This outlines the Cardinal Institute’s priorities for the coming session, including a One Door approach to better coordinate safety-net and workforce programs, social studies curriculum reform to strengthen civics, and expanded education options such as charter schools, the Hope Scholarship, microschools, and open enrollment.

West Virginia’s regulatory code has been piling up for decades, creating a growing burden on businesses and households. In Regulatory Reform in West Virginia: Unlocking More Economic Growth (2025), economist Patrick A. McLaughlin shows that West Virginia ranks among the more heavily regulated states, with 131,007 regulatory restrictions on the books and especially high regulation […]

West Virginia has recently added new layers of healthcare regulation, expanding government involvement in a system that is already complex and costly. Though often promoted as consumer-friendly reforms, these policies can alter incentives in ways that raise costs and strain access, particularly for rural communities and independent providers. A more effective approach is to simplify […]

West Virginians take pride in their industrious and hardworking nature. The narrative we share about ourselves revolves around resilience and determination. We have mined the coal that built and powered much of America. We have created homes and lives in hillsides and hollers that were once considered inhospitable. We embrace the tough jobs that need […]

Think of education funding like a pizza. West Virginia still slices it using old place settings such as fixed staffing ratios, building costs, and transportation formulas. Students who have left may still get a slice, while new options for families struggle to be served. Some say to make the pizza bigger, but the state already […]

West Virginia still uses a resource-based K-12 funding formula that ties dollars to staffing ratios, buildings, and mileage, not to the students in classrooms. Enrollment has fallen by more than 45,000 since 2000, yet “floors and ceilings” keep funding ghost students while capping fast-growing needs. This one-pager explains a modern, student-based approach: a base amount […]

West Virginia’s public school enrollment has been declining for over 20 years—long before the Hope Scholarship existed. Despite declining enrollment, districts employ more staff than ever and receive funding based on an outdated headcount, with $1.2 billion in COVID relief masking inefficiencies. The Hope Scholarship serves less than 2% of students, yet leaders blame school […]

This collection of wanted posters highlights civics education standards that are either absent or underrepresented in West Virginia’s curriculum. Each poster features a specific missing standard and why it is critical for the foundational knowledge students need to become informed, engaged citizens.

One Big Beautiful Bill is One Big Beautiful Opportunity to Reconnect West Virginians with Stable Work On July 4, President Donald Trump signed the latest congressional reconciliation package, known colloquially as the One Big Beautiful Bill Act (OBBB), a sweeping package of federal budget measures including extension of the 2017 tax cuts, spending cuts and […]

West Virginia’s workforce and social services operate through a fragmented system of multiple agencies and caseworkers, forcing residents to navigate bureaucratic silos while the state faces a 16.7% poverty rate, below-average household income, and declining labor force participation rates that significantly trail national benchmarks. The One Door to Opportunity report proposes consolidating these services into […]