 Kentucky Board of Education member Holly Bloodworth and Education Professional Standards Board Vice Chair CJ Fryer talk with each other during a discussion about how both boards operate. Photo by Joe Ragusa, Kentucky Department of Education, June 5, 2025
(FRANKFORT, KY) – Members of the Kentucky Board of Education (KBE) met with members of the Education Professional Standards Board (EPSB) during the KBE meeting June 4-5.
The discussion – which covered the role the Kentucky Department of Education’s (KDE’s) Office of Educator Licensure and Effectiveness plays in implementing regulations and overseeing programs that advance KBE and EPSB’s policy priorities – also served as a joint gathering between KBE and EPSB members.
The Office of Educator Licensure and Effectiveness was created through an executive order from then-Gov. Matt Bevin in August 2018 which moved the administrative functions of the EPSB to KDE. Meredith Brewer, associate commissioner of the Office of Educator Licensure and Effectiveness, said the discussion was to help create a better understanding of how KDE supports both EPSB and KBE.
“Whenever we’re thinking about any initiative, we’re thinking about how it fits within this full cycle of teacher recruitment and retention and how we can enhance and support our educator workforce in any initiative that we take upon our work in the office,” Brewer said.
The work includes branches dedicated to educator certification and educator preparation, along with the Division of Educator Recruitment and Development, which houses the GoTeachKY teacher recruitment and retention campaign and the Kentucky Teacher of the Year program.
Norah Softic, deputy general counsel in the KDE Office of Legal Services, provided an overview of EPSB, which has the authority and responsibility to establish standards and requirements for obtaining and maintaining a teaching certificate. EPSB can take disciplinary actions against educators for misconduct based on violations of KRS 161.120, which includes the Professional Code of Ethics.
“You’ll see that there’s this balance. The first part is to ensure that the educator understands their professional duties, and that’s where we have this rehabilitative, restorative piece that if there are gaps in the educator’s knowledge, we want to be able to fill those gaps,” Softic said. “Then you’re also balancing that against this other need, which is to protect students, parents, school personnel or school officials.”
Discussion between EPSB and KBE board members centered around the quality of educator preparation programs, how those fit into what’s being assessed in schools, and how to improve collaboration with both boards, especially as it relates to teacher recruitment and retention. Members of both boards plan to have more meetings with each other and with other stakeholder groups in the future to discuss these topics and more.
Assessment and Accountability
KBE members discussed the latest framework to revamp Kentucky’s assessment and accountability systems.
Framework 4.0 centers around local accountability indicators and state accountability indicators that meet federal requirements. Local accountability would include flexible options for districts to determine their own indicators, while other indicators that would be required at the state level – writing, social studies and vibrant learning experiences – would have options for flexibility within them.
Commissioner of Education Robbie Fletcher discussed advocacy efforts related to the latest framework. Fletcher and other KDE leaders – including the recently announced incoming associate commissioner of the Office of Assessment and Accountability, Jennifer Stafford – have been discussing the framework with several advisory groups and stakeholders, including lawmakers on the Interim Joint Committee on Education on June 3.
Fletcher was joined by two superintendents, Brian Creasman of Fleming County and Jesse Bacon of Bullitt County, during the meeting with lawmakers to discuss some of the work they have done with local assessment and accountability.
“If you’re really truly going to engage your community, this takes time and this takes a lot of specific, detailed work to work with our local businesses, with your local faith leaders, your teachers, your students, to make sure you are addressing the needs of your community,” Fletcher said. “You just can’t flip a switch and hope that everyone is at the same spot.”
Fletcher said following the Interim Joint Committee on Education meeting, representatives from other local school districts have reached out to express interest in joining the pilot phase of implementing the new proposed assessment and accountability framework.
 Commissioner of Education Robbie Fletcher and KDE Division Director Jennifer Stafford present the latest assessment and accountability framework to the Kentucky Board of Education. Photo by Joe Ragusa, Kentucky Department of Education, June 5, 2025
KBE Chair Sharon Porter Robinson said the conversation during the Interim Joint Committee on Education meeting was enlightening, especially the discussion around improving access to education for everyone and removing barriers to education like the superintendents saw following discussions with their communities.
