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Dear Colleagues,
The beginning of the school year is always a very exciting time. Many of you are already off and running, and I wish nothing but the best for you and your students as the year progresses.
This has always been my favorite time of the year, welcoming students, educators and staff back into the buildings filled with joy and the passion to learn. I hope you are all off to a great start and I look forward to visiting as many of your school districts as I can this year!
As the school year begins, you will notice our chronic absenteeism campaign ramping up again with a new slogan: You Belong!
This slogan will be featured on TV, billboards, streaming audio platforms, public transit and venues such as the Kentucky Exposition Center, Rupp Arena and the KFC Yum! Center.
We want every single student to feel like they belong within our classrooms. We will have more to announce about this campaign soon, and you can visit the KDE Chronic Absenteeism webpage for more information and resources to help address the issues behind chronic absenteeism.
I know many of you sent your own letters to families last year about the importance of regular attendance last school year. I want to thank you for that effort and encourage you to consider doing that again this year.
I have seen so many wonderful, engaging things happening in classrooms across the state over the past year. But we know that if our students aren’t in the classroom today, we can’t help them learn the skills they’ll need for tomorrow. Thank you for all that you do in making our students excited to learn and helping them feel they belong in your buildings and classrooms.
As always, thank you for being …
All In,
Robbie Fletcher
Commissioner of Education
Improvement Planning 2025-2026
Planning for the 2025-2026 academic year is now underway. A collaborative approach that brings together diverse stakeholders is essential to identifying priority needs and determining the most effective resources and strategies to address them. Schools and districts will engage in this collaborative process with the shared goal of advancing student success and strengthening their communities.
The Kentucky Department of Education (KDE) will continue using the Cognia Continuous Improvement Platform (CIP), and the diagnostics for 2025–2026 are now available. Since schools and districts are required to develop an annual improvement plan, new diagnostics must be initiated. When completing diagnostics in the CIP, please verify that you have selected the correct level (system or school) and the appropriate school year.
The process and timeline for comprehensive school and district improvement planning, as outlined in 703 KAR 5:225, remain unchanged and are detailed on the Comprehensive Improvement Planning webpage. Please note the addition of a new diagnostic for districts this year as required by Senate Bill 2 (2024).
The District Trauma-informed Approach Plan diagnostic will be part of Phase Two which is to be completed by Nov. 1. For more information regarding this new diagnostic, please contact Christina Weeter, Division of Student Success director in the KDE Office of Continuous Improvement and Support.
Improvement planning is a continuous process, and plans may be updated throughout the year. However, the established timeline outlines all required diagnostics for each phase and their statutory deadlines.
We also encourage you to attend the Continuous Improvement Summit, taking place Sept. 22-23 at the Central Bank Center in Lexington. This event will dive deeper into improvement planning practices, highlight continuous improvement initiatives, and unveil the recently updated Comprehensive District Improvement Plan and Comprehensive School Improvement Plan goal building templates.
For questions about the CIP platform, please contact Veronica Boller. For additional guidance on improvement planning, visit the Comprehensive Improvement Planning webpage.
House Bill 142 (2024) Reminder
House Bill 142 (2024) was in effect starting with the 2024-2025 school year. This new law requires districts to provide to the parent/guardian and the student evidence-based, age-appropriate nicotine cessation information as a discipline resolution for the first behavior incident including drug types of those listed below:
- Alternative nicotine products
- Nicotine vapor products
- Non-nicotine vapor products
- Tobacco/nicotine product
- THC electronic vapor product
The materials should be provided by the school counselor or other school-based mental health services and should include but not limited to materials, programs, and referrals for treatment.
Districts can reference the Behavior Data Standards on page 6, Section A for guidance on creating the resolution code in the district database.
The bill enacts additional requirements for student behavior events in which the drug type selection is alternative nicotine and non-nicotine vapor, tobacco/nicotine or THC electronic vapor products.
To add the resolution to student behavior, when a behavior event of Drug or Tobacco Use, Possession or Distribution are selected, Drug Type data element requires a selection. If the drug type is one of the above products, the first resolution attached to the event should be the provision of the nicotine cessation information.
In addition, if a behavior event involving drug or tobacco results in a medical intervention, users must select the already existing indicator named Medical Services Provided in the Participant Details section of the Behavior Management Tool. Reference page 9, section C if the Behavior Data Standards.
This data is reportable and can be tracked using the Safe Schools report via KY State Reporting in Infinite Campus.
