KSBA Aware - News from the Kentucky School Boards Association

May 26, 2022

In this issue:

KDE's local board member advisory council meets
KSBA Law Update one week away
EPA offering $500 million in federal funding for purchase of clean school buses
Apply now for a seat on the KSBA Educational Foundation board of directors
Registration open for 2022 Summer Leadership Institute
Election filing deadline is June 7
Interim legislative committee meetings scheduled
June webinar focuses on women in educational leadership
Upcoming dates, deadlines and events

Local board member advisory council meets

Local school board members on the Kentucky Department of Education’s Local School Board Member Advisory Council met virtually and in-person May 24.

In addition to hearing an update on the department’s new Division of Diversity, Equity, Inclusion and Belonging, members heard from Education Commissioner Jason Glass about United We Learn, the department’s new vision for public education in the Commonwealth.

Glass also updated board members on the legislative session and the new state budget. Board members discussed raises for teachers, teacher shortages, school bus replacement and other topics.

Glass said he knows that the increases in the SEEK formula made it possible for some districts to provide raises for staff, but some districts are struggling to be able to raise teachers' pay.

"Given the funds that were available, I would say the legislature could have done more to support SEEK and put more dollars into that," he said.

The council is comprised of 13 local school board members. The next meeting will be held in September.

Watch the full meeting.

KSBA Law Update one week away

KSBA’s 16th Annual Federal and State Law Update (webinar) is one week away, from 9 a.m. until noon (ET) on Thursday, June 2. There is still time to register for KSBA’s only live comprehensive recap of the legislative session and its impact on school boards, but time and space are running out!

Our experienced legal and policy experts will provide a full review of the legislative session, the annual board policy/procedure update, Open Meetings/Open Records Act (OMA/ORA) updates and a federal law update. This training is recommended for more than just school board members. Understanding of the topics covered will be helpful to superintendents, board attorneys, assistant superintendents, school/district administrators, finance officers, etc.

View/download a complete agenda. Participants are eligible for three hours of training credit – state-mandated board member, CLE and EILA. The board member hours will count as Level IV/V elective credit in KSBA’s Academy of Studies.

KSBA's 2022 Federal and State Late Update is sponsored by the Kentucky Center for School Safety (KCSS).

EPA offering $500M in federal funding for purchase of clean school buses

The U.S Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is now accepting applications for its 2022 Clean School Bus Rebate program. With funding from the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, EPA’s new Clean School Bus Program provides $5 billion over the next five years (FY22-FY26) to replace existing school buses with zero-emission and low-emission models. EPA is offering $500 million through the 2022 Clean School Bus Rebates for zero-emission and low-emission school bus rebates as the first funding opportunity. Applications for this phase of available funding will remain open through August.

See the EPA’s 2022 Clean School Bus Rebates resource page for detailed information including application instructions, program benefits and outreach materials.

View slides from a recent webinar explaining the Clean School Bus Rebate program.

Apply now for a seat on the KSBA Educational Foundation board of directors

The KSBA Educational Foundation is currently seeking candidates to fill vacant seats on its board of directors following several current members’ completion of terms effective July 15, 2022.

Best known for its First Degree Scholarship program, the foundation works through partnerships with Kentucky’s public school districts, friends of education and other organizations to fulfill its priorities of research, school safety programming, student support services, technology and training opportunities for school board teams.

Review the information on the KSBAEF’s board of directors’ responsibilities and instructions for completing the online application.

If you wish to apply for an open seat, begin the online application here. The deadline to submit an application is Sunday, June 5.

Election filing deadline is June 7

The filing deadline for those seeking to run for local boards of education this November is 4 p.m. (local time) on June 7.

Approximately half of the school board seats in Kentucky will be on the ballot this fall. KSBA has published our 2022 School Board Election Resources Guide, available for viewing/downloading. The guide conveniently summarizes key aspects of school board service, election filing, campaigning, documentation and more.

Download the Election Resources Guide.

The Kentucky Secretary of State also has a downloadable packet of information and forms for school board candidates.

Registration open for 2022 Summer Leadership Institute (July 15-16) in Lexington

Easy online registration is open for KSBA’s 2022 Summer Leadership Institute (July 15-16) in Lexington. Click the blue button below to begin registration for this event.

View/download a complete conference schedule and session descriptions. The schedule, which this year includes a welcome reception and earlier Friday start/end times provides attendees with engaging sessions and ample opportunity for networking.

Special conference hotel rates

Following registration for the 2022 Summer Leadership Institute, registrants will receive a confirmation email that will contain, among other information, a unique link to reserve hotel rooms at a special conference rate of $152 per night.

Visit the SLI page on KSBA's website for additional details. All sessions at SLI can earn school board members state-mandated board training credit.

Interim legislative committee meetings scheduled

The General Assembly' interim joint committee meetings will begin in June. The Interim Joint Education Committee is scheduled to meet at 11 a.m., Tuesday, June 7.

The agenda includes a presentation on teacher shortages, recruitment and retention by the Kentucky Department of Education; an update on provisions implemented by the General Assembly related to rehiring retired teachers by the Teachers’ Retirement System; and a presentation on methods of reading instruction and Reading Recovery by the Collaborative Center for Literacy Development.

The Education Assessment and Accountability Review Subcommittee will meet at 3 p.m., Tuesday, June 7. The tentative agenda includes the Office of Education Accountability’s Annual Report and the 2021 District Data Profiles report.

The meetings will be streamed on the LRC YouTube site: https://legislature.ky.gov/Public%20Services/PIO/Pages/Live-Streams.aspx and some meetings will also be streamed by KET at https://www.ket.org/legislature.

June webinar focuses on women in educational leadership

KSBA’s 2022 “Learn and Earn” monthly webinar series offers pertinent topics while providing school board members with required training credits. Sessions are scheduled for noon – 1 p.m. (Eastern) on the second Wednesday of each month at a cost of $50 per session. All Learn and Earn webinars count for 1 hour of state-mandated board training credit.

The June installment, “What great leaders do and empowering women as educational leaders,” provides an overview on the research of what great leaders do and the disparities of women in executive leadership roles across the Commonwealth. The session will be presented by Jenny Watson, EdD., assistant superintendent of Learning Support Services, Boone County Schools.

All Learn and Earn webinars count for 1 hour of state-mandated board training credit. KSBA's 2022 series is sponsored by the Kentucky Center for School Safety (KCSS).