Commissioner's Monday Message

June 21, 2021

Dear Colleagues:

The 2021-2022 school year is set to start up in about six weeks and many of us are contemplating what the next year will look like.

I know all of us have been dreaming of the day when we could “return to normal.” While I have longed for the days when my family and I could go back to taking a trip to the movies or a ballpark without fear of contracting COVID, I want us to aim higher than just thinking about going back to our old ways.

Instead of returning to our traditional way of doing things, I think we should give serious consideration as to how we can return to a better than normal school year.

In various meetings, I’ve been asking various groups of people what we should amply, what we should hospice and what we should create. The activity is the creation of a professor at the Harvard Graduate School of Education and prompts people to think about what a post-pandemic world should look like: what things we should keep, what things we should let go of to create space and what new things are needed.

I did this activity with the students from across the state who serve on the Commissioner’s Student Advisory Council. There were many things they liked about how school operated last year. I heard that they appreciated how they could see their assignments through Google Classroom and how flexible their schools were as they transitioned from in-person to virtual learning. A few of the students mentioned how with everyone using virtual learning, homebound students were able to finally experience the same type of education all of their classmates were receiving.

Not surprisingly, one of the things our students said they wanted to hospice was traditional lecturing.

“A lot of time (virtual classes) started off with listening to a lecture for 50 minutes just as we would in an in-person class,” said Sofie Farmer, a recent graduate of Gatton Academy. “It was really ineffective online and was still ineffective in person.”

Our students asked for stigma-free spaces for students, teachers and other education community members so individuals can feel comfortable addressing mental health issues. Council members also called on schools to use innovative methods to rethink education in the Commonwealth.

“Don’t be scared to push the needle to rethink the education system,” said Logan Justice, a rising senior at Paul Laurence Dunbar High School (Fayette County). “… Don’t create your thought of a good student, because we’re all different. We all have different, unique abilities, skills and talents. Don’t create a school system based on one mold of a student.”

These are just some of the ideas we’ve heard.

At KDE, we will be working to learn more about what was effective and what wasn’t during the past year, which will help shape our work going forward. Let’s use all the information we have gained during this tumultuous time to create a new normal in our schools that better meets the needs of all of our students.

Kind regards,

Jason E. Glass, Ed.D.

Commissioner & Chief Learner

New Kentucky Academic Standards for Library Media

704 KAR 8:100 adopts into law the Kentucky Academic Standards for Library Media, and it is now available at KYstandards.org. 

In the summer of 2019, approximately 30 school library leaders from across Kentucky began work on the first Kentucky Academic Standards (KAS) for Library Media. The standards-writing team unanimously decided to use the American Association of School Librarians (AASL) Standards Framework for Learners as the foundation of the KAS for Library Media.

The standards-writing team expanded on the AASL standards with learning indicators at each of four grade levels, K-2, 3-5, 6-8 and 9-12. After a nearly 2-year process – which included the drafting and revising of the standards, opportunities for public comment and legislative review – the standards were fully adopted by the Kentucky Board of Education on May 4, 2021.

Although the standards do not have a connected graduation requirement, they are, by law, the standards that must be used if a school has a library media program or elective (which includes all K-12 public schools in Kentucky). The Kentucky Academic Standards for Library Media will be included in the same 6-year cycle of review and revision as all other content area standards.

Information Regarding Data Affecting Federal Allocations

The Kentucky Department of Education (KDE) has been informed by the U.S. Department of Education (USED) of an error in data reporting that will affect several federal allocations. On June 4, 2021, USED contacted KDE concerning inaccurate foster care data submitted in October 2018 and October 2019 by the Kentucky Division of Family Support (KDFS), a division within the Cabinet for Health and Family Services (CHFS). 

This data was submitted to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, which then transmitted it to USED for use in determining school year (SY) 2019-2020 and 2020-2021 allocations for Title I, Part A under the Every Student Succeeds Act. KDFS made the following data reporting errors:

• October 2018: Counts of foster care children in both foster placements and those in the cabinet’s custody within residential care were reported. Those in the cabinet’s custody within residential care should not have been included.
• October 2019: Counts of foster care children of all ages were reported. Only children ages 5-17 should have been included. Also, those in the cabinet’s custody within residential care were reported. Those in the cabinet’s custody within residential care should not have been included.

It should be noted this reduction could affect districts’ Title I, Part A hold harmless percentages released in early January 2021. For further information concerning those percentages, see the Notification of Tentative Census Poverty and Hold Harmless Percentages for the 2021-2022 school year. Although this data primarily affects the Title I, Part A allocation, other programs are allocated, in part, based on that award. 

