With the coronavirus cases surging across the state, and with them hospitalizations and deaths, Gov. Andy Beshear on Wednesday announced that all Kentucky schools would close to in-person instruction through Dec. 7.

Beshear’s executive order allows elementary schools to reopen to in-person instruction Dec. 7, provided that the county is not in the red zone on the state’s COVID-19 incidence map and that the school follows all of the expectations laid out in the state’s Healthy at School guidance.

Middle and high schools will be closed to in-person instruction through Christmas break and allowed to reopen Jan. 4.

“This virus, at the level it is right now, is and will overwhelm each and every one of our schools if we do not take action,” Beshear said, adding that as of Wednesday there were nearly 10,000 Kentucky K-12 students and 2,000 staff in quarantine. “If we are going to be able to provide meaningful educational experiences in-person especially, at the beginning of the next semester, we have to take action now and we’ve all got to do it at the same time.”

Beshear on Wednesday also announced the death of the first student from the virus, 15-year-old Ballard County Schools student Alexa Rose Veit.

After the press conference, Education Commissioner Jason Glass said in several media interviews that if superintendents or board members defied the governor’s orders they could be removed from office under state law.

Glass also reiterated threat of removal in a conference call with leaders from KSBA, the Kentucky Education Association, the Kentucky Association of School Superintendents and the Kentucky Association of School Administrators.

During the closure, schools will be allowed to bring in small groups of students as laid out in previous small group guidance.

Beshear on Thursday said the school closure was “probably toughest step I’ve had to take as governor.”

"This virus is doing everything we hate. If you’re upset that school’s going to be virtual, you can be upset with me. But it’s the virus,” he said. “This is our state and I am not going to surrender to this virus. We the people of the Commonwealth will fight back.”

After consultation with KSBA board leadership and staff, and based on Gov. Andy Beshear’s executive order limiting gatherings at indoor venues, we will offer our upcoming 2020 Winter Symposium exclusively as a virtual event. More detailed information about the virtual Winter Symposium, including updated event materials and answers to frequently asked questions, may be found on the Winter Symposium page of our website.

For newly elected school board members: The 2020 Winter Symposium falls within a regular school board election year. Newly elected school board members may attend this virtual meeting to take part in board service orientation that KSBA refers to as "New Board Member Boot Camp." This will give them a jump start on their 2021 school board member training as well. This rare opportunity is only available to newly elected board members who have not been sworn in. Participation is strongly encouraged.

Since 1992, the KSBA Educational Foundation has funded a growing list of programs from student support services (including our First Degree Scholarship Program) and technology initiatives, to school safety training and professional development for districts and their board teams. Through the generous contributions of association members, friends and community partners like you, KSBA has made every dollar count. This year, however, with the leadership of American Fidelity Educational Services, your dollar counts double!

American Fidelity has generously offered to match every gift made to the foundation until Dec. 31 or until we hit our goal of $10,000 – whichever comes first. Whether you give $50 or $500, your contribution will be matched dollar-for-dollar. If, together, we raise $10,000, American Fidelity will double our impact with an additional $10,000 contribution of its own.

You can make your gift to the foundation in one of two ways: (1) Mail or deliver your gift as a check made payable to “KSBA Educational Foundation, Inc.” to: KSBA Educational Foundation, 260 Democrat Drive, Frankfort, KY 40601. (2) Click the button below to visit our matching challenge page where you can learn more about the work of the foundation and follow easy instructions to make your secure gift online. Your contribution to the KSBA Educational Foundation, a 501(c)(3), is tax deductible. 

Visit the KSBA Educational Foundation's new website.

The November Kentucky School Advocate is available online and features commentary from Kentucky Education Commissioner Jason Glass on the need for civility. Glass, in the article that first appeared in the School Administrator magazine, suggests five rules for engagement that can lead to better conversations and better decisions.

Also in the November issue:

Two state representatives, who are also educators, have sponsored a bi-partisan resolution designed to improve the state’s accountability system.

Rep. Tina Bojanowski (top right), D-Louisville, and Rep. Kim Banta (bottom right), R-Fort Mitchell, presented Bill Request 176 at the Nov. 12 Interim Joint Education Committee meeting. The resolution would create a committee to examine opportunities to improve the state’s current approach to assessment and accountability.

Kentucky does more standardized testing for its accountability system than the federal government requires, said Bowjanowski, a special education teacher in Jefferson County. Testing is also expensive, she said, with the Kentucky Department of Education spending $21 million on testing per year.

“How can we take this money and make it more productive to helping our children be more literate, better at math, drive instruction, give teachers more information, give parents more information,” she said. “I think it’s time to look at flexibilities in the system that can help us better drive instruction.”

Bowjanowski noted current state testing isn’t useful for instruction because results are not in until students have moved on to the next grade.

According to the presentation, the committee’s findings could lead to testing that more accurately measures what student know and gives teachers a better idea of who is falling behind throughout the school year. That could include replacing summative assessments with interim assessments, reducing the emphasis on high-stakes testing, incorporating alternative performance measures such as portfolios and using adaptive tests.

“We need to figure out how we can make this accountability system more productive for all of our students,” Bowjanowski said.

The representatives noted that currently some teachers feel obligated to teach to the test to improve their schools’ standing in the accountability system. Meanwhile, some subjects are not taught in some grades because they are not tested.

Teachers are the experts and should have more flexibility in how they teach, said Banta, former Kenton County Schools assistant superintendent.

“I think what we forget is we have elected board members that are in charge of the policies in that district, they go to great lengths to hire a superintendent, who is paid well, they are supposed to be the best of the best, they are there to run that district and they hire good teachers and,” Banta said. “We need to let districts start doing what they need to do for their own kids.”

If the resolution passes, the committee would be required to report their findings to the Interim Joint Committee on Education by Dec. 1, 2021 and again on Dec. 1, 2022.

Closing the homework connectivity gap and bridging the digital divide is a priority across the country. Earlier this month, AT&T announced a new education initiative to help address the divide.

Through Dec. 29, AT&T is offering a two-year, $15-a-month unlimited wireless data and plan with free hot spot to students at more than 135,000 schools across the county. In addition, they are offering free service to teachers to support their virtual classrooms, and offering teachers a discount on personal wireless service.

AT&T also announced a new $10 million contribution and collaboration with Connected Nation to provide free internet and devices to underserved communities.

Over the next several months, KSBA will be spotlighting our Tier 1 and Tier 2 Affiliate Members in Q&A videos. The videos will provide information on the services the companies provide to school districts and why they choose to support public education.

This week's spotlight is Audio Enhancement. Austin Anderson, regional sales manager for Audio Enhancement, joined KSBA's Matt McCarty for a Zoom conversation.

Check out all KSBA Affiliate members on our website.

This edition of KSBA Aware is made possible in part