggested that Pozner reach out and ask for assistance. Once the family was able to return home, 鈥淲e had to get the whole house back in order with these little babies that I was breastfeeding,” she said. The volunteers watched her newborns while Pozner and her husband unpacked and organized.

Her son鈥檚 preschool eventually reopened, but it is now in its third location. Similar to North Carolina, it has been challenging for child care facilities and schools to find new homes.

Knebel is only set up to offer help in California and North Carolina because that鈥檚 where she has volunteers. She plans to expand to other disaster prone states like Florida and Texas but needs to raise more funding to make that a reality. In the meantime, however, she gets calls from all over the country, for women experiencing all sorts of challenges. A few weeks ago, she heard from a woman in a domestic violence shelter who needed someone to watch her two children for a few hours. She has also fielded several calls from women at hospitals who need someone to watch their kids while they undergo surgery. Once, a grandmother whose daughter had just been incarcerated called, in need of someone to help watch her grandkids.

Knebel wishes she could help everyone. 鈥淚t isn鈥檛 really just disasters. It’s school shootings, divorces, it’s a medical crisis, just experiencing a car accident,鈥� she said.

Lately, she鈥檚 wondered how she can tap into the network of volunteers her organization trained in Los Angeles to help families who are afraid to send their kids to school because of ICE raids. In the last few days, she鈥檚 been emailing volunteers about the potential need for deployments if child care and schools closed in North Carolina, one of the states hit hard by the weekend鈥檚 winter storm.

鈥淲e just want to be there when children and parents need us,鈥� she said. 鈥淓specially now, when things are getting so doom and gloom.鈥�

Due to the unprecedented flooding from Hurricane Helene in September 2024, four school buildings in western North Carolina flooded so severely that students were unable to immediately return to school.

Some schools closed temporarily and are back in their buildings, and some are still in transition while awaiting a more permanent home. EdNC spoke with each school district鈥檚 superintendent to learn about the status of the buildings and how their school communities look a year after Helene.

Get stories like this delivered straight to your inbox. Sign up for 蜜桃影视 Newsletter

Henderson County

in (HCPS) is split by Perry Creek. The gym sits on one side of the creek, the school building on the other. Helene dumped in Hendersonville, the creek swelled, and both buildings took on two inches of water.

Dr. Mark Garrett, superintendent of HCPS, was no stranger to flooding before Helene. As a principal, he had dealt with water in schools, and during his tenure as the superintendent in McDowell County, he鈥檇 faced other natural disasters.

鈥淚 think the most challenging part of last year was just dealing with a disaster the magnitude of what we had,鈥� Garrett said. 鈥淵ou sort of think, you know what may or may not be coming, but something of this magnitude 鈥� it鈥檚 really not anything you can be prepared for.鈥�

Replacing the floors was the largest task before getting students back in the building. Atkinson Elementary needed somewhere to go, and the local rose to the occasion by welcoming the entire student body into their facility.

To mitigate flooding in the future, Garrett said Atkinson Elementary is trying to address things within its control. The school wants to increase vegetation in certain areas on campus and fix drainage issues. Thanks to the newly installed flooring, which is sturdier and can be cleaned up more easily if water returns, the school is better prepared for future flooding.

Atkinson Elementary operated out of the Boys & Girls Club until December 2024, when the new floors were completed. Garrett and HCPS were able to welcome Atkinson Elementary back to its building before Christmas.

The strong partnership between the school and the community organization allowed for a seamless transition. Atkinson Elementary didn鈥檛 have to ask; they were offered the space. And the relationship with the Boys & Girls Club did not end once students returned to the school building.

Through a grant, the Boys & Girls Club can embed five mentors at various HCPS elementary schools during the day. With student families now familiar with the services of the Boys & Girls Club due to last year鈥檚 relocation, the organization added a transportation stop to pick up students from Atkinson and bring them to the club for after-school programming.

The district鈥檚 preexisting relationship with the Boys & Girls Club was crucial in the aftermath of the storm, Garrett said. In the event of future emergencies, Garrett said these community partnerships are vital. 鈥淚 can鈥檛 emphasize (it) enough: Make sure that you know your neighbors, and you know your community partners, and you know these other agencies ahead of time,鈥� Garrett said.