As a result of this discovery, USED is required to make adjustments to Kentucky’s Title I, Part A allocations for both school years 2019-2020 and 2020-2021 and to those programs affected by these allocations.  

In order to reduce burden on the state and its districts, USED will make reductions when it awards SY 2021-2022 funds for these programs. KDE expects to have these amounts within the next couple weeks and will begin processing allocations at that time. 

In addition, the opening of affected applications will be delayed, particularly those in the Grant Management Application and Planning (GMAP) system. 

If you have questions, email David Millanti or call him at (502) 564-3791.

Webinar on Evidence-based Practices for APR ESSER Available

On June 14, the Kentucky Department of Education hosted a webinar outlining the evidence-based practice requirements of the American Rescue Plan Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief (ARP ESSER) program. A recording of this webinar has been made available on the KDE Media Portal for viewing.

The webinar includes a review of the requirements for creating local ARP ESSER plans, a discussion of the definition of evidence-based practices under the Every Student Succeeds Act and resources to help districts jumpstart the planning process.

Essential Workplace Ethics Reporting Required by Sept. 1

KRS 158.1413 requires districts to create an essential workplace ethics program for all K-12 students as of the 2019-2020 school year. As part of this requirement, districts must determine how, when and where this education and training will take place. This legislation requires each local school board to collaborate with the local workforce investment board, in conjunction with the local economic development organization and other economic, workforce or industry organizations the workforce investment board deems necessary.

The law requires districts to report to the commissioner of education and the Kentucky Workforce Innovation Board how the essential workplace ethics program is being implemented in each district at the school level. The next district reporting deadline is Sept. 1, 2021, and every two years thereafter.

Districts should report this information by Sept. 1 using this survey. The survey was designed to be user-friendly and not require a large investment of time.

Registration is now open for the 2021 Persistence to Graduation Virtual Summit

Join the Kentucky Department of Education’s Division of Student Success for the 2021 Persistence to Graduation (PtG) Summit on June 29-30 from 9 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. ET using a new virtual platform.

This interactive experience will bring together education professionals from across Kentucky to share innovative strategies for student support that empowers them to graduate high school and transition successfully to their next chapter. This peer-to-peer experience will better prepare districts and schools to meet student needs in our contemporary environment. Engaging and interactive sessions being led by facilitators from across the state will include:

• Well-Rounded Educational Opportunities;
• Safe and Supportive Learning Environments;
• Effective Use of Education Technology;
• Student Transition and Re-engagement Strategies; and
• Alternative Education.

Keynote speakers Manny Scott of the Freedom Writers will join us on June 29, followed by school leadership expert Principal Baruti Kafele on June 30. Attendees may participate live or view sessions for up to 30 days following the event.

Registration for the PtG Summit is available at no cost to participants through support using Title IV Part A funding, but registration is limited. Please send a cancellation request if you will not be able to participate live or within 30 days of the event so others can be admitted from the waitlist.

For more information or to cancel a registration, email Sarah McIntosh.

Continuous Improvement Summit Registration Now Open

The Kentucky Department of Education (KDE) and Cognia™ invite you to the 2021 Continuous Improvement Summit on Sept. 22-23 at the new Central Bank Convention Center, adjacent to Rupp Arena in Lexington. 

Through a partnership focused on ensuring success for all learners, KDE and Cognia are excited to offer a valuable professional learning experience to meet your needs.

During the Kentucky Continuous Improvement Summit, KDE leaders, Kentucky teachers and administrators and Cognia staff will provide up-to-date information to help you effectively lead your district, school or classroom during the 2021-2022 academic year and beyond. Together we’ll learn and explore a wide range of valuable themes you can apply in your everyday practice:

• How to use Continuous Improvement resources to improve learning;
• Improvement planning and key processes for the upcoming school year;
• Accountability system updates from Senate Bill 158;
• Intervention plans focused on the loss of instruction from COVID-19; and
• Non-traditional instruction (NTI) programs, supports and ideas.

Join us to discuss these topics and more. Educators from across the state will connect and network during this two-day event. Do not miss out on the opportunity to learn from experts and peers to enhance your continuous improvement efforts. 

Registration is available on the Cognia website.

Those receiving this at KSB and KSD, please make sure all employees receive it. Also, ATC principals are asked to forward it to their staffs.

Please send your questions, comments and suggestions on Monday Message to Jennifer Ginn by 10 a.m. Friday to be published in the upcoming week.