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Dear Colleagues,
I joined members of the Student Advisory Council for their last meeting of the school year as well as the Kentucky United We Learn Council convening last week.
During the Student Advisory Council meeting, Chief Performance Officer Karen Dodd spoke with the students about the Kentucky United We Learn Community Voice Project. She led the council members through an activity that encouraged them to create an audio recording of student voices that will be used to inform the work of the Kentucky United We Learn Council.
I had the opportunity to listen in as the student council members partnered up and recorded quick one-minute audio recordings of their thoughts and opinions on a range of questions that tied into the United We Learn themes.
The activities of both councils remind us of the importance of listening to the voices of Kentuckians as we reach for our moonshot, "To build a prosperous Kentucky, we will launch an accountability system that is meaningful and useful to all learners.”
To that end, the members of the Kentucky United We Learn council worked in four workgroups at their convening, focused on a specific topic to aid the council’s accountability proposal design process:
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Menu of Options: This work group is exploring how a menu of options accountability indicator could support vibrant learning experiences across the state and contribute to a more meaningful and useful Kentucky accountability system for all learners.
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Learning from Local Districts: This work group is exploring diverse practices to foster a personalized, relevant and engaging education system. By conducting site visits and engaging with districts, the group aims to link local innovations with an understanding of vibrant learning. The work group supports the council’s moonshot by using local innovations to create an accountable and impactful education system in Kentucky that encourages deeper learning through vibrant learning experiences.
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District Supports for Quality: This group is aiming to create a series of materials, tools and processes to support local districts in developing flexible but rigorous local systems of assessment and accountability, informing the state system of assessment and accountability.
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Engaging and Communicating with Communities: This workgroup is ensuring broad and diverse representation of stakeholder voices in the council, beyond council membership, and to reach those same voices and more when sharing about the work of the Kentucky United We Learn Council.
Once again, I want to thank you and share my appreciation for all your hard work and dedication to your students, staff, families and communities.
Sincerely,
Robin Fields Kinney
Interim Commissioner of Education
Kentucky School Report Card Finance Domain Open for Review and Data Entry
Districts are required to validate/approve district-level financial data entered by the Kentucky Department of Education (KDE) and calculate/enter school-level spending per student data in the Kentucky School Report Card Finance Domain. The site opened April 1.
Again, this year, districts have the option to enter a financial narrative to be displayed on the school report card. KDE strongly encourages districts to create a narrative.
The 750-character narrative will be displayed on the district’s financial transparency page under the header: A message from the superintendent. This narrative will give parents, community members and researchers a better understanding of the district’s financial picture, which cannot be gathered by looking at the data alone.
Finance officers were provided guidance on calculating spending per student data last week and the guidance can also be found on the KDE’s School Report Card Resources webpage. Additional guidance on entering the data and narrative has been provided to finance officers. Data entry must be completed by May 17.
Please reach out to your finance division to ensure this is completed. With KDE changing SRC vendors, there will be no extensions this year for entering data. All data entry MUST be completed by May 17.
Contact Jessi Carlton at (502) 564-3930, ext. 2468, with questions.
FY2023-2024 Independent Auditor Contract Is Available and Audit Acceptance Statement Window is Open
The FY2023-2024 Independent Auditor Contract is available and the Audit Acceptance Statement window was opened on April 15.
A minor typo was identified and corrected on the second page of the contract. The contract was updated on the Kentucky Department of Education's Financial Audit Contract Information webpage on April 16. Please make sure you’re using a copy downloaded after April 16.
Also, the completed contract and peer review documents are due and the Audit Acceptance Statement window closes May 31. Please submit all items by this date.
If you have any questions or concerns, please reach email Marshall Smith or call (502) 564-3846, ext. 4463.
Students Can Still Get Money to Help Pay for College and Postsecondary Training
As the school year wraps up, the Kentucky Higher Education Assistance Authority (KHEAA) wants students to know there is money available to help with all types of education beyond high school. Both the federal and state governments have need-based funds for students attending two-year, four-year and technical and trade schools. There are also financial aid resources for families who may not be eligible for need-based funds.
The only way for students to know how much money is available is to complete a 2024-2025 Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA). The FAFSA collects information from students and their families to determine how much money they may qualify for to help pay for college.
It is important for families to complete the 2024-2025 FAFSA as soon as possible to ensure they have access to the maximum amount of federal and state aid, as some programs are first-come, first-served. There may also be additional steps they need to complete before it’s time to attend college in the fall.
There are many resources to help students and families understand the FAFSA process and even get hands-on assistance:
Coming Soon
Get in-person help every Wednesday in June from 2-4 p.m. local time at sites across Kentucky. Check KHEAA social media for locations and updates.
If you’ve filed your FAFSA and need to know what’s next, join us and our partners at GEAR UP Kentucky for the June webinar. Check back on KHEAA and GEAR UP’s social media for links to register.
The Facebook event, GEAR UP + KHEAA FAFSA First Aid Virtual Parent Night Webinar, is on June 4 at 6:30 p.m. ET.
Kentucky Coalition for English Learners Presents the 2024 Summer Institute
Registration is now open for the Kentucky Coalition for English Learners 2024 Summer Institute. The Summer Institute will be held virtually on June 4-5.
Empower, engage and elevate with strategies, resources and insights designed to support and inspire educators working with multilingual learners at all proficiency levels.
Whether you're a seasoned veteran or just beginning your journey, consider attending the institute to help shape brighter futures for English learners across the Commonwealth.
The institute will feature two well-known national presenters: Andrea Honigsfeld will be leading two sessions, one focusing on co-teaching for English learners and the other focusing on dual-identification - multilingual learners with disabilities. Marie Heath will be leading three sessions, each focusing on various aspects of support and instruction for newcomers.