KDE’s Evidence-based Prevention and Cessation Materials website provides resources intended to help ensure school districts are implementing programs and resources that have been proven effective through research and evidence.
Please share this information and the data standard with those staff in the schools responsible for entry of student behavior.
Questions regarding Infinite Campus set-up and student tracking can be directed to Windy Spalding. Questions regarding evidence-based prevention and cessation materials can be directed to Jessica Johnson.
Adaptive Schools Professional Learning Opportunity
The Kentucky Department of Education’s (KDE’s) Office of Continuous Improvement and Support will be offering its first cohort of Adaptive Schools professional learning in the fall of 2025.
The Adaptive Schools training provides participants the skills needed to lead collaborative groups in becoming more effective and better equipped to resolve complex issues around student learning. The training takes teams beyond the idea of professional learning communities to the actual implementation of principles and understandings to engage in a continuous cycle of team and individual improvement. School leaders learn how to embrace the hard-to-talk-about details of learning, teaching, data analysis and assessment to evaluate the cumulative effects of their work with students and each other.
Adaptive Schools is the “how” of professional learning communities: how to behave in groups, how to lead them and how to facilitate them for improved leading, teaching and learning and perfectly complements the Cognitive Coaching seminars previously offered by KDE.
The four sessions will take place Oct. 13-14 and Nov. 13-14 at the Central Bank Center in Lexington from 8:30 a.m.-3:30 p.m. ET. This professional learning opportunity comes at no charge to participants and there is a 50-participant maximum. Priority will be given to schools who are designated for comprehensive or targeted support and improvement, as well as those schools requiring more rigorous intervention, although we invite all Kentucky leaders to attend.
To register, please complete the Adaptive Schools registration form by Oct. 3. If you have any questions, contact Shannon Gullett, KDE educational recovery director.
School Resource Officer Funding Available to Districts
The general fund appropriation included $18 million in fiscal year 2025-2026 to the Kentucky Department of Education to assist local districts in funding salaries for school resource officers, as defined in KRS 158.441, on a reimbursement basis.
In accordance with House Bill 622, the Kentucky Department of Education shall reimburse local school districts up to $20,000 for each campus employing at least one on-site full-time certified school resource officer. Once each local district has staffed and continues to maintain one school resource officer for each campus in that district, the local district is then eligible to apply for reimbursement for additional assistance in funding salaries for school resource officers, except that the assistance allowed under this paragraph shall be limited to:
- Funding available; and
- No more than one school resource officer for each academic building.
Monthly grants shall first be applied to the per-campus requirement across all local districts and then to districts that meet the per-campus requirement and have additional school resource officers, but only to the extent that funding is available.
Notwithstanding KRS 45.229, any portion of general fund money not expended for this purpose shall lapse to the Budget Reserve Trust Fund Account (KRS 48.705). Mandated reports shall be submitted pursuant to Part III, 24. of this Act.
In order to meet the requirement outlined above, the Kentucky Department of Education is asking districts that will seek reimbursement to complete the School Resource Officer (SRO) Funding Intent to Participate form by Sept. 15.
Information provided in the survey will determine funding amounts available to districts for SRO funding.
For questions, please contact Karen Wirth or Lalah Brewer.
School Report Card School Safety Domain Open for Review and Approval
The School Safety domain with the 2024-2025 safe schools’ data is available for districts and schools to review and approve. District Safe Schools Administrators should have access to view district data and each of the school’s data. School principals should have access to view the school data.
Reference the Instructions for Accessing School Report Card Secure Site for assistance on user rights requirements for accessing the SRC. Safe Schools Administrators must mark the district organization as Approved to complete this task.
The KY School Report Card Portal is the website that will be used to review and approve the 2024-2025 school safety data prior to public release. KDE has created the KY School Report Card – School Safety domain Review/Approval document to assist districts and schools in the review and approval process. The Validation of Safety Data for School Report Card guidance document provides instruction on utilizing the Safe Schools detailed report in Infinite Campus to review the data displayed in the SRC School Safety domain.
The deadline for completing this task has been extended to Aug. 20.
Additional resources can be found on KDE’s School Report Card Resources website. For any Safe Schools data discrepancies: Windy Spalding. Any questions related to AnLar access and functionality can be sent to AnLar by email or by phone at (502) 509-0041 from 8 a.m.-6 p.m. ET.
