After eight years of being a state-managed or state-assisted district, Menifee County Faculties has been launched from state help.

Throughout the Kentucky Board of Schooling’s (KBE’s) common assembly on June 8, the board heard from Kentucky Division of Schooling (KDE) Affiliate Commissioner Kelly Foster on the administration audit of and the varsity district and accepted its launch.

“Below the profitable management of Superintendent Tim Spencer and the Menifee County Board of Schooling, the Menifee County College District has embraced the continual enchancment framework and constructed capability throughout the varsity district,” mentioned Foster. 

KBE designated Menifee County Faculties a state-assisted district in December 2014, and in July 2015, the board accepted the training commissioner’s suggestion that the district change into state-managed. The district has obtained ongoing assist from KDE all through.

After a administration audit in September 2019 the KBE accepted the commissioner’s suggestion that the district transition again to a state-assisted district.

In February, KDE carried out a brand new administration audit of the Menifee County College District and 192 interviews with numerous stakeholders, together with board members, school-based resolution making council members, district and faculty directors, licensed and categorised workers, the state supervisor and Schooling Restoration workers.

The interviews led to KDE discovering no sample of a big lack of effectivity and effectiveness within the governance and administration of Menifee County Faculties and that state help was now not needed.

“The district’s enchancment planning course of has been strategic and intentional from Day One,” mentioned Foster. “Relationships have been constructed throughout the varsity district and the group to make sure that the scholars of Menifee County have a high-quality academic expertise. The district and the group have stayed the course all through this course of and the top result’s sustainable systematic change.”

Menifee County Superintendent Tim Spencer joined the board assembly to share his ideas on this accomplishment.

“With the assist of the Kentucky Division of Schooling and Affiliate Commissioner Dr. Kelly Foster, we’ve been in a position to systemically change the Menifee County College District.  We now have the suitable workers in place, the suitable group assist and the suitable mission to repeatedly enhance,” mentioned Spencer. “Regardless of all the adjustments we’ve put into place, we can’t take credit score for these enhancements inside our colleges with out giving credit score to our college students.  They’ve really made this leap from state help doable.” 

Spencer mentioned he’s energized about Menifee County’s future. The district opened a brand new $18 million Ok-8 constructing final summer season and is working to construct a brand new central workplace. Development for a brand new district-wide pupil digital studying lab begins June 10.

The board members praised Spencer, his district and the Menifee County group for coming collectively to beat the problem earlier than them.

“We hope that among the many issues that occur subsequent that the Menifee county group, academics, leaders and college students rejoice … the success of your group aspirations,” mentioned KBE Vice Chair Sharon Porter Robinson.

United We Study

Schooling Commissioner and Chief Learner Jason E. Glass shared with the board the event of the United We Study imaginative and prescient.

“Since coming to my place nearly two years in the past, I’ve seen so many optimistic efforts underway in Kentucky that assist this new route,” mentioned Glass. “However we additionally know issues are overdue for change at scale.”

As a substitute of coming into his position as commissioner with a prefabricated plan, Glass selected to hearken to Kentuckians instantly about what they wished for the way forward for training within the Commonwealth. KDE hosted digital listening periods that reached over 1,200 folks and shaped the Kentucky Coalition for Advancing Schooling, comprised of a variety of educators, group and relations, college students and policymakers. The coalition used suggestions from college students, academics and group members to develop a report on the present and future state of training and decide what wanted to be modified.

“By means of these efforts, we heard from Kentuckians that we shouldn’t wait any longer to make the significant and profound adjustments that have to be made,” mentioned Glass.

On the Kentucky Schooling Summit in November 2021, KDE unveiled the collective imaginative and prescient for the way forward for training, United We Study. The imaginative and prescient is constructed round three predominant themes: making a extra vibrant expertise for each pupil; encouraging innovation, particularly relating to assessments; and making a daring new future for Kentucky’s colleges by means of collaboration with our communities.

 The United We Study imaginative and prescient seeks to interact college students, make studying extra genuine and decide to broaden alternatives, worth variations and get rid of boundaries.

“We now have to take steps as an training system to guarantee that we’re reaching each pupil, wherever they’re and giving them the person assist they should succeed,” mentioned Glass.

The United We Study imaginative and prescient additionally focuses on innovation throughout the training system. One space Kentuckians informed the coalition they wanted extra innovation was in assessments. Glass mentioned Kentucky’s assessments have to be aware of the wants and needs of many college students, households, educators and communities to seize the various abilities that college students have to be profitable within the workforce.

