25,000 assaults on KY school staff in 5 years. Teachers’ union seeking answers

More than 25,000 assaults against Kentucky school staff have been reported in the past five years, according to the Kentucky Education Association, a union that represents teachers statewide.

Now, using a new survey, KEA wants to gather on-the-ground data from thousands of public school employees to help develop related legislative and policy decisions.

The effort comes after the Kentucky General Assembly sought to address the issue in the 2026 legislative session. Senate Bill 101, sponsored by Sen. Matt Nunn, R-Sadieville, was signed into law April 7 by Gov. Andy Beshear.

The law strengthens protections for teachers and school personnel and establishes statewide standards for reporting school assaults, including making reporting mandatory, according to a news release from the Senate Majority Caucus.

The next step is to gather data to inform future policy decisions, said KEA spokesperson David Patterson.

“Every teacher deserves to feel safe at work,” said Ashley Offenbach, a fourth grade science teacher in Fayette County and a member of KEA. “When educators, whether teachers, bus drivers, custodians, cafeteria staff, para educators, etc., are dealing with assaults in the classroom, it is nearly impossible to focus on academic instruction amongst all other students.”

The survey is available at www.kea.org/survey. It’s anonymous and open to all certified and classified public school employees in Kentucky.

The survey deadline is April 27.