鈥淚t鈥檚 amazing what you can do when you don鈥檛 worry about who gets the credit,鈥� Garrett said. He firmly believes, 鈥淲hen you do what鈥檚 right for students, it鈥檒l be what鈥檚 right for everybody else.鈥�

McDowell County

Old Fort received over three days last September. Mill Creek, which sits behind (OFES), was overtaken by water and flooded the school. The building was closed for repairs until the 2025-26 school year. While they waited, students merged with nearby (PGES).

The most important thing to OFES Principal Jill Ward and the families of her students was keeping the school together.

(MCS) superintendent Dr. Tracy Grit said PGES staff welcomed OFES with open arms. He praised the leadership and staff at both schools for taking on a challenging transition and remaining flexible and positive.

鈥淚t鈥檚 astronomical what really took place there,鈥� he said.

OFES鈥� current building opened in 2020 and was constructed outside of the 500-year floodplain. In order to mitigate future flooding, they reinforced the creek, and the county has taken preventive measures upstream.

OFES received new flooring, doors, HVAC systems, a fresh coat of paint, and more. PGES 鈥� having held a larger student body than usual for a year 鈥� received new flooring, new paint, and a resurfaced parking lot.

At OFES, the new HVAC units were installed higher than before to prevent damage should the school ever experience flooding again.

鈥淥ne of the promises we made (to OFES families) is when we put you back into the school, it鈥檚 going to be as good, if not better, than it was. And I feel like that promise was absolutely kept,鈥� Grit said.

Post-Helene, displaced OFES families were eager to learn information about their children鈥檚 school. Grit had monthly updates for families at board meetings to show the progress being made at the OFES building. William Kehler, the director of McDowell County Emergency Services, was using the county communication channels to relay updates about the school and other community projects.

School board members fielded a lot of calls from the community, Grit said. Once the building was safe to enter, Ward brought people into the school to see the improvements.

Grit, Ward, and MCS were able to meet their goal, and Old Fort students were welcomed back into their building on Monday, Aug. 25 鈥� just in time for the first day of school.

鈥淚 love these people, and I love this place, and I love these kids, and I love these families,鈥� said Ward on the first day of school.

Watauga County

Part of was constructed in 1935 thanks to the . The original building held six classrooms, and over several decades, the school expanded to become 66,000 square feet. It serves kindergarten through eighth grade students.

On Sept. 27, 2024, water entered Valle Crucis School and eventually flooded around 70% of the building.

It鈥檚 been almost a year since Helene, and Superintendent Dr. Leslie Alexander reflected on the expression 鈥淢ountain Strong鈥� 鈥� of which she says听the Valle Crucis community听is a living testament.

鈥淚t鈥檚 a real thing,鈥� she said. 鈥淭hat principal and that staff has really just 鈥� they鈥檝e been remarkable.鈥�

For the remainder of the 2024-25 school year, the Valle Crucis School building was closed and students were housed at three different community educational institutions. (ASU) had one preapproved classroom to take the preschoolers. and Holy Cross Episcopal Church welcomed K-5 students, and (CCCTI) housed the sixth through eighth graders.

Before the storm, a new Valle Crucis School was already under construction a quarter-mile down the road from the original building, and had plans to be complete by the end of 2024.

Helene delayed that opening, and then the district had hopes to open at the start of the 2025 school year, but missed this goal because of an overstretched construction workforce in the region.

Alexander remembers getting the staff together with Valle Crucis Principal Dr. Bonnie Smith this summer to let them know the school opening was going to be delayed further.

鈥淭hey just put their best foot forward, and they said, 鈥榃e鈥檙e going to take care of these babies and we鈥檙e going to get through this,’鈥� she said. 鈥淚 really could not ask for a better attitude from folks that I have the pleasure and opportunity to get to work with.鈥�

The only change from last year is that the preschool students moved back to the district, joining up with .

