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Dear Colleagues,
I would like to share my sincere gratitude and appreciation for taking the time to share your feedback on the latest surveys you received, especially the Kentucky Educator Shortage Survey as I will be presenting the information on Tuesday, Oct. 15 in front of the Interim Joint Committee on Education.
Once again, the purpose of the Kentucky Educators Shortage Survey was to gather facts about the number of vacant certified and classified positions and the ways those vacancies were filled, if filled at all.
The shortage data allows the Kentucky Department of Education (KDE) to identify shortage areas across the state and to report to the Kentucky General Assembly to inform decisions regarding support for recruiting and retaining school personnel. The data focuses on the 2023-2024 and 2024-2025 school years.
We must have this information so that we can work together with the Kentucky legislature to support the need for educators while continuing to improve upon and create these vibrant learning experiences and opportunities for the children of Kentucky.
To recruit more people into the profession and help alleviate staffing issues facing all of Kentucky’s Schools, KDE is working on a public messaging campaign that will launch in 2025 to address this long-standing teacher shortage.
With fewer teachers available, class sizes often increase, which can lead to less individualized attention for students. We owe it to our children to ensure there are enough teachers to boost student engagement and learning outcomes.
National School Lunch Week
This week is National School Lunch Week. Having a nutritious meal throughout the day contributes to the success of our students in and out of the classroom.
Unfortunately, in some situations, those meals your students receive inside your schools are the only meals they get for the day. This is why we must continue to look at the whole student and how we can support them not only inside the classroom on an educational level but also with their overall well-being.
According to the National School Lunch Program (NSLP) there are over 30 million students each school day in over 95,000 public and private schools nationwide. These meals are carefully created daily for our students, following guidelines and federal nutrition standards that ensure the meals are within an age-appropriate calorie level and reduce food insecurity.
Here at KDE, we would like to take a moment to encourage you to thank all your Child Nutritional Professionals for their work within your schools, providing meals and supporting our students.
Kentucky Teacher of the Year
It was a pleasure to meet with Jennifer Montgomery, our 2025 Kentucky Teacher of the Year, as she visited the KDE office on Monday in preparation for her six-month sabbatical with the department.
Montgomery is a middle school English teacher for Eminence Independent Middle School. She was awarded the Kentucky Teacher of the Year honor last month and will represent us in the Council of Chief State School Officers’ National Teacher of the Year competition.
Montgomery, in addition to our other Teacher Achievement Award winners, truly go above and beyond to help develop the next generation of leaders in Kentucky, and I am excited to see where Montgomery’s work will take her.
Have a great week and thank you for being…
All In,
Robbie Fletcher
Commissioner of Education
 Jennifer Montgomery, the 2025 Kentucky Teacher of the Year, visited members of the Kentucky Department of Education leadership team as she visited the office for the first time Monday. Photo by Joe Ragusa, Kentucky Department of Education, Oct. 14, 2024
Free COVID-19 Test Kits
Infection rates from COVID-19, influenza and other respiratory viruses are typically higher during the fall and winter months.
To assist interested local education agencies (LEAs) in keeping students and staff safe and open for in-person instruction, the U.S. Department of Education, in partnership with the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, is pleased to offer over-the-counter rapid antigen COVID-19 self-tests free of charge for their students, families, staff and school communities. Schools may use this program to stock main offices and school nursing stations, send home for students and/or families and distribute to others needing them which may directly impact school-community well-being.
To participate in this COVID-19 Testing Supply Program, the LEA must complete the COVID-19 Testing Supply Program for LEAs Registration Form. A point of contact must be selected by the district prior to registration for this program. Basic LEA information will be needed for registration purposes and must match the information within the Public School District database on the U.S. Department of Education website.
If your district previously registered last year for this program, do not re-register. You may log in to the Health Partner Ordering Portal (HPOP) and order kits directly. Any question or issues with login or updating contact information, please contact the U.S. Department of Education COVID-19 Response Team.
Orders will be shipped directly to a single designated delivery address within the school district and should arrive within approximately 14-20 business days from the date that the order is placed.
Automated External Defibrillator (AED) Reporting Due Nov. 1
According to KRS 158.162, Kentucky school districts are required to submit an annual report to the Kentucky Department of Education (KDE) by Nov. 1 with the following information:
- The number and location of each portable automated external defibrillator (AED) in every school building;
- The name, school, and training date of each school district employee and interscholastic athletic coach in the district trained in the use of a portable automated external defibrillator;
- The progress made towards having a portable automated external defibrillator at all school-sanctioned athletic practices and competitions.
Each district submitted its AED counts via Infinite Campus prior to Oct. 1, with 100% compliance.
The District AED Implementation Progress Survey has been created for districts to address their continued progress of increasing additional AEDS at sports-related events. Districts are reminded to reply to all questions prior to submission and only submit one questionnaire per district.
Based on the new 2024 legislation in this area, a listing of all AED trained individuals in each building, including all coaches at the elementary, middle and high schools, must be provided. For the first year of reporting, only individuals trained from June 1 – Oct. 1, 2024 will be included on this report. Any staff trained after this date should be included on next year’s report.