United We Study is also working to seek out methods for colleges to genuinely contain and empower their total group to contribute to pupil success. This entails bringing group members into choices for districts and colleges in significant methods, together with mentorships, internships, intentional relationship constructing efforts and different partnerships throughout the group.

“Group-wide empowerment and studying alternatives will assist develop well-rounded college students by means of skilled, civic, cultural and monetary studying alternatives,” mentioned Glass.

Glass mentioned a lot of this United We Study work is already underway throughout the Commonwealth. Lots of the Native Laboratories of Studying (L3s) are at present working inside their very own communities to pilot new approaches for pupil expertise, evaluation and group engagement.

KDE additionally has partnered with PBLWorks to construct the capability of academics to design and facilitate high quality project-based studying (PBL) for college kids in Kentucky. The $7 million funding by means of 2024 will embrace digital coaching and training for academics and principals and work to broaden PBL to varsities throughout the state. Glass mentioned the objective is to initially attain about one-third of the educators in Kentucky.

KDE is also working to interact Kentucky’s training stakeholders to participate within the United We Study effort. Glass has met with Kentucky’s faculties of training, superintendents, policymakers, KDE workers and group members to construct extra understanding about how their work matches into the imaginative and prescient. 

“I’m optimistic and impressed by the optimistic suggestions we’ve obtained thus far,” mentioned Glass.

In different enterprise, the board:

• Accepted the recipients of the 2022 Grissom Award for Innovation in Particular Schooling to introduced on the board’s common August assembly;
• Heard a report from the Council on Postsecondary Schooling;
• Heard a report from Lt. Gov. Jacqueline Coleman on the Schooling and Labor Cupboard;
• Heard a presentation from the Kentucky Pupil Voice Group on its Race to Study Report;
• Heard an replace from KDE Chief Educational Officer Micki Ray and the Kentucky Affiliation of Instructional Cooperatives on how Kentucky is regionally utilizing its federal Coronavirus Response and Aid Supplemental Appropriations to have a statewide impression;
• Accepted consent agenda objects, together with:
  • Certification of personal colleges;
  • Oblique value charges;
  • Appointment of an at-large member to the Kentucky Excessive College Athletics Affiliation Board of Management;
  • 2022-2023 preschool grant allotment and funding charges;
  • Listening to officer’s and litigation studies; and
  • Committee assignments for KBE members;
• Offered the 2022 Karem Award for Excellence in Schooling Coverage to Leon Mooneyhan, chief government officer of the Ohio Valley Instructional Cooperative, and Brigitte Blom, president and CEO of the Prichard Committee for Educational Excellence;
• Met in Curriculum, Instruction and Evaluation Committee and Operations Committee. The Curriculum, Instruction and Evaluation Committee heard a report from the Portrait of a Graduate subcommittee. The committee additionally advisable and the complete board accepted amendments to 704 KAR 3:305, minimal necessities for highschool commencement;
• The Operations Committee heard an replace from KDE Affiliate Commissioner Kelly Foster on state assisted colleges. The committee additionally advisable and the complete board accepted:
  • Bullitt County College District’s request for a waiver of the property appraisal necessities in 702 KAR 4:090 Part 1(3) and Part 2(1)-(2) to allow the disposal of surplus property; and
  • Fayette County Board of Schooling’s request for approval per 702 KAR 4:050 to allow property buy the place web site acquisition and preparation prices exceed 10% of the whole mission funds;
• Offered the Teresa Perry Compassion Award to Monica Raines, government administrative secretary to KDE’s deputy commissioner and chief fairness officer;
• Acknowledged the 2021-2022 Content material Space Educators of the 12 months;
• Heard from KDE Common Counsel Todd Allen and the Kentucky College Boards Affiliation’s Director of Board Group Growth Laura Cole on the 2021 Report, 2021 Exceptions and 2023 Plan as required by 702 KAR 1:116, annual in-service coaching of district board members;
• Heard from KDE workers about full-time enrolled on-line, digital and distant studying;
• Heard reflections from the inaugural pupil and instructor non-voting KBE members, Solyana Mesfin and Allison Slone, about their time on the board; and
• Stunned Andrew Liaupsin, KDE’s video and webcasting providers crew lead, with a Kentucky Colonel fee as he transitions to a well-deserved retirement.