Since the storm, the community and the entities housing students have only deepened their relationships. Alexander said CCCTI has declared that any middle schooler from Valle Crucis who joined them after the hurricane would be able to , should they choose to go that route after high school graduation.

For Alexander, physically finding her staff in the immediate aftermath of the storm was the most challenging part, both emotionally and literally. If there is an emergency again in her area, she now knows the critical role of satellite phones, which can keep her school community connected if cell service fails. During the storm, contacting staff who then got in touch with students and their families was the most important part. Alexander feels good about how the district managed.

The 20,000 square feet of the historic Valle Crucis School that remained dry during Helene was the original rock facade. The school district is still working with FEMA and insurance to see what funding might be available to save the beloved part of the building.

Alexander said Watauga students missed 17 days because of the hurricane, and on top of that, 21 additional days because of inclement weather. She is constantly amazed by her district staff for their attitudes and ability to continue teaching regardless of circumstances.

Yancey County

At in four days, Busick is on record as receiving the most rain brought about before and during Helene.

鈥淲e had water in places that we had not seen water in our lifetime,鈥� said (YCS) Superintendent Kathy Amos.

The damage to infrastructure impacted electricity and water access countywide, roads and bridges were washed away, and cellphone service was nonexistent for a period. YCS students were out for seven weeks.

鈥淚 think it was just the overall amount of devastation 鈥� it was on every roadway, (in) every community,鈥� she said. 鈥淚t was just our entire county and the loss of homes and the damages, the amount of debris.鈥�

For Amos, that was the most challenging part initially.

, another historic stone school, served 198 students before the storm. The building flooded due to the record-breaking rainfall, and the decision was made that the school would close permanently. Forty-eight students moved to and the remaining 150 moved to .

Expansion plans were put in place to add 14 classrooms to Burnsville Elementary and 12 classrooms to the third elementary school in the district,听.

Burnsville鈥檚 classrooms were ready for the 2025-26 school year, and Amos expects Blue Ridge鈥檚 expansion to be complete in December of this year. Melanie Bennet was the principal at Micaville Elementary, and she has been named the new principal at Blue Ridge Elementary.

In the aftermath of the storm, with cellphone systems down, Amos and the district used local radio waves to communicate. She engaged the AM/FM radio station in town and reported out to YCS families every Thursday on the status of the school system.

Each school now has a Starlink to help with connection, but YCS leadership decided to continue internally with a radio communication plan for any future weather events 鈥� administrators will use bus radios to stay connected and make school closure calls.

Infrastructure, both in the county and on school campuses, is still a concern for YCS. Thanks to听last year鈥檚听flooding, there were slope failures around the county, which destroyed vegetation that typically听would have helped soak up water. The quantity of water that fell during Helene changed how water flows around the county and created drainage issues on campus.

鈥淎nytime we get a heavy rain, you know, three to four or five inches of rain in a short amount of time, it creates problems,鈥� said Amos.

They have drains on some campuses that have been sinking, and they continue to repair gutters and remedy any mold issues.

Amos commends her team for continuing to work through the FEMA process by providing documentation, inspections, and all the detailed information that is required for submission.

building is 49 years old, and it is the only high school in the county. Once the storm hit, it was an emergency command center with food and supply distribution, and it housed 300 people.

All of YCS campuses need funding to update facilities, to mitigate future issues, and to prepare for the incoming student population. The district has a strong pre-K and kindergarten class this year, and people are moving to the county, Amos said. The school board remains focused on long-term facility plans.

鈥淚 really thank everyone for helping us through those challenging times,鈥� Amos said. She is speaking to the volunteers who came to help, the donations sent from across the country, the grants received, and the continuous prayers for her community.

Amos knows the journey is long, but she sees a light at the end of the tunnel. She saw it on the first day of school.

This first appeared on and is republished here under a .

Four schools took on so much damage during Hurricane Helene that their students needed to relocate. Some temporarily, some permanently.

Public schools in Henderson, McDowell, Watauga, and Yancey counties had to pivot once students returned after the storm. Here are updates on those buildings from the superintendents who oversee the districts.