The remainder of the Summer Institute agenda features speakers from Kentucky Department of Education, Kentucky educators and specialists.
The registration link, agenda and additional details can be found on the coalition’s professional learning webpage.
EPA Hosting a Clean Heavy-Duty Vehicles Grant Program Information Session Webinar on April 30
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency announced the launch of the nearly $1 billion Clean Heavy-Duty Vehicles Grant Program to fund the replacement of certain polluting heavy-duty vehicles with zero-emission vehicles.
The 2024 Clean Heavy-Duty Vehicles Grant Program will support the adoption and deployment of eligible school buses, while also funding zero-emission vehicle fueling infrastructure and workforce development and training.
The 2024 Clean Heavy-Duty Vehicles Grant Program is designed to help applicants transition to zero-emission vehicles and reduce air pollution.
The EPA is providing two separate sub-program competitions. The first sub-program competition includes the School Bus Sub-Program for applicants replacing school buses. The second competition includes the Vocational Vehicles Sub-Program for applicants replacing non-school bus Class 6 and 7 vehicles – including box trucks, refuse haulers, dump trucks, street sweepers, delivery trucks, bucket trucks and utility trucks.
This funding is separate from the Diesel Emissions Reduction Act program.
The deadline to apply is July 25. The EPA will be hosting a Clean Heavy-Duty Vehicles Grant Program Information Session webinar on April 30 at 3 p.m. ET. Register at the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s Clean Heavy-Duty Vehicles Grant Program Information Session.
The EPA’s press release on this grant opportunity, “Biden-Harris Administration Announces Nearly $1 Billion in Grants to Invest in America’s Clean Heavy-Duty Vehicle Transition,” can be found on the U.S.. Environmental Protection Agency website.
To learn more about the Clean Heavy-Duty Vehicles Grant Program, applicant eligibility and selection process, please visit the Clean Heavy-Duty Vehicles Grant Program webpage.
Registration open for Certified Evaluation Training
Registration is now open for the 2024-2025 Initial Certified Evaluation Training.
As required by KRS 156.557 and 704 KAR 3:370, administrators newly assigned the role of evaluator of certified personnel must complete this two-day learning experience and pass the corresponding assessment.
Registration information and additional details are available on the Principal Partnership Project (P3) webpage.
Direct questions to Stacy Noah.
KDE to offer Statewide Federal Programs Training
The Kentucky Department of Education will be offering a virtual, statewide federal programs training at no cost to school districts on June 3-4. The same content will be offered on both days.
The training will highlight upcoming changes to the Uniform Grants Guidance, Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief (ESSER) funding, fiscal requirements, and other topics of importance for district federal program administrators.
The training will be provided by The Bruman Group (formerly Brustein and Manasevit), a legal firm that is nationally recognized for its federal grants management and education regulatory and legislative practice.
The training will benefit district staff who are responsible for the oversight and administration of federal education programs and compliance with legal requirements. The district superintendent, finance officer and federal programs coordinator are strongly encouraged to attend.
To register for this training, please complete the Bruman Group online registration form. An agenda and link to join the training will be sent in advance of the meeting.
For more information, email Leslie Bridges or call her at (502) 564-3791, ext. 4040.
Registration for the Kentucky Reading Academies: Cohort 3 of LETRS Professional Learning Opening May 1
Registration for the third Language Essentials for Teachers of Reading and Spelling (LETRS) cohort of the Kentucky Reading Academies will be open May 1.
The Kentucky Department of Education (KDE) has an exciting partnership that brings the LETRS professional learning to educators across the Commonwealth, called the Kentucky Reading Academies. This course of study was chosen because of its demonstrated success on a national scale in bringing significant increases in literacy achievement.
The Kentucky Reading Academies is a comprehensive no-cost professional learning opportunity open to all K-5 public school educators.
Two different courses are being offered through the Kentucky Reading Academies: LETRS for Educators and LETRS for Administrators. Interested educators can join the Kentucky Reading Academies by registering for the course that pertains to their role:
- LETRS for Educators Cohort 3: This course is recommended for K-5 teachers, interventionists, reading specialists and anyone providing reading instruction or intervention supports to early readers.
- LETRS for Administrators Cohort 3: This course is recommended for district leaders, building administrators and instructional coaches.
More than 4,000 Kentucky educators and administrators are completing the LETRS professional learning. Participants in both cohorts have stated that LETRS is a comprehensive professional learning that is enlightening, eye-opening and life changing.
Leslie Peveler, the director of elementary schools and the district multi-tiered systems of support coordinator for Daviess County Schools, shares her experience with the LETRS for Administrators Course.
"I am working through the LETRS for Administrators course,” she said. "There are wonderful tools that support implementation of a full scale, highly effective literacy program that principals and administrators can use while also becoming stronger in their own understanding of literacy instruction.
"Our district has become very systematic in ensuring professional learning and ongoing support to align to LETRS. As a district administrator, I have the privilege of seeing LETRS put in action by wonderful teachers who are dedicated to the early literacy needs of our students."
Please note: Cohort 1 and Cohort 2 participants will not need to register for Cohort 3, as they are already enrolled in the professional learning.
Find out more about the Kentucky Reading Academies on the Kentucky Reading Academies webpage.
Schools Encouraged to Submit Best Practices
The Kentucky Department of Education’s Best Practices and Sustainability website is open for submission of best practices from schools and districts.
The Best Practices website is designed to serve as a clearinghouse to promote practices that motivate, engage and provide measurable results in student learning, achievement and school/district processes. Any aspect of a school system that can impact student outcomes through improved instruction or operations can be submitted as a best practice.
Best practices should be submitted to the Best Practices database by May 10 to be considered for acknowledgement at the Continuous Improvement Summit, scheduled for Sept. 23-24. For more information, email Natasha Stein.
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