Fayette schools violated own policy by not widely posting open jobs, state investigation finds

The Kentucky agency that investigates violations of education law and regulations has found that Fayette schools violated its own policy by not widely posting job vacancies, a document shows.

The state Office of Education Accountability said in a June 2 investigative report that Fayette County Public Schools has a policy that requires posting all job vacancies in the human resource office, on the district website, in each school building and in all work areas.

The report obtained by the Herald-Leader under the Kentucky Open Records Act said “interviews with district employees revealed that classified vacancies are not posted anywhere else other than on the district website.”

Classified employees include staff who work in transportation and nutrition and as well as administrative assistants.

“The district failed to follow its own policy,...by not posting vacancies in all stated locations,” the report said.

The report said the resolution will be for the district to immediately begin posting vacancies as approved in board policy or revise the policy to align with current practices.

Fayette school district spokeswoman Lisa Deffendall said in response that “we appreciate the Office of Education Accountability for bringing this matter to our attention and affirming that our district was following the requirements of the law. “

The annual policy revisions brought before the Fayette County Board of Education for a first reading Monday included an amendment to the outdated policy identified by OEA in its report, Deffendall said.

“We will continue to advertise vacant positions on the district website, which is accessible anywhere with internet,“ she said. She said the district would continue to provide opportunities for all members of the public to visit an application center to use the computers there to view vacancies, apply for open positions and receive in-person assistance with the application process.

As of Tuesday, there were 227 job vacancies in the school district ranging from administration to transportation, according to the district website.

This story was originally published June 14, 2022 at 12:10 PM.