Henderson County

campus is split by Perry Creek in Henderson County. The facility was built in 1982, and the gym sits on one side of the creek, the school building on the other. Due to unprecedented rainfall from Helene, the creek swelled, and both buildings took on two inches of water.

Get stories like this delivered straight to your inbox. Sign up for 蜜桃影视 Newsletter

(HCPS) Superintendent Mark Garrett said the water receded within two hours, but the problem was time and electricity.

School leadership tried to work their way to the building once the storm passed, but with having to cut their way out of homes and unblock roads to the school, doors remained closed and moisture impacted the floors. Compounded by the lack of power to help with air circulation after arriving at the school, Atkinson Elementary would need to replace all the floors before reopening.

Garrett said initially they were going to have to divide Atkinson Elementary students amongst the school district, but a community partner intervened before he had to make that call.

“The coolest thing happened — the local Boys and Girls Club stepped out and asked if we could utilize their space at all,鈥� reflected Garrett.

Kent Parent had been the CEO of the for one week, and immediately welcomed the entirety of Atkinson Elementary staff and students to the building.

Flooring was essentially the only thing that needed to be replaced at Atkinson Elementary. If it wasn鈥檛 on the floor, it wasn鈥檛 impacted, said Garrett. Since the building was from 1982, the majority was carpeted. They ripped that up, replaced some asbestos tiles and drywall, and put in new flooring. Insurance was quick and easy to work with, and FEMA has come to discuss future proofing with mitigation funds for potential other natural events.

Atkinson Elementary students reported to school at the Henderson Boys and Girls Club on Oct. 15. Garrett’s aim was to have the school building ready to reopen by Christmas.

On Dec. 16, students were welcomed back to the Atkinson Elementary campus, a week ahead of Garrett’s goal.

鈥淚 think what I want people to know is our community was very gracious and understanding,” Garret said.  “Our teachers and the principal there worked like crazy to make the Boys and Girls Club feel like home and feel like school to them. Then they had to move it all back.”

Garrett believed it was a “Herculean effort that they put forth,” and he couldn’t be more grateful.

McDowell County

Mill Creek sits behind in McDowell County. The creek was overrun with water, flooding the building and parking lot during Helene. The school building originally opened in 2020 and is still closed due to damage.

Old Fort for the time has merged with . Tracy Grit, superintendent of McDowell County Schools (MCS), said the goal is to open back up in the fall of 2025, and he believes they are on target to meet that timeline.

In early October, Grit assured a church full of Old Fort Elementary families that the building was 鈥�100% salvageable,鈥� but it would take time to get there. The biggest challenges have remained environmental 鈥� dealing with humidity and the impacts of moisture on the building infrastructure. “Part of it is getting a building not just clean, but dried out,” he said. The cleanup happened quickly, and they鈥檝e slowly gotten their HVAC system back up and running.

They hustled to get two feet of mud out of the parking lot, gutters, and drain pipes to mitigate another flooding event inside the building had it started to rain again.

Grit credits the Army Corps of Engineers along with the MCS maintenance department on getting the exterior of the building cleaned so quickly.

Old Fort Elementary’s gym floor had been ripped up and was replaced by the second week of January, and the work to put flooring back in classrooms has just begun.

“There’s a lot of behind the scenes documentation that has to go into this,” Grit remarked. He praised working with the state on insurance, and while the district doesn’t have a lot of wiggle room in terms of money, the deductible is something that FEMA will reimburse.

“Right now we’re just in this documentation phase. If you can imagine itemizing every single item in a school, and then you got to catalog it and get it into a system,” Grit said.

The work is tedious, but Grit understands its how to get this school back up and running.

“When you have that much water in a building, you’re going to see power on, you’re going to see lights on, and you’re going to think, ‘Oh that building (looks open), we should be able to get back in there.’ Well, that’s not the case because you have to have the right climate before you can start putting down floors,” said Grit.

Grit praised the principals of both Old Fort Elementary and Pleasant Gardens Elementary, Jill Ward and Erin Rayfield, who are working together in one school to continue to educate their kids. He said the transition isn’t without its hardships and that the Old Fort Elementary staff are ready to get “home,” but he is so impressed by everyone at MCS.