If there are specific questions regarding the requirements and/or reporting, please reach out to KDE’s School Branch field staff for additional assistance.
Declaration of Participation Data Due by Dec. 15
The Declaration of Participation is open in the Grant Management, Application, and Planning (GMAP) system.
Through this process, data will be collected to identify the number of students enrolled in private and home schools within each district’s boundaries. This data will be used to calculate school year 2025-2026 allocations for the following federal programs: Title II, Part A: Supporting Effective Instruction; Title III, Part A: Language Instruction for English Learners and Immigrant Students; Title IV, Part A: Student Support and Academic Enrichment Grants; and IDEA-B: Individuals with Disabilities Education Act.
Please review the Declaration of Participation webpage and its resources. Of particular interest is the “Resources for Districts” section, which includes several guidance and resource documents. Each district must complete and submit the data in GMAP by Dec. 15.
Please reach out to Amanda Reifsnyder with general questions about the data collection process. If you have specific programmatic or GMAP questions, please reach out to the following KDE staff:
- Title II-A: Dana Kelly, (502) 564-1479, ext. 4502.
- Title III, English Learner/Immigrant: Kaiman Triplett, (502) 564-4970, ext. 4089.
- Title IV-A: Lee Bowling, (502) 564-4772, ext. 4035.
- IDEA-B: Karla Miller, (502) 564-4970, ext. 4155.
- GMAP Technical Assistance: Thelma Hawkins, (502) 564-1979, ext. 4361.
KDE seeks nominations from Kentucky schools for 2025 U.S. Presidential Scholars Program
The Kentucky Department of Education (KDE) is seeking nominations from schools for the U.S. Presidential Scholars Program.
This is not a scholarship; however, all scholars will be honored for their accomplishments during the National Recognition Program in June 2025 in Washington, D.C.
Presidential Scholars will be guests of the commissioner of the U.S. Department of Education (USED) during the National Recognition Program and receive an expense-paid trip to Washington, D.C., to meet with government officials, educators and other accomplished people. To commemorate their achievement, the scholars are awarded the U.S. Presidential Scholars medallion at a ceremony sponsored by the White House.
Each school may nominate three high school seniors: one male, one female and one career and technical education (CTE) student of any gender. KDE has more information about the criteria for CTE student candidates.
Schools are encouraged to nominate students who, while demonstrating outstanding scholarship, might not otherwise be nominated through the current ACT/SAT or arts recognition processes. For the arts component, students must participate in the YoungArts program through the National Foundation for the Advancement of Artists.
Considerations for Nomination
- What about the student makes them stand out as having outstanding scholarship?
- What is special about this student’s personal characteristics, leadership and service activities in the fields of academics, career education or the arts?
Staff Recommendations
To apply, school staff should decide who to recommend as Presidential Scholars and then complete the appropriate staff recommendation forms linked below for each student:
As a reminder, a school can recommend only three students: one male, one female and one CTE student.
Student Applications
After completing the staff recommendation form for each student, staff should contact the recommended students and ask them to complete one of the linked forms below:
Important Information
All applications must be submitted to KDE by Friday, Nov. 1. KDE will select and submit the names of 25 students to the USED. Please email Kathie Anderson if you have any questions or call her at (502) 564-4970, ext. 4133.
Fiscal Year 2025 Nita M. Lowey 21st Century Community Learning Centers Cycle 22 RFA Posted
As authorized under the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA), Title IV, Part B, 21st Century Community Learning Centers, the Kentucky Department of Education (KDE) is issuing a Request for Applications (RFA) for local school districts, community and faith-based organizations, as well as other qualifying private and governmental organizations to design and implement effective out-of-school programs that improve student achievement and social development.
The 21st Century Community Learning Centers program provides academic, artistic and cultural enrichment opportunities for children, particularly students who attend high-poverty and low-performing schools, to meet state and local standards in core academic subjects such as reading, math and science. Programs provide students with homework assistance and a broad array of activities that can complement their regular academic programs and promote youth development. The programs also offer literacy and other educational services to the families of participating children.
Programs must ensure that the academic services they provide are aligned with the school’s curriculum in the core subject areas. The RFA is located on the KDE Competitive Grants webpage.
To assist applicants in preparing a quality application, KDE will host an additional technical assistance session. The session will address essential grant requirements, budget preparation and state and federal guidance.
Participation in a session will be the only opportunity for applicants to ask face-to-face questions. Pre-registration is not required, but is available by visiting the Cycle 22 RFA technical assistance session registration webpage.
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Monday, Oct. 21 at the Administrative Office of the Courts building, 1001 Vandalay Drive in Frankfort, from 9 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. ET.
The deadline to submit questions is Tuesday, Oct. 22 at 4 p.m. ET. All questions must be sent to the KDE RFP email inbox. The deadline to submit applications is Tuesday, Dec. 3, at 4 p.m. ET.
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