Kentucky Department of Education to Host Kaleidoscope Community of Practice Sessions
Join the Kentucky Department of Education (KDE) for the next round of Kaleidoscope Community of Practice sessions for special education teachers.
Through the Community of Practice, special education teachers will expand their understanding of Specially Designed Instruction (SDI) through collaboration and co-creation. Teachers will leave the Community of Practice with a collection of resources, tools and skills that will grow their capacity to improve outcomes for students with disabilities.
Participants must attend one monthly session. Virtual sessions are from 4:30-6:30 p.m. ET or 5-7 p.m. ET.
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Session 1 (October, full-day, in-person): multiple dates and locations TBD by participants.
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Session 2 (Two hours, virtual): Nov. 13 or Nov. 19
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Session 3 (Two hours, virtual): Jan. 14, 2026, or Jan. 22, 2026
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Session 4 (Two hours, virtual): Feb. 11, 2026, or Feb. 19, 2026
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Session 5 (March 2026, full-day, in-person): multiple dates and locations TBD by participants
Free teacher kits will be given to participants who complete all five sessions!
Spots are limited. Visit the 2025-2026 Kaleidoscope Community of Practice registration form for more information. Registration ends on Aug. 29.
Title II, Part A and Title IV, Part A Applications Open in GMAP
The Title II, Part A and Title IV, Part A applications are now open in the Grant Management Application and Planning system (GMAP).
The Kentucky Department of Education (KDE) highly encourages districts to begin working on these applications immediately and submit for approval in GMAP by Aug. 31. Applications will be reviewed in the order in which they are received.
The tentative Title I, Part A; Title I, Part D, Subpart 2 and Title V applications are also open. Since KDE has not received all federal allocations for programs contained within the consolidated application, only these applications are open at this time. As other programs are allocated, they will be populated in GMAP.
If you have application specific questions, please contact the following KDE staff:
Accepting Applications for Diagnostic Review Team Members
The Kentucky Department of Education (KDE) and Cognia are accepting applications for diagnostic review team members to serve during the 2025-2026 school year.
The Cognia diagnostic review process is a performance-driven approach that relies on data from student performance, stakeholder feedback, classroom observations and a review of documents, artifacts and school practices.
Diagnostic reviews yield a comprehensive analysis of an institution in an extensive report intended to energize and guide continuous improvement planning for underperforming schools and districts.
All diagnostic review team members must have experience or expertise in the following areas:
- School or system administration with a specific emphasis on instructional leadership such as superintendent, principal, instructional supervisor, director of curriculum and instruction, assessment, special education, etc.
- Leading or supporting turnaround/improvement initiatives at the school, system or state department levels.
- Familiarity with the analysis and use of data as a driver for improvement.
Diagnostic review team members are required to complete specialized training. While there is no compensation for participating as a diagnostic review team member, all expenses associated with travel for an onsite visit will be reimbursed by Cognia.
If you are interested in serving in this capacity, please begin by submitting your contact information on the Diagnostic Review Team Member Interest Form.
We will send next step information to support you through the training process. We will have multiple training options available throughout the next few months in preparation for reviews scheduled for the 2025-2026 school year. If you have questions, please email the Cognia team.
Title I, Part A Carryover Waiver
Section 1127(a) of the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA) places a carryover limitation on Title I, Part A funds. No more than 15% of the funds allocated to a district for any fiscal year may remain available for obligation for one additional fiscal year.
Districts must ensure at least 85% of school year 2024-2025 (FY 2025) Title I, Part A funds (project 310L) are obligated for activities that occur no later than Sept. 30, 2025. As stated in Section 1127(c) of ESSA, this carryover limitation does not apply to districts that receive less than $50,000 in Title I, Part A for the fiscal year.
Section 1127(b) of ESSA allows the state to waive this carryover limitation if:
- It determines a district’s request is reasonable and necessary; or
- Supplemental appropriations for this subpart become available.
Typically, districts may apply for this waiver once in a three-year period; however, KDE has received a waiver from the U.S. Department of Education allowing waivers to be granted more than once in a three-year period.
Any district wishing to request a carryover waiver for 2024-2025 funds may do so no later than Sept. 30 by submitting an email to David Millanti. The email must:
- State the district requests a waiver of the 15% carryover limitation;
- Contain the reason for the excess carryover; and
- Describe plans for effectively using carryover funds.
Questions may be directed to David Millanti or your district’s Title I, Part A consultant. Additional information about the carryover limitation is available in the Title I Carryover Information document.
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