Eastern Kentucky districts continue to recover from devastating floods

Several more school districts impacted by July’s floods started the school year this week, while others hope to start later this month.

Leslie County started school Sept. 6 and Jenkins Ind. started on Sept. 12. Most of Perry County’s students started school on Aug. 29 but students in the district's Robinson Elementary and Buckhorn School, which were both severely damaged, returned to class at the re-opened A.B. Combs Elementary on Sept. 6.

Knott County Schools plans to return on Sept. 19 and Letcher County on Sept. 21.

Superintendents in the 25 districts impacted by the flood held a webcast with KDE on Sept. 1 and will hold another webcast at 11:30 a.m. today.

Many families in the districts remain displaced and some roads are still impassable. The flood relief bill passed by the legislature in the August special session provides $40 million for districts for cleanup, repairs and other services such as transporting displaced students or mental health counseling.

“Many thanks to the General Assembly and to the governor and all of the folks that worked to try to put together the assistance to really support districts,” said KDE Associate Commissioner Robin Kinney.

Education Commissioner Jason Glass visited the area along with officials from the U.S. Department of Education, Kentucky Emergency Management and the Federal Emergency Management Agency on Aug. 30 and 31.

“The photographs and videos people have seen do not do justice to the level of damage in your communities,” he said. “In every community we saw, the amount of progress that we’ve seen toward restoring school services has also been extraordinary. Just in a few weeks to see how far you’ve come has been amazing.”

Photo: A Perry Co. Schools teacher welcomes students to the first day of school at the newly re-opened A.B. Combs building. (Provided by Perry Co. Schools)

Free webinar on effective afterschool/summer student programming

School districts can use American Rescue Plan funds, also known as ESSER III, for high quality afterschool and summer learning programs. Join KSBA and the Kentucky Out-of-School Alliance at noon (ET) on Wednesday, Sept. 21 for "Engage every student: Using afterschool and summer to accelerate summer learning." Learn steps for launching and sustaining a successful program. Presenters include Tom Haggard, director of the Kentucky Out-of-School Alliance and a Covington Ind. board member, and Terry Peterson, senior associate for the Riley Institute at Furman University and national board chair for the Afterschool Alliance.

School board members and superintendents in attendance can earn one hour of state-mandated board training credit or one hour of EILA credit. The webinar is free for KSBA members and their district personnel, but space is limited. View/download a PDF flyer for this event if you wish to share information with others.

KET Forum discusses how to help young people in crisis

Suicide is the second leading cause of death for teens and young adults in Kentucky. One out of seven Kentucky high school students report having seriously considered taking their own life. September is National Suicide Prevention Month, and a new KET special – hosted by Renee Shaw – examines the problem, talking with students, educators and mental health professionals to explore the root causes of anxiety and depression and learn how to help young people.

Youth Mental Health: A KET Forum airs at 8/7 p.m.  Tuesday, Sept. 13, on KET and can be streamed at KET.org and on the PBS Video app. Additionally, after the forum, KET will air Facing Suicide, a PBS program that explores the powerful stories of those impacted by suicide, taking us to the frontiers of science, medicine and health policy to show us what we know about suicide and what that knowledge tells us about helping those at risk. Learn more about KET programs about mental health and related topics.

Join our team! KSBA employment opportunities

KSBA is hiring for the following positions. Access full job descriptions and online application links to current vacancies on KSBA’s employment opportunities page.

KSBA Director of Board Team Development

This full-time Frankfort-based position is responsible for all facets of the board team professional development service including identifying and addressing training needs, managing the planning and delivery of association conference programming, and curriculum development.

KSBA Policy and Procedure Consultant/eMeeting Trainer

This full-time Frankfort-based position is responsible for overseeing the day-to-day maintenance of public school district policies, procedures and other services for assigned districts.

Nominations open for KSBA's student scholarships and grants

Through the generous support of our members, friends and fellow public education advocates, KSBA and the KSBA Educational Foundation will award nearly $25,000 in scholarships and grants to public high school students across Kentucky in 2022-23. KSBA challenges every district to put forward the names of eligible students – helping them to jumpstart their careers!

Nominations are open for our First Degree College Scholarship program and CTE Student Grant program (previously called First Degree CTE scholarships). When nominating for this year’s student aid opportunities, districts should be mindful of several changes to the programs and their criteria. First and foremost, KSBA has moved the nomination forms exclusively online and streamlined the process.

First Degree College Scholarship changes: For 2022-23, the program is expanding from four scholarships to five thanks to a generous gift from the Ohio Valley Educational Cooperative (OVEC). As a result, one of the five scholarships will be awarded to a high school senior from an OVEC member district. The original four scholarships will still be awarded to students from districts statewide.

CTE Student Grant changes: Beginning this year, all CTE awards will be in the amount of $250 each, regardless of the nominee’s CTE program of study. Grants will be awarded directly to selected students for use towards any costs associated with their CTE career pathways; assessments, course materials, travel or other expenses incurred in pursuit of CTE industry certification. KSBA also removed previous criteria that immediate family members of CTE student grant nominees have not previously earned postsecondary degrees (thereby expanding eligibility to more students).

Access instructions, criteria and online nomination forms for KSBA’s 2023 First Degree College Scholarships and CTE Student Grants. The deadline is Nov. 30.  

