Search for new commissioner, education priorities top agenda for new state board this week

Kentucky is aiming to hire a new education commissioner by June 30 following a national search that is getting underway this week, according to the proposal for a search firm obtained by the Herald-Leader.

Hiring a new commissioner will likely be one of the chief issues in Kentucky K-12 public education in 2020, with the all new state board of education discussing at a Jan. 17 meeting how they will choose a search firm.

The vacancy occurred when Commissioner Wayne Lewis resigned in December under pressure from the board appointed by new Democratic Gov. Andy Beshear. Beshear made good on a campaign promise that Kentucky would have new state board of education members and a commissioner who were supporters of public education.

Also at the Jan. 17 meeting, the new state board is set to decide on the Kentucky Department of Education’s priorities for the 2020 General Assembly, first reviewing a list approved by the old board that includes all-day kindergarten, said Interim Commissioner Kevin Brown.

While education department officials won’t yet speculate on their final priorities for 2020, a high profile educator group, Kentucky 120 United, recently sent to state lawmakers a social media message with a list of requests.

Kentucky 120 United’s wide-ranging priorities include full funding of all state pension systems, repealing charter schools and not approving a funding mechanism in the interim, and no scholarship tax credits, which allow credits for donations to scholarship granting organizations

Scholarship tax credits are just a fancy title for vouchers and another way to give away taxpayer dollars, said Jeni Bolander, a leader in Kentucky 120 United.

“We look forward to working in a bipartisan manner with our elected officials to establish a budget that sets the priority of what is most important to this Commonwealth: our children and communities,” the Kentucky 120 United message said.

Eric Kennedy, director of advocacy for the Kentucky School Boards Association, said that the scholarship tax credit bill will likely be filed again this session as it has for many years. He said KSBA is strongly opposed to creating a scholarship tax credit as well as any new tax credit, deduction, or exemption, “because of the absolutely dire financial condition the Commonwealth is in currently.”

“We have not made up any ground from over a decade of cuts in investment in the students of our common schools, and until we can adequately fund those programs we cannot afford to create any new holes in the state general fund’s leaky bucket,” Kennedy said.

Both Lewis and former Republican Gov. Matt Bevin were criticized by many educators for their support of charter schools, controversial because of the fear that they will siphon dollars from traditional public schools. The first charter school group who wanted to open in Kentucky was recently denied by a local board and supporters and opponents have said they think charter schools are dead for now.

Under a 2017 state law, local district school board members are given the job of deciding on applications from groups wanting to open charter schools and local board members undergo mandatory training on how to review applications. But with no charter schools yet open in the state, several local boards are asking the Kentucky Board of Education to let them skip training unless they get an application.

Under House Bill 220 filed last week by State House Education Chair Regina Huff, R-Williamsburg, a new law would be created so that local school board members would not have to begin charter school training until they received an application.

Meanwhile, Kentucky 120 United is among the groups that will be pushing in the 2020 General Assembly for full funding of public education including textbooks, professional development, and transportation, school safety and for the state’s primary funding formula for K-12 education SEEK, adjusted to current inflation.

Brown said the Education Department had requested over $500 million in funding for various programs, including textbooks and all-day kindergarten. The budget request also includes continued funding for SEEK. Those funds are distributed directly to local school districts.

State Sen. Max Wise, R-Campbellsville, chair of the Senate Education Committee told the Herald-Leader that in “the 2020 Session I think you can expect to see that legislators are committed to continue fully funding our teacher’s pensions, as the budget is our top priority this year.”

“There will important collaboration in the weeks – between both chambers of the General Assembly as well as both parties -- ahead as we work towards an agreement for the 2020-2022 Kentucky Biennial Budget,” Wise said. The safety of our students is a top priority, and I believe you will see that reflected in the final product. Undoubtedly, we as legislators have difficult decisions to make, but specifically improving the infrastructure around students and teachers -- such as school entrances, exits, metal detectors --will be at the forefront of discussions revolving around the School Safety bill.”

The Kentucky School Boards Association has estimated that school districts will need a minimum of $18 million to improve safety measures at school buildings and at least $121 million more each year for resource officers and counselors.

Kennedy said this week that in the 2020 session, without new additional revenue sources and collections, the state will struggle just to maintain current investment levels, much less fund the school safety upgrades.

“The state simply cannot forgo even a single cent at this time of such great needs in fundamental, constitutionally mandated education programs,” Kennedy said. “The key K-12 issues this year will be, above all, the budget, and making sure we enact a biennial budget that appropriates an adequate amount of state support to all our students and the educational and wrap around programs they, their families, and their educators depend on.”

KSBA is also asking lawmakers to require a foster child’s social worker to accompany them when enrolling in a new school, in order to share information among educators, social workers, and foster parents. The group is asking state social work officials and private child-placing agencies to inform each other when any of them close a home for foster children because of problems.