Watauga County

At 2 a.m. on Sept. 27, Dr. Leslie Alexander, superintendent of , was at with the district’s assistant superintendent, the school’s principal, her husband, and five maintenance workers. They were using five pumps to remove incoming water from the basement of the school.

The school was constructed in 1935 as part of the New Deal Works Progress Administration (WPA) and was prone to taking on small amounts of water. Alexander knew no one would stop working unless she told everyone to go home. Principal Dr. Bonnie Smith wouldn’t leave her school, so her husband and the other maintenance workers stayed on pumping until 7 a.m., and then the power went out.

They had it fairly under control, but then, “the rain really started coming in. And you know, right where we were standing, it got to be about 4 feet of water,鈥� said Alexander.

The historic stone school is 66,000 square feet. Of that, 46,000 square feet took on water. There was already a new school being built for these students a quarter of a mile down the road, but due to construction issues and the hurricane, completion has been delayed. The new Valle Crucis School building will not be completed until summer of 2025. Leadership needed to figure out where it was going to put students for the foreseeable future.

“Bonnie and her staff, they were really pretty adamant. They wanted to keep the kids together as much as they could,” said Alexander.

Three community education institutions stepped in — (ASU), (CCCTI), and — to host the students in need of a temporary home.

ASU happened to have one preschool classroom that was already approved on campus, so it was a perfect fit for the littlest learners. The district has a great relationship with the at the university as well. K-5 students moved to the conference center, which was originally the community school.

The middle school students found a place at the local community college.

“The teachers talk about what a great fit it is when I’m over there. I mean, the kids just obviously feel very comfortable on that campus,” remarked Alexander. A silver lining to the storm.

“It’s just such an invaluable experience for them to be able to see themselves on a college campus with college students, around that whole environment,” said Alexander. “I really want to see what that next step looks like for those sixth, seventh, and eighth graders who’ve had that experience.”

The superintendent is really proud of all the educators from Valle Crucis and their ability to adapt.

“The kids are laughing and they’re engaged in their work, and they’re just very, very happy to be back with other students and their teachers,” Alexander said. “So just I commend that group of teachers and those employees for just really doing what’s best for kids.鈥�

Yancey County

The Busick community sits off of NC-80 in Yancey County. Busick is in the South Toe Township, and 31 inches of rain were recorded there during Helene. Also along NC-80, and below Busick, is Micaville Elementary.

“A wonderful old rock school, a fantastic school for the Micaville community and Yancey County,” reflected district superintendent Kathy Amos.

The rain flowed down from Busick, swelling the creek behind Micaville, and flooded the building to the point of no return. There was already a consolidation plan for the district in place — the WPA school building was constructed in 1936 — and the plan was to close it for students, move them to newer schools, and use it in some way for the district or community. But the storm disrupted the established timeline.

Amos needed to determine where the 198 students and 30 to 40 faculty and staff members would go and for how long.

Three classrooms moved to . The school recently completed a renovation project, so they could take on the load. The other eight classrooms moved to , where they converted the media center into two classrooms, moved a class into the music room, and more to help with the additional students.

“Those teachers have been so helpful and gracious in this transition in just getting everyone settled,鈥� said Amos.

With Micaville Elementary closed permanently, the expansion plans are underway to add 14 classrooms to Burnsville Elementary School and 12 classrooms to .

Burnsville’s new construction should be ready this fall, and Blue Ridge’s in the fall of 2026.

Yancey County has dealt with ongoing issues with weather, water, electricity, and infrastructure. Budgets in small rural counties are strained with the cost of recovery, and even with insurance and FEMA reimbursements, it is challenging to pay for those exorbitant upfront rebuilding costs.

Amos, however, remains ever grateful for all the help they have received, and resilient in the face of a future that may continue to throw her district curve balls.

鈥淵ou just don’t know what the day is going to bring, you know? We are able to see our students, and we’re so blessed to have them back of the building,鈥� Amos said.