KSBA is now accepting proposals for workshop sessions at the association's 2022 Winter Symposium to be held Dec. 9-10 in Louisville. Each workshop is 75 minutes in length. These sessions will be for presenters to share their experiences, knowledge or research about successful programs in their district or topics of critical importance to board members and education leaders.

Begin an online session proposal form. All submissions must be received by Sept. 16.

Email Shannon Robinson with questions.

Regional meetings underway; school safety a central focus

Two down, 10 to go. KSBA’s 2022 slate of fall Regional Meetings is well under way, but there is still time to register for many of the remaining dates. This year’s after-dinner program features regional compliance officers with the Office of the State School Security Marshal. Following a presentation on how the officers collaborate with local districts, attendees will take part in table discussions on school safety issues. This year’s regional meetings also include association updates and special recognitions, while half of KSBA regions are holding elections for new regional chairs.

See KSBA’s regional meeting page for details on meeting dates, host contact information, how to apply to be a KSBA regional chair and more. Dinner is provided by the host district for a fee. Unsure of your region? Check KSBA's regions list. Members will receive invitations and registration instructions from their regional chairperson in the weeks preceding their assigned region’s meeting. Questions about KSBA's regional meetings can be directed to your regional chair or KSBA’s Beth Pritchett at 502-783-0063 or via email.

Call for nominations: 2023 School Board Member of the Year

Nominations are open for KSBA’s 2023 School Board Member of the Year Award (BMOY). The BMOY was established this past year to honor the exemplary service of association members and to celebrate the critical roles school boards play in the advancement of public education in Kentucky. Selected honorees are those who have made significant contributions to public education through service on their local boards.

Board members, superintendents, district personnel and community members may nominate individuals for this award. Online nominations must be submitted by Dec. 16. Access BMOY award criteria, instructions and the online nomination form. Please read the criteria carefully for a full understanding of eligibility.

Read about last year’s winner, Dr. Carl LeBuhn of Paducah Ind. Schools. 

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

KSBA presents, “How to get to family-school-community collective efficacy for your school ecosystem,” at noon (ET) on Sept. 14 as the latest installment in our 2022 Learn and Earn webinar series.

Envision the school board meeting – the board is sitting in the front facing the crowd and the audience facing the board. How does that make everyone feel? Nervous, anxious, adrenaline rushing. While boards need to conduct business, these environments may not lead to families, schools and communities working together collaboratively. This session will share ways to design a safe space for communities to learn, grow and collaborate together. Information will be presented by Julia Pile, president of ParentCamp and Boone County school board member, and Laura Gilchrist, vice president of ParentCamp.

Register for this webinar and to view other upcoming webinar dates and descriptions.

KDE receives $3 million to support United We Learn

The Kentucky Department of Education (KDE) has been awarded $3 million over the next four years to support  United We Learn, the department’s vision for the future of public education in Kentucky.

The funding, from the 2022 Competitive Grants for State Assessments program from the U.S. Department of Education, will help advance innovations to move the state’s assessment and accountability system toward a competency-based education (CBE) model.

“Over the past year and a half, we have heard that Kentuckians are ready for change in their education system, especially when it comes to assessment,” said Education Commissioner Jason Glass.

In 2021, Glass held a series of virtual listening sessions with education stakeholders from across the Commonwealth to gather information on what they want the future of education to look like in Kentucky. Participants overwhelmingly expressed a need to advance the state’s approach to assessments.

Following the listening tour, the Kentucky Coalition for Advancing Education was formed to process data and create the United We Learn: Hearing Kentucky’s Voices on the Future of Education report. The report describes stakeholders’ desired future state of education around three ideas: creating a more vibrant experience for every student, encouraging innovation in our schools – especially when it comes to assessment – and creating a bold new future for Kentucky’s schools through collaboration with our communities.

KDE plans to use the CGSA grant to create greater coherence between local and state accountability systems.

Glass said KDE’s next steps are to establish the Kentucky United We Learn Council – which will be a diverse group of students, families, educators, business and community leaders – to create cohesive local and state systems and build an innovative statewide CBE model. 

September Kentucky School Advocate available online

School districts across eastern Kentucky are trying to recover from devastating floods in late July that left hundreds of people homeless, damaged schools and roads, and killed at least 39 people. Read about how districts are working to recover in the September issue of the Kentucky School Advocate. 

Also in the September Advocate:

• $212 million relief bill to aid eastern Kentucky

• Board member has surprise meeting with president, first lady

• Raising the stakes: Most boards approve employee raises in 2022-23

• Board members help celebrate back to school

• KSBA kicks off awards nomination season

• Glasgow, Powell hire superintendents

• Beyond the Board: Josh Mosby, Todd County Schools

• In Conversation With Nick Clark, president of the Kentucky Association of School Business Officials

• President's Perspective: Three keys to leadership on display throughout Kentucky

• KSBA Answers: Regional meetings will once again feature roundtable discussion

Sept. 1-30: Suicide Prevention Month

Sept. 12: KSBA Regional Meetings continue

Sept. 13: KDE's Superintendents Webcast

Sept. 19: Local Superintendent's Advisory Council virtual meeting

Sept. 20: Interim Joint Education Comittee meeting

Oct. 11-12: Kentucky Board of Education meeting, Russellville

Dec. 9-10: KSBA Winter Symposium, Louisville

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