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Dear District Assessment Coordinators,
Our hearts go out to the residents of Kentucky who have been impacted by the recent floods. The impact of this natural disaster has been profound.
In these challenging times, we are reminded of the incredible strength and resilience of Team Kentucky. We have witnessed neighbors helping neighbors, volunteers stepping up to provide aid, and countless acts of kindness that highlight the spirit of unity and compassion that defines Kentucky.
The Office of Assessment and Accountability extends our deepest sympathies to those who have lost loved ones and to all who are struggling to rebuild their lives. Please know that you are not alone. We stand with you, ready to provide support and assistance.
Sincerely,
Jennifer Stafford, Ed.D.
K Screen Online Ordering Window Opening Soon
District Assessment Coordinators (DACs) or District K Screen contacts may submit orders to Curriculum Associates through the Kentucky Department of Education (KDE). The ordering window begins tomorrow, Feb. 18 and closes on Friday, March 28. Curriculum Associates anticipates shipping to begin the week of May 9. If this is during the district’s summer vacation, consider shipping all the materials to a central location, such as the Board of Education office, to ensure a signature upon delivery.
The 2025-2026 K Screen Order Submission Form is housed on the Common Kindergarten Entry Screener webpage. The order form is a continuation of the Google Form used in previous years. Once the Google Form sections are complete, download and save the order form following the directions provided. After finalizing the spreadsheet, upload it into the Google Form before submitting it.
If further guidance is needed, ordering instructions will be available on both websites, or contact Tiffany Christopher.
2025 Feb. DAC Trainings Hybrid Question and Answer (Q&A) Session RESCHEDULED
Due to weather, the February DAC Training Hybrid Q&A session originally scheduled for Wednesday, Feb. 19 has been rescheduled for Wednesday, March 5 at the West Kentucky Educational Cooperative (WKEC) in Eddyville, KY.
In-person participants can begin to sign-in at 8:30 a.m. CT. The Q&A Session is scheduled from 9 a.m. to noon CT.
If not previously registered, please use the links below to register for the Eddyville February DAC Training Q&A Session. Registration is open for both in-person and hybrid attendance for the remaining location.
Meeting links will be sent out via email containing details on attending virtually.
Please note that if participants previously signed up to attend the Feb. 19 Q&A Session, either in-person or virtually, registrations will automatically transfer to March 5. There is no need to register again. Contact Christen Roseberry if you need to make registration changes.
March 5 In-Person Registration: West Kentucky Educational Cooperative (WKEC) in Eddyville (Capacity 90) or March 5 Virtual Registration: WKEC
Please contact Christen Roseberry with any questions or concerns surrounding the February DAC Trainings.
ACT Spring 2025 Junior State Administration – Materials Arriving Soon
Test materials to support activities related to the ACT Spring 2025 Junior State Administration, including the materials needed to conduct the non-test activities in MyACT, will arrive in schools the week of Feb. 17 or 24, depending on the material receipt week chosen in PearsonAccessnext (PAN). Testing staff can monitor the status of inbound material shipments in PAN (refer to the PAN User Guide and section titled “View Status and Shipment Information” for more information). After materials are delivered, be sure to follow the steps to inventory (check-in) the box(es) within 24 hours of receipt (refer to the ACT Test Coordinator Information Manual and the section titled “Receiving Materials before Testing” on page 27 for more information).
Please be aware that for this spring, all secure and non-secure materials will arrive together instead of separately, as in past years. This includes the personalized Non-Test Instructions for Students. Students should complete the non-test information in their MyACT accounts before testing.
Note that students can still test if they have not completed this task; however, Step 4 of the ACT-hosted testing website contains helpful resources about completing the non-test activity in MyACT.
For questions and assistance, please contact Christen Roseberry.
ACT Spring 2025 Junior State Administration – Non-Test Activities for the ACT and Parental Consent Policy Reminder
The delivered test materials will include personalized non-test instruction documents for each examinee, along with copies of the Taking the ACT booklets. These materials provide students with the necessary resources to complete non-test activities in MyACT. When students establish a MyACT account and have the account linked to this spring’s administration, the students will be able to utilize free test preparation resources. Students will also be notified via email when their score is available.