This first appeared on and is republished here under a Creative Commons license.

This a developing story 鈥� check back for updates.

North Carolina lawmakers approved for Hurricane Helene relief on Wednesday, as the western part of the state continues recovery efforts.

The package, which legislative leaders called a 鈥渇irst step鈥� in their response, will provide a needed transfusion of dollars to qualify the state for federal money and help officials prepare for the Nov. 5 election.

It passed both the and unanimously.

Get stories like this delivered straight to your inbox. Sign up for 蜜桃影视 Newsletter

鈥淭he recovery that is going to have to be done is something that is going to be a herculean task,鈥� House Speaker Tim Moore (R-Cleveland) told reporters ahead of the vote.

The General Assembly is set to return on Oct. 24 to allocate more money, once lawmakers have a better sense of specific funding needs. A November session is also planned to 鈥渄eal with other matters,鈥� Moore said.

Senate President Pro Tem Phil Berger (R-Rockingham) said their first priority was securing federal dollars, but that further state money was coming.

鈥淎s far as the total that the state is going to expend, no, this is not all of it,鈥� Berger said. 鈥淣ot by a long shot.鈥�

The vast majority of the money will serve as matching funds to qualify for FEMA federal disaster programs. The federal government has pledged 100% reimbursement for six months following the disaster.

Another $16 million will help back pay salaries for nutrition staff whose schools have been closed in the storm鈥檚 aftermath. And the bill grants impacted schools more flexibility to adjust their calendars and add remote teaching as needed.

Lawmakers also expanded the resources and flexibility for western counties to conduct their elections. The State Board of Elections will get $5 million 鈥� more than they initially requested 鈥� and 25 western counties will be eligible to make changes to early voting and polling places. (A resolution from the state board originally included 13 counties.)

鈥淲hile the Board of Elections made a good effort, we want to extend it to additional counties that were impacted,鈥� Berger said.

Those changes could include more flexibility in appointing election judges, changing precinct locations, and 鈥渃uring鈥� of spoiled absentee ballots 鈥� all at the discretion of county election offices.

Throughout a press conference and debate Wednesday, lawmakers representing districts to the west , and emphasized that the road to recovery would be years long. Some, like Rep. Jennifer Balkcom (R-Henderson), fought back tears.

鈥淧eople are trying to start their lives over again,鈥� Balkcom said.

Moore and Berger said they met with Gov. Roy Cooper and Democratic legislative leaders in recent days to discuss the bill. Cooper, speaking at a press conference to discuss ongoing storm recovery efforts at around the same time lawmakers were voting, expressed appreciation for the legislation. The bill now heads to his desk for final approval.

Still, concerns among some Democrats lingered Wednesday 鈥� including Rep. Caleb Rudow (D-Buncombe), who filed a bill extending voter registration deadlines but failed to get GOP support to move it forward.

How education leaders, local advocacy groups want relief money spent

Ahead of the legislature鈥檚 return to Raleigh, officials and organizations across the state made funding requests as they continue to evaluate damages and look toward recovery.

The State Board Education has outlined more than $150 million needed to repair and recover public schools across the state. State superintendent Catherine Truitt said in a statement Wednesday that she was 鈥渞eally pleased and grateful鈥� with the school-related funding in the initial relief package.

鈥淚 know the NCGA will appropriate additional funding in terms of building and equipment damage in due time,鈥� Truitt said. 鈥淭his is a great first step to helping our schools, staff and students recover.鈥�

And in sent Tuesday evening to lawmakers, a network of faith, health care and civic groups called the NC Inclusive Disaster Recovery Network outlined a range of recommendations for how funding is used.

鈥淧olicies should ensure relief and rebuilding efforts reach all North Carolinians by minimizing barriers to access and stabilizing conditions,鈥� the letter said.

