Posted: 2:56 AM - Feb 13, 2013
Tina Combs will begin term on state education agency
From The Winchester Star dated Tuesday 12 Feb 2013.
By Laura McFarland
The Winchester Star
Winchester -- When Tina Combs takes her seat on the West Virginia Board of Education for the first time Wednesday, she will know she has a great deal of catching up to do.
The meeting is the first since Combs, who grew up in Frederick County, was appointed to the board Jan. 18 by Gov. Earl Ray Tomblin. She has spent recent weeks in preparations and said she is excited about the new opportunity.
"I have been spending the time reading back through old minutes," said Combs, 47, of Bunker Hill, W.Va. "An audit was done recently with the state board, so I am reading through that. I just have a lot to learn."
Although she doesn't have a traditional background in education, Combs, who is the president and chief executive officer of the Martinsburg-Berkeley County (W.Va.) Chamber of Commerce, hopes to bring a good business background to the board.
Prior to working for the chamber, she was the executive director of the Winchester Old Town Development Board for five years and worked for Winchester's public works department for 13 years before that.
She started working for the city government on the day after she turned 21 and said it was the place where she learned her "people skills, organizational skills, management skills and leadership skills."
Combs's parents Jay and Carolyn Hott still live in Frederick County.
Former director of public works Gary Lofton was her supervisor for 13 years and said she always gives "100 percent to everything she does."
"She is a very good listener, so I am sure whatever is being presented, she will give her full attention to try to get as many details as possible and mull that over to give her input to make sure that the right decision is being made," said Lofton, a member of the Frederick County Board of Supervisors.
Combs, who graduated from James Wood High School in 1983, went to Mountain State University and, in 2004, earned a bachelor's degree in organizational leadership and development.
After moving to West Virginia in 1991 with her husband Vernon, she commuted to work in Winchester, which made it "hard to feel like you are investing in the community where you are living." That's why, when the chamber job was offered to her, she jumped at it.
The skills she learned in Winchester served her well with the chamber of commerce, Combs said, and will combine well with her business experience and passion for education to help her on the board.
"If you don't have an educated workforce, you can't attract new businesses to your community and you can't help your current businesses expand," she said.
Berkeley County Schools Superintendent Manny Arvon said that as soon as he heard Combs's name mentioned as a possibility for the open seat, he knew it was a great fit.
During the last 15 to 17 years, Berkeley County school division has increased by more than 6,000 students, which led to an aggressive building program, Arvon said. Through the years, Combs has "led the charge in getting the business community" to support bond referendums needed to create those schools.
"Without Tina's help in supporting us, it would have been very difficult for us to keep up with that kind of school growth," he said.
Arvon also pointed out that Combs brings not only her business background but also her experiences as a parent to the board. She and her husband have two sons, Justin, 24, and Ross, 19, both educated in the public school system.
Combs was also the chairman of Blue Ridge Community and Technical College Board of Governors, a position she had to resign when she took the position on the Board of Education.
The spot was left open by Jenny Phillips, one of two members who dissented when the board voted to fire former state Superintendent of Schools Jorea Marple in November.
However, Combs said she is only "interested in working on issues to move the education system forward" and not in becoming involved in anything that happened before she was appointed.
The volunteer position will involve driving to Charleston once a month for the meeting, but Combs said the chamber's board has been supportive of the appointment, as has her husband.
People in her area are especially excited about the appointment because it is the first time since 2007 that the state's Eastern Panhandle has been represented on the board, she said.
The Eastern Panhandle has challenges that other areas of the state don't have, especially in its education system, Combs said. For instance, the area must compete with Virginia and Maryland when recruiting teachers.
"Other parts of the state don't have that because of where they are located," she said. "We also have a higher cost of living here, so we have to make sure our teachers are paid enough."
Contact Laura McFarland at lmcfarland@winchesterstar.com
From The Winchester Star dated Tuesday 12 Feb 2013.
By Laura McFarland
The Winchester Star
 Tina Hott Combs |
The meeting is the first since Combs, who grew up in Frederick County, was appointed to the board Jan. 18 by Gov. Earl Ray Tomblin. She has spent recent weeks in preparations and said she is excited about the new opportunity.
"I have been spending the time reading back through old minutes," said Combs, 47, of Bunker Hill, W.Va. "An audit was done recently with the state board, so I am reading through that. I just have a lot to learn."
Although she doesn't have a traditional background in education, Combs, who is the president and chief executive officer of the Martinsburg-Berkeley County (W.Va.) Chamber of Commerce, hopes to bring a good business background to the board.
Prior to working for the chamber, she was the executive director of the Winchester Old Town Development Board for five years and worked for Winchester's public works department for 13 years before that.
She started working for the city government on the day after she turned 21 and said it was the place where she learned her "people skills, organizational skills, management skills and leadership skills."
Combs's parents Jay and Carolyn Hott still live in Frederick County.
Former director of public works Gary Lofton was her supervisor for 13 years and said she always gives "100 percent to everything she does."
"She is a very good listener, so I am sure whatever is being presented, she will give her full attention to try to get as many details as possible and mull that over to give her input to make sure that the right decision is being made," said Lofton, a member of the Frederick County Board of Supervisors.
Combs, who graduated from James Wood High School in 1983, went to Mountain State University and, in 2004, earned a bachelor's degree in organizational leadership and development.
After moving to West Virginia in 1991 with her husband Vernon, she commuted to work in Winchester, which made it "hard to feel like you are investing in the community where you are living." That's why, when the chamber job was offered to her, she jumped at it.
The skills she learned in Winchester served her well with the chamber of commerce, Combs said, and will combine well with her business experience and passion for education to help her on the board.
"If you don't have an educated workforce, you can't attract new businesses to your community and you can't help your current businesses expand," she said.
Berkeley County Schools Superintendent Manny Arvon said that as soon as he heard Combs's name mentioned as a possibility for the open seat, he knew it was a great fit.
During the last 15 to 17 years, Berkeley County school division has increased by more than 6,000 students, which led to an aggressive building program, Arvon said. Through the years, Combs has "led the charge in getting the business community" to support bond referendums needed to create those schools.
"Without Tina's help in supporting us, it would have been very difficult for us to keep up with that kind of school growth," he said.
Arvon also pointed out that Combs brings not only her business background but also her experiences as a parent to the board. She and her husband have two sons, Justin, 24, and Ross, 19, both educated in the public school system.
Combs was also the chairman of Blue Ridge Community and Technical College Board of Governors, a position she had to resign when she took the position on the Board of Education.
The spot was left open by Jenny Phillips, one of two members who dissented when the board voted to fire former state Superintendent of Schools Jorea Marple in November.
However, Combs said she is only "interested in working on issues to move the education system forward" and not in becoming involved in anything that happened before she was appointed.
The volunteer position will involve driving to Charleston once a month for the meeting, but Combs said the chamber's board has been supportive of the appointment, as has her husband.
People in her area are especially excited about the appointment because it is the first time since 2007 that the state's Eastern Panhandle has been represented on the board, she said.
The Eastern Panhandle has challenges that other areas of the state don't have, especially in its education system, Combs said. For instance, the area must compete with Virginia and Maryland when recruiting teachers.
"Other parts of the state don't have that because of where they are located," she said. "We also have a higher cost of living here, so we have to make sure our teachers are paid enough."
Contact Laura McFarland at lmcfarland@winchesterstar.com