Additionally, schools will have access to a more comprehensive set of information when results are available that will help shape and influence curriculum to ensure examinees are taking or plan to take courses that will ensure they are prepared for success after high school. School testing staff should make arrangements to host in-school sessions to conduct the non-test activities. Schools should host separate sessions for students with and without parental consent. Step 4 of the ACT-hosted testing website contains helpful resources about completing the non-test activities in MyACT.
The Office of Assessment and Accountability (OAA) has worked with the U.S. Education Department (USED) to ensure that the KDE and Kentucky school districts are fully compliant with federal privacy laws concerning non‐test information provided to third parties when administering the Kentucky state administration of the ACT to students.
The Parental Consent Form is required for all students under the age of 18. The form is embedded into the Parental Consent Guidance. As a reminder, consent can be obtained via hard copy (written signature) or electronically via Google form or email. Note that verbal consent is no longer an option for collecting consent. Also, if a school does plan to collect consent electronically, testing coordinators need to consult with district administration to ensure local board policies are followed. If consent is not obtained from a parent and/or guardian, the student does not have permission to opt into the Educational Opportunity Service (EOS) system and send scores to colleges. The form does not hinder a student from taking the assessment.
For questions and assistance, please contact Christen Roseberry.
ACT Spring 2025 Junior State Administration – Test Preparation Reminder
Prior to the start of testing, OAA and ACT strongly encourage testing staff to be aware of all ACT policies and procedures and the responsibility for implementing those procedures. This ensures a fair and standardized testing experience, which also reduces the risk of misadministration. There are various resources available to testing staff, including training based on roles such as Room Supervisors. Please reference Step 5 of the ACT-hosted testing website to access these resources, which include the ACT Administration Manual – Online Testing, Room Supervisor Checklist, and Room Supervisor Training video.
Additionally, prior to the start of testing, school testing staff should make arrangements to host in-school sessions to conduct the non-test activities. Schools recently received materials that include personalized non-test instructions documents for each examinee and copies of the Taking the ACT booklets, materials that students need to conduct the non-test activities in MyACT. Schools should host separate sessions for students with and without parental consent. Step 4 of the ACT-hosted testing website contains helpful resources about completing the non-test activities in MyACT.
For questions and assistance, please contact Christen Roseberry.
ACT State Testing Office Hour – Feb. 20, 2025 - Reminder
OAA and ACT will host an office hour session on Thursday, Feb. 20, at 10:00 a.m. ET it will focus on the Non-Test Activity task. The session will be hosted via a Microsoft Teams meeting. While the content will be focused on highlighting that task, KDE and ACT encourage testing staff to attend and ask any questions regarding the upcoming administration. Please be sure to provide testing staff with this Microsoft Teams Link for the session. Attendees will not have to register for office hours specifically but will want to mark time on calendars to avoid any scheduling conflicts.
Featured Resource: WIDA Focus Bulletin Explores Considerations and Strategies to Help Multilingual Learners with Trauma
Trauma can be experienced by any student. For students who are learning English as an additional language or adjusting to living in a new place, these experiences add another dimension of care to be addressed by educators. Check out the WIDA Focus Bulletin from 2024 on Trauma Informed Considerations and Strategies for Multilingual Learners to learn about classroom practices to support your students.
For questions, please contact Chris Williams.
Educator Input on Future WIDA Professional Learning Offerings
WIDA professional learning is hard at work developing new learning opportunities. But WIDA can't do it without educators! Educator insights are essential to inform the design of future products and services. Currently, WIDA is gathering feedback via surveys on two topics:
- Kindergarten ACCESS professional learning offering
- Spanish Language Development Baseline Study
WIDA invites educators to complete one or both of the surveys by Monday, Feb. 24. Participation in each survey should take about 10 minutes.
For questions, please contact Chris Williams.
WIDA Assessment Management System (AMS) Outage
The Reporting Services application in WIDA AMS will be unavailable from 8 a.m.-12 p.m. CT on Sunday, Feb. 23 for maintenance. WIDA and Data Recognition Corporation (DRC) apologize for the inconvenience.
Reminder: 2024-25 CTE EOP Assessment Testing Window Opens Feb. 24
The 2024-25 Career and Technical Education (CTE) End-of-Program (EOP) Assessment testing window opens Monday, Feb. 24. Schools have selected a consecutive two-week school testing window to complete testing. Technical support during testing will be available M-F, 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. ET. All 2024-25 CTE EOP Assessment testing must be completed by Friday, March 28. Test tickets are now available in the online testing system, E-SESS, for review and testing preparations.