“Even as a policy wonk, I fully suspect that the community’s address of those barriers will be much faster and more effective than depending on policy,” she said. “So, it’s a way of seeing how unleashing the power of accountability produces immediate benefits to the students once the community becomes aware of (the barriers’) existence and their power to address those barriers.”
Board members also spent time discussing the role of interim assessments in the framework and ensuring assessment results are comparable across districts.
More information about the current framework and the Kentucky United We Learn Council’s timeline can be found on KDE’s Reimagining Assessment and Accountability webpage.
Kentucky Teacher of the Year
Jennifer Montgomery, an educator from Eminence Independent and the 2025 Kentucky Teacher of the Year, updated board members on her ambassadorship with KDE.
Montgomery has been visiting schools, universities, colleges and other education organizations across the Commonwealth, speaking with students and teachers about their experiences.
“One thing that I’ve noticed, no matter what the location has been, is that in every place that I have shared my story, other people have shared theirs with me in return,” Montgomery said. “That exchange has reminded me that the most powerful professional development isn’t always in a new program or in new skills, but it’s often found in listening.”
 Jennifer Montgomery, the Kentucky Department of Education (KDE) Teacher of the Year, addresses the board during her final meeting. Photo Myles Young, Kentucky Department of Education, June 5, 2025
Montgomery shared stories from educators she has talked to, ranging from a mother who returned to college to get her education degree, to a finalist for the 2025 Kentucky Teacher of the Year who teaches English language learners to embrace their heritage, to an agriculture teacher who provides real-life vibrant learning experiences to the classroom.
Montgomery said the stories of educators and students are some of the most powerful tools in education, “because they connect us; because they help us see beyond even assessments and standards and help us see the human heartbeat in what we do.”
Montgomery said her goal with the six-month ambassadorship with KDE’s Office of Educator Licensure and Effectiveness was to highlight those stories “because they matter,” while also encouraging vibrant learning experiences, fostering innovation and collaboration, and highlighting educators who are already doing this type of work. Montgomery has tracked her progress on the Every Story Matters page of the GoTeachKY website.
“It has been a joy to have her in the Division of Educator Recruitment and Development,” said Elly Gilbert, assistant division director in the Office of Educator Licensure and Effectiveness.
Montgomery said she plans to continue speaking engagements and other collaborative efforts with educators in the summer and fall.
Outgoing Board Members
The June KBE meeting marked the last for nonvoting student member Preston Graham and nonvoting teacher member Lawrence McCrobie.
Graham, who will be a senior at Woodford County High School in the fall, said it has been an amazing experience for which he couldn’t be more grateful.
“You all have been an incredibly welcoming and inviting group to me and it has been an absolute honor to serve on this board,” Graham said. “All of you have been my mentors since day one.”
Robinson praised Graham for voicing his opinion on a variety of policies starting with his first board meeting in August 2024.
“That voice has not lost any volume. It may have gained a bit in insight and texture and so forth, but I hope you never lose the confidence that led to your coming forth in your very first meeting with us and making yourself known,” she said. “That is the kind of student leadership that we need because we don’t have time to waste. We need to understand the perspective of those we want to serve.”
 Preston Graham, the Kentucky Board of Education (KBE) Non-Voting Student Board Member, addresses the board during his final meeting. Photo Myles Young, Kentucky Department of Education, June 5, 2025
McCrobie said serving on the KBE has been one of the most meaningful chapters of his professional career.
“As a current classroom teacher within the Commonwealth, it has been both uplifting and inspiring to witness first-hand the inner workings of educational policymaking and advocacy,” McCrobie said.
McCrobie, an arts educator in Jefferson County, is entering his 23rd year in education, and he said the experience with KBE members has been immensely insightful.
“The learning curve has been steep, but every agenda item, every policy review and even the less-joyful business has deepened my appreciation for how education is led and shaped,” he said. “These experiences have reminded me that this work, just like classroom work, is filled with both celebrations as well as complexity, and for that, I am sincerely thankful.”
McCrobie also thanked several people who helped him along in his career, including his father, who passed away in December 2024.
“Although my dad has never gotten to see this part of my journey, I know that he would be proud of me,” he said.
McCrobie and Graham were the fourth pair to hold the nonvoting teacher and student positions on the board. During the meeting, the board approved applications for the next nonvoting student and teacher members. The new members will begin their one-year tenure July 1.
In other business, board members:
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