They urged lawmakers to allow local governments flexibility to hire or expand communications as needed; to send funds 鈥渇or public interest law firms,鈥� and to create an eviction moratorium 鈥渟imilar to the response to COVID.鈥�

A letter from the North Carolina Association of Educators called on lawmakers to, among other things, protect all public-school staff from pay and leave reductions for the duration of the crisis, ensure districts are not penalized for student enrollment declines due to temporary relocations, and provide meals for students in hard-hit counties.

is part of States Newsroom, a nonprofit news network supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity. NC Newsline maintains editorial independence. Contact Editor Rob Schofield for questions: info@ncnewsline.com. Follow NC Newsline on and .

Hundreds of miles away from Hurricane Helene鈥檚 destruction in western North Carolina, top education officials outlined their initial request to get storm damaged schools re-opened and students back in front of their teachers.

NC Superintendent of Public Instruction Catherine Truitt told the state Board of Education Thursday that nearly a week after the hurricane struck, the full extent of damage to the state鈥檚 public school infrastructure remains unknown. Three school districts: Mitchell, Yancey and Haywood County Public Schools have no connectivity.

The state is also assessing the condition of the 20 charter schools that are in the disaster declaration area.

Get stories like this delivered straight to your inbox. Sign up for 蜜桃影视 Newsletter

Truitt said the main concern that school district leaders are sharing is that they want to make sure that all their employees remain whole financially.

鈥淪o, we are asking that all employees are held harmless due to the hurricane and that any days that they have missed due to whether school is canceled or whether they cannot get to work that they are held harmless for that,鈥� explained Truitt.

(This will be voluntary for charter schools in the impacted area which have a different financial structure than the state鈥檚 traditional LEAs.)

The second most common concern is school calendar flexibility. There are precedents for this following Hurricane Florence and again with COVID.

鈥淭hey have a choice of how they approach this. They can do one or both of making up days or deeming up to 20 days completed,鈥� reassured Truitt. 鈥淪o again, we want to provide as much flexibility as we can when it comes to the calendar.鈥�

The State Board of Education is also recommending impacted school districts be granted the maximum flexibility beyond the currently allowed 15 remote instructions days or 90 remote instruction hours as recovery continues.

For student teachers enrolled in the Educator Prep Program (EPP) in an impacted county, the board is recommending it be deemed that the student has completed the clinical internship requirement if they were planning on graduating in December 2024, despite not meeting the full 16-week requirement.

The Department of Public Instruction will have two significant funding asks when the legislature reconvenes Oct. 9.

The first is $16 million to hold harmless school nutrition staff, essentially funding the salaries and benefits for those school staff workers who were employed by the districts but missed days due to Hurricane Helene.

The second ask is for an initial $150 million in funding to cover repairs and renovations, school nutrition needs, equipment, and supplies, and technology loss that is not covered by insurance.

Truitt reminded the board that when Hurricane Florence hit in 2018, Edgecombe County Public Schools lost an entire elementary school building.

鈥淲e don鈥檛 know yet how many other buildings [from Helene] will be rendered useless,鈥� said Truitt.

If school buildings do need to be replaced, recent construction grants peg the cost at $42 million for an elementary school, $52 million for a middle school, and $62 million for a high school.

The initial $150 million being requested from the legislature would replace lost technology, athletic fields that have been ruined, equipment loss, mold remediation, and anything else that needs to be done in a building that鈥檚 salvageable.

Board vice chair Alan Duncan stressed the document being presented to lawmakers next week should be considered 鈥榓 first cut.鈥�

鈥淏ecause I don鈥檛 think it would be fair to our schools out west to be boxed in based on incomplete information. We want to make sure these schools are properly tended and loved as they deserve to be, after the kind of nightmare they鈥檙e going through,鈥� Duncan said.

The state superintendent said her department is receiving eyewitness accounts from both educators and from western legislators about the extent of the damage, so there is an understanding that more financial asks will be made.

鈥淪o, there will be, the sort of the hold harmless and the calendar flexibility, those kinds of things will come first, perhaps a smaller amount of money to get going, and then larger amounts will follow as things become more clear,鈥� Truitt explained.

Board member John Blackburn, who represents schools in the northwest region of the state, said the storm was essentially North Carolina鈥檚 version of Hurricane Katrina.

