|
“Success is not final, failure is not fatal: it is the courage to continue that counts.”
– Winston Churchill
Success is temporary because our lives are filled with daily challenges and new goals to pursue. Failure is no different, it is a normal part of living and learning. True courage is demonstrated through our perseverance and our ability to keep getting up from our falls and striving every day to achieve our goals.
This is certainly true in Title I work, where our focus is on continuous improvement and every day brings new challenges and opportunities to grow. This edition of our newsletter contains resources and learning opportunities to help you continue to meet those daily challenges with confidence.
Add Your District's Paraeducator Assessment Contact to Person Role Manager
The Kentucky Department of Education (KDE) is preparing to roll out the updated Kentucky Paraeducator Assessment (KPA). Once finalized, the KPA will be administered through the KY Learning Hub and the current paper and pencil test will no longer be used.
KDE will communicate information regarding the rollout process via email. Districts will receive further communications from KDE that may include important announcements, instructions and resources.
The list of recipients for these emails will be generated by Person Role Manager. Districts must update the name of the paraeducator assessment contact for their district to ensure the correct person receives communications from KDE in a timely manner. The individual assigned this role will serve as the district’s main point of contact for the KPA and will be responsible for scheduling and administering the KPA to individuals applying to serve as paraeducators in Title I, Part A served schools who do not meet the additional educational requirements of the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA). Additional information on the requirements is available on the Paraeducator Requirements in Title I Schools webpage.
To update the paraeducator assessment contact for your district, follow these instructions:
- Verify the paraeducator assessment contact by selecting your district in Open House.
- If the role is blank or incorrect, the update must be made in Person Role Manager via KDE Web Applications.
- To add a paraeducator assessment contact, the Role Status must be set to “active” and a Role Start Date must be entered. Also ensure an email address is entered on the demographic screen. This should be done via KDE Web Applications | Person Role Manager as well.
To ensure important communications are received, update the contact information and list the correct point of contact as “active” in Person Role Manager for paraeducator assessment contact. Please ensure your district has assigned this role to someone by Dec. 1.
Please contact Emily Meade with any questions.
New Foster Care Transportation Agreement Resources
Section 1112(c)(5)(B) of the federal Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA) requires districts to collaborate with the local child welfare agency (CWA) to develop and implement clear written transportation procedures for children in foster care. These procedures help ensure educational stability by keeping children in their school of origin when in their best interest. The procedures must describe how the district and CWA will work together to provide, arrange and fund transportation for the duration of the time in foster care.
Please note that the district enrollment policy does not meet the requirements of the written transportation agreement as it does not contain all the required information and it was not developed jointly with the CWA. Lack of an agreement meeting all ESSA requirements has been a common finding during consolidated and desk monitoring for the past few years.
In order to assist districts and CWAs in creating a transportation agreement that ensures educational stability for children in foster care, KDE updated the Transportation Agreement Guidance and developed a new Transportation Agreement Template, both of which are available on KDE's Foster Care webpage.
Use of the template is not required; however, it has been designed to align directly with the guidance document and help ensure all required information is included in the agreement. These resources also were discussed in the October 2026 Title I Webinar.
District Q&A
Q: Can I send the Title I Notification of Participation letter to private and home schools at the same time as the Declaration of Participation information?
A: Yes, the information can be sent at the same time at the district’s discretion. Please note that there are some key differences in the purpose of each letter as well as the recipients. Refer to the Initiating Contact with Private School/Home School Officials article in the February 2026 Title I Newsletter for more information on the differences between the Notification of Participation and Declaration of Participation.
While there is no set due date for the Notification of Participation, it is often completed in the winter followed by a consultation meeting with each school interested in participating taking place in the spring. The Declaration of Participation application supplement must be completed by all districts by Feb. 1, 2027.
Principal’s Perspective: Your School's Climate and Culture
A school’s climate is much more than the feeling of the air in the building. A school’s climate is the environment and daily experiences in the school that reflect the attitudes of the students, faculty and staff. It reflects the daily experiences in the school and the social and emotional interactions. School climate is a guide to how the school community feels about safety, respect and expectations. A positive school climate is essential to student success, teacher retention and job satisfaction.
School climate influences every interaction among students, staff and the school community and shapes how people feel about the school. Principals set the tone in the building by setting clear and consistent expectations for everyone. Maintaining that consistency is critical in building a positive climate.
The authors of WestEd’s School Climate Essentials: A Call to Action identified five essential components in creating a positive school climate that builds trust, a sense of belonging and student engagement.
-
Equitable supports: Ensuring all students receive the instruction, resources and interventions they need while treating everyone fairly.
-
Community and family partnerships: Include stakeholders in the decision-making process and hold parent and family engagement events that make them a part of their student’s academic success.
-
Supportive relationships: Build strong connections with students, staff and families by letting them know their opinions matter and they are an important part of the school community.
-
Schoolwide commitment and shared purpose: Include stakeholders in goal setting and decision-making processes to create practices that bring unity to the community.
-
Continuous improvement efforts: Use data and feedback to reflect on current practices and implement change when needed.
Making a daily commitment to these practices and expectations will lead to them becoming habits over time. Long-term habits and procedures become second nature and contribute to building a strong school culture.
School culture is the collection of values, beliefs and traditions that evolve over time and guide the academic achievement, growth and success of a school.
Open Title I, Part A Projects and Associated Deadlines
Please review the table below and make note of the approaching deadlines regarding the obligation and expenditure of funds from all open Title I, Part A projects. Please note, the dates for FY2025 have been updated to reflect a waiver KDE received to extend the period of availability of funds.
|
Fiscal Year (FY)
|
Period of Award
|
85% Obligation
|
All Funds Spent or Encumbered
|
Final Federal Cash Request
|
|
FY2025
(Project 310L)
|
July 1, 2024 - June 30, 2027
|
Sept. 30, 2025
|
June 30, 2027
|
Aug. 31, 2027
|
|
FY2026 (Project 310M)
|
July 1, 2025 - Sept. 30, 2027
|
Sept. 30, 2026
|
Sept. 30, 2027
|
Nov. 12, 2027
|
|
FY2027 (Project 310N)
|
July 1, 2026 - Sept. 30, 2028
|
Sept. 30, 2027
|
Sept. 30, 2028
|
TBD
|
|
