In the weeks following Hurricane Helene’s devastation across the Southeast, particularly in western North Carolina, a historic recovery effort has been underway to save lives, deliver critical supplies to those in need, and help rebuild our hardest-hit communities.

For thousands of families, life is further complicated by widespread school closures and uncertainty about their children’s futures. This educational recovery will require strong leadership, just as it has in other areas affected by the storm. In some places most affected, this is a process that will come in two parts.

The first, which is still ongoing, is the logistical challenge of reopening schools after a historic natural disaster. Many mountain district schools suffered heavy flooding and damage caused by Helene, and at least one elementary school in Yancey County was lost entirely. Damage to roads and water systems pose further challenges for school officials.

Asheville City Schools, which serves more than 4,000 students, says it hopes to reopen beginning Oct. 28, but the situation remains fluid. A major hurdle is providing enough drinking water for students and staff during the school day. Students will initially return for shortened four-hour days, according to news reports, as supplying enough water for full days would not be feasible.

Watauga County Schools and Buncombe County Schools recently announced their schools would reopen to students on Oct. 24 and Oct. 25, respectively. Like Asheville, Buncombe faces difficulties caused by the disrupted water supply, and both it and Watauga must use redrawn bus routes because of damaged roads and bridges.

All told, many thousands of students will have been out of school for just under a month. Even once they return, the trauma of this event will weigh heavily on many affected children as they try to resume normal learning.

This has led to many parents and teachers being concerned about learning loss in the wake of Helene. Compounded by school closures experienced during the COVID-19 pandemic, education leaders face an uphill battle to ensure students don’t fall further behind.

Addressing these challenges once schools finally reopen is the second phase of the recovery. This will require careful planning and strategic use of resources and budgets to mitigate and overcome the impacts of learning loss. As local policymakers, school board members will be at the helm of these efforts.

In this context, upcoming school board elections in western North Carolina take on much greater significance. They will determine not only who governs these school districts, but also who will lead an educational recovery process that could last for years to come.

There are several school districts heavily impacted by Hurricane Helene that have board seats up for election in November, including Asheville City Schools (three seats), Buncombe County School District (four seats), Madison County School District (two seats), and Yancey County Schools (three seats).

For many parents and voters, it is now a matter of deciding who will lead their schools in a post-Helene future.

We know that state leaders are laying the groundwork for recovery. Following a request from the NC Department of Public Instruction, the General Assembly passed a measure giving districts more calendar and remote learning flexibility to make up lost school days, along with additional funding, according to EdNC. While it did not include the $150 million for building repairs requested by the department, funding for these expenses is likely to follow.

Within these parameters, however, school boards will ultimately determine the specifics for their communities and the students they serve. This includes deciding where to invest limited resources, how and when lost school days will be made up, and what educational priorities will look like in the long term. When it comes to those who sit on these boards in western North Carolina, voters have big choices to make.