鈥淲e are still trying to find all kinds of folks, particularly young folks,鈥� Blackburn said somberly. 鈥淭he public schools have stood tall in every piece and part of this since this started a week ago. So, we need to support our public schools, all our teachers, all our custodians, everybody that helps nurture these children, and also remember that these children will not have food.

鈥淚t will fade from our minds, as it often does, that I would ask all of you to keep it in your thoughts and keep it in your prayers and to remember that this is going to be a long time, and we need to continue to support folks.鈥�

Click to read NCDPI鈥檚 initial ask of the NC General Assembly for Helene recovery funds.

is part of States Newsroom, a nonprofit news network supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity. NC Newsline maintains editorial independence. Contact Editor Rob Schofield for questions: info@ncnewsline.com. Follow NC Newsline on and .

Old Fort mayor Pam Snypes stood outside town hall on Monday afternoon, Sept. 30th, describing the aftermath of Hurricane Helene.

“There are entire places just gone,” Snypes said.

Hurricane Helene dropped torrential rain across the state’s western region, compromising creeks, rivers, and dams.

According to a Sept. 30 from Gov. Roy Cooper, there have been 34 storm-related deaths in North Carolina. That number will likely rise as dozens of people have been reported missing.

It’s been a harrowing few days for McDowell County residents as flood waters, high winds, and a mudslide slammed parts of the community.

Get stories like this delivered straight to your inbox. Sign up for 蜜桃影视 Newsletter

While local emergency personnel and those outside the region continue search and rescue efforts in McDowell County, other teams are forming to aid in recovery.

Leaders from (MTCC), and have been working around the clock to organize a distribution site.

The distribution site is located in McDowell County’s Universal Building that sits adjacent to MTCC’s campus. The building houses the college’s Advanced Manufacturing Center, the Small Business Center, and the county’s Economic Development Association.

Right now, the building’s warehouse space is being used as a central hub for incoming supplies, which have arrived from all over.

Distribution site volunteers, many of whom are local educators, organize essential items and prepare them for delivery. Supplies from the distribution site are then driven or flown to various locations, including four points of distribution (PODS) in the county.

Across town, more education and community leaders are gathered at the Emergency Operation Center (EOC) as they strategize and organize the next phases of disaster recovery.

MTCC President Dr. J.W. Kelley said the county is currently in phase one. Beyond search and rescue, phase one includes distributing food, water, and items for babies.

Planning for phase two is currently underway and will include what Kelley is calling comfort centers, or locations where community members can use Wi-Fi or make phone calls. Leaders have even discussed how to coordinate with the hospital to provide on-site emotional support animals.

What’s happening on the ground

The devastation stretches for miles and miles across Western North Carolina’s mountain communities.

Old Fort business owners are spending daylight hours pushing mud and water out of buildings. Two steps in either direction, and you hear the same story from residents. Properties gone — if not theirs, than someone’s who lives just “down the road” or “on the other side of the mountain.”

But you also see the human spirit.

It’s the kindness in the eyes of those moving quickly along the lined tables of recovery items who say they are all “just here to help.”

It’s in the faces of school鈥揳ged children tagging along with their parents to volunteer — children who are just as integral to the distribution operations as their parents. Moments of laughter fill the spaces, even in the midst of all that Helene has left.

There are those going neighborhood to neighborhood making sure the Latine community has information, access, and resources.

It’s a yellow truck and the unofficial “ice cream man” standing in the middle of the street handing out bags of ice to community members.

And a couple who never made it to Asheville for vacation 鈥� finding themselves at a rental in McDowell County waiting out Helene. When the stormed cleared, they didn’t go home to Massachusetts. Instead, they jumped in and started serving a community of people they had never met.

In the midst of crisis, the human spirit is generosity to those in need.

What’s ahead

The needs are and will continue to be tremendous in McDowell County as well as other Western North Carolina communities.

McDowell County leaders are busy putting plans in place for residents. Water will continue to be an immediate need, as will food, baby wipes, and personal hygiene items.

Old Fort mayor Pam Snypes added one more item to that list: “We need your prayers,” she said.

This first appeared on and is republished here under a Creative Commons license.