The CTE EOP Assessment is available in person and must be proctored in person per 703 KAR 5:080 (February 2014), Administration Code for Kentucky’s Educational Assessment Program, and 703 KAR 5:070 (April 2021), Inclusion of Special Populations in the State-Required Assessment and Accountability Programs. Refer to the CTE End-of-Program (CTE EOP) Assessment Coordinator and Test Administrator Manuals for more details related to assessment administration.
Please visit the CTE EOP Assessment webpage for more information and contact the Office of Career and Technical Education (OCTE) at kdeeopsupport@education.ky.gov, or Sherri Craig, OCTE, at 502-564-4286 ext. 4226 with any questions.
Reminder: 2024-25 TRACK Pre-Apprenticeship (Carpentry, Electrical, Welding) Assessment Testing Window Opens Feb. 24
The 2024-25 Tech Ready Apprentices for Careers in Kentucky Pre-Apprenticeship (TRACK) Carpentry, TRACK Electrical or TRACK Welding Assessment testing window opens Monday, Feb. 24. Schools have selected a consecutive two-week school testing window to conduct the assessment administration. Technical support during testing will be available M-F, 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. ET. TRACK Pre-Apprenticeship (Carpentry, Electrical, Welding) Assessments only pertain to schools with students enrolled in specified TRACK pathways. Not all schools participate in the TRACK program. All 2024-25 TRACK Pre-Apprenticeship Assessment testing must be completed by Friday, March 28. Test tickets are now available in the online testing system, E-SESS, for review and testing preparations.
The TRACK Pre-Apprenticeship Assessments are available in person and must be proctored in person per 703 KAR 5:080 (February 2014), Administration Code for Kentucky’s Educational Assessment Program, and 703 KAR 5:070 (April 2021), Inclusion of Special Populations in the State-Required Assessment and Accountability Programs. CTE EOP Assessment Coordinators and DACs/ATC Principals are responsible for the administration of TRACK Carpentry, TRACK Electrical and TRACK Welding Pre-assessments at the school level. Refer to the CTE End-of-Program (CTE EOP) Assessment Coordinator and Test Administrator Manuals and the specific TRACK Pre-Apprenticeship (Carpentry, Electrical, Welding) Assessment Instructions for more details related to assessment administration.
Please visit the Tech Ready Apprentices for Careers in Kentucky and the CTE EOP Assessment web page for more information and contact the Office of Career and Technical Education (OCTE) at kdeeopsupport@education.ky.gov, or Sherri Craig, OCTE, at 502-564-4286 ext. 4226 with any questions.
Reminder: OAA Committee Work Opportunities
The Kentucky Department of Education is seeking Kentucky educators to assist with various assessment-related tasks in the upcoming months. The goal is to ensure that the assessments are of the highest quality, accurately measure the Kentucky Academic Standards, and are fair to all test takers. The creation of the Kentucky Summative Assessments (KSA) and the Alternate Kentucky Summative Assessments (AKSA) is a complex process that includes standard setting, item writing, bias review, and blueprint development.
K-12 educators who are interested in participating in the assessment development and other committee work for the assessment system are encouraged to complete the application. A pool of candidates is being gathered for these critical steps and other supporting activities. Applications are being accepted for each of these activities in science reading, mathematics, social studies, and writing. Much of this work will be done virtually, and participants will receive a stipend.
The Application for Assessment Committees is due by April 15, for work needed in 2025. The Application for Assessment Committees is due by Tuesday, April 15, for work needed in 2025. If not chosen for participation this spring, summer, or fall, applicant names will be kept on file for future assessment work.
For questions, please email dacinfo@education.ky.gov.
Reminder: Submit WIDA Fellows Program Nominations
The deadline to submit 2025-2026 WIDA Fellows program nominations is Sunday, March 2. Twenty expert educators will be selected to join a dynamic professional learning community and provide guidance and feedback on the development of WIDA professional learning materials.
Browse the WIDA Fellows webpage to learn about the program, its benefits and the nomination process.
For questions, please contact Chris Williams.
Assessment Scores in Infinite Campus
KDE strives to publish student results data in Infinite Campus (IC) as it becomes available. KDE will begin publishing 2024-2025 SAT scores to districts beginning on Wednesday, Feb. 19.
Please email KDE data services inbox with any questions on this matter.
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