KY school agency investigates after ‘disagreement’ about an FCPS school’s schedule

A Kentucky school investigative agency has told staff at Lexington’s Frederick Douglass High School’s staff it must follow school councils’ policies “to the letter” after frustration arose when the principal made change to the school’s schedule.

A May 8 investigative report obtained through the Kentucky Open Records Act from the Kentucky Office of Education Accountability looked into the allegation that there was “disagreement” on who has the authority to change the school’s schedule.

The state investigative report says a complaint was received by OEA regarding the day and week schedule for Frederick Douglass. It stated that Principal Lester Diaz determined the fixed block rotation schedule to be in the best interests of all students, but that the school decision-making council did not get to adopt the schedule, which many felt was required by school policy and state law. The principal decided to implement the new schedule for the 2025-2026 school year at a May 19, 2025, school council meeting.

Following the investigation, the report said, “the school plans to seek a review of its policies from the Kentucky Association of School Councils. “

Under state law, all public K-12 schools in Kentucky have a school decision-making council composed of staff and parents.

Kentucky law empowers OEA to investigate complaints alleging violations of education statutes and regulations. OEA staff visited Fayette County Public Schools and interviewed staff members of the 2024-2025 school based decision-making council at Frederick Douglass High School and parent members in December 2025 and obtained relevant documents.

The topic of the schedule change was discussed at various school based decision-making council meetings last year, with no council vote on the topic. The Frederick Douglass school council has eight staff members and four parents. There are about 1,800 students enrolled in the school.

The school previously operated on a floating rotation schedule with designated A-days and B-days during the 2024-2025 school year. This system provided that every other day, one of two school schedules was used. For example, Schedule A on Monday, Schedule B on Tuesday, Schedule A on Wednesday, Schedule B on Thursday, and so on for all following days.

The principal wanted to operate on a fixed block rotation schedule, OEA’s report says. A-days would occur on Monday/Wednesday. B-days would occur on Tuesday/Thursday. Fridays would rotate between A-days and B-days.

“This change would help students who take dual credit classes and assist with scheduling at Bluegrass Community and Technical College System,” the OEA report said.

It would also allow students with internship opportunities to leave campus on specific days and times. Finally, the school district technology center, known as the “HILL,” moved into a new building and operates on a fixed block rotation schedule, the report said.

Schedule changes came up at an executive leadership meeting in March 2025. That leadership team consists of principals, counselors, academy leads and department chairs. Most favored the schedule change, and the topic was shared with staff in a meeting, the OEA report says.

Staff were asked to give comment about the schedule change for 2025-26, and while there was discussion about the benefits and drawbacks, a survey sent to all staff showed that the majority supported the change, according to the OEA report.

Those opposed to the schedule change felt it would not benefit everyone. The change created significant gaps between A-days, meaning some teachers would not see the same students from Wednesday until the following Monday. The same was true for B-days, as some teachers would not see students from Thursday until the next Tuesday, the report said.

That was most concerning for teachers who knew some students would need more attention than is possible with a five-day separation from a class, the report said. All council members had an opportunity to discuss the schedule change at April 23, 2025. and May 14, 2025, school based decision-making council meetings.

The council members told OEA investigators the April meeting was informative, but the May meeting was intense, with input from the public. Several people that OEA interviewed “relayed that the topic of the schedule change felt forced, coerced even, and that the delivery of information could have been better,” the report said.

The school asked for clarification on Policy 14, the policy governing school schedule matters, from the school district and the Kentucky Department of Education.

The policy was interpreted to empower the principal to implement the schedule change.

However, both the 2017 and 2020 versions of the policy contained the same provisions regarding use of an ad hoc committee and council input, the report said.

According to policy, the scheduling process would be accomplished by use of an ad hoc committee formed for the purpose of providing input into scheduling. The policy did not say explicitly that the council would be able to make the decision or that a vote should occur, but it did provide that the principal implement a schedule reflecting any changes adopted by the council. 

Diaz asked an FCPS official who works with school councils if he could change the schedule and was told yes, according to the report.

‘Some staff felt pressured,’ but principal acted ‘in good faith’

“Some staff felt pressured by the administration to accept the change,” the report said. “A few of the council members stated their time was not valued and they had no say in the matter. Others said the principal had the right to do what he did. He had the discretion to make the decision, per policy, that the principal’s job is to align the schedule with opportunities for the whole school and that is what he did.”

There was a lot of parent interest in the council after the schedule changed. A district official who works with school councils encouraged the Frederick Douglas School council to revisit the policies, if they wanted to make changes, according to the report. Policies are supposed to be reviewed, edited, and revised by the council. 

“While Principal Diaz and the council did not utilize a formal ad hoc committee to determine the 2025-2026 schedule, under the circumstances Principal Diaz was acting in good faith as the school’s primary administrator and instructional leader,” the report said. “He believed that the change from a floating rotation to a fixed block rotation schedule would benefit the school. He implemented the new schedule for the 2025-2026 school year, based on the advice he received from KDE and FCPS regarding the policy.”

Diaz also concluded that a floating block schedule would pose scheduling difficulties for students, the report said. He found that the floating block schedule would conflict with special education students‘ required services and individual education plans should those students attend classes on the HILL, which operated on a fixed block schedule. The HILL technical school accepts students from multiple schools, and is a district-wide program. A school adopting a floating block schedule could be in conflict with the district-wide program established by the HILL. 

Regardless of what occurred at Frederick Douglass for 2025-2026, state statute and local policy dictate the process for establishing a school schedule, the report said.

State law and Policy 14 make it clear that the council adopts a school schedule policy to be implemented by the principal. FCPS Policy 14 states that the principal implements a school day schedule “that includes any changes that have been adopted by the council,” the OEA investigative report said.

In order for the policy to reflect changes adopted by the council, the report said, the council has to have the opportunity to vote on any changes. 

While the complaint was being investigated, Frederick Douglass needed to set its schedule for the 2026-27 school year. Diaz sought staff input, and the council voted on the schedule this time around, the report says.

Diaz told OEA officials that the council has sent Policy 14 to the school curriculum committee for review. The school plans to seek a review of its policies from the Kentucky Association of School Councils. That will provide the opportunity to amend Policy 14 or for it to remain in force as presently written. 

Going forward as the 2026-2027 council determines the school schedule for the 2027-2028 year school year, whatever policy is in effect needs to be followed to the letter to avoid unnecessary conflict. If the policy calls for an ad hoc committee and a council vote, those provisions need to be followed, the OEA report said.

Kentucky Association of School Councils Executive Director Liz Erwin told the Herald-Leader Monday they “appreciate” that Frederick Douglass asked for a policy review after this incident.

“Seeking an outside policy review is a proactive step that helps councils ensure their policies are clear, current, consistent with the law, and reflect the school’s intended practices,” Erwin said. “We encourage all Kentucky school councils to review their policies periodically so future decisions can be made consistently and in accordance with the council’s adopted policy.”

FCPS spokesperson Miranda Scully said the district was aware of the review.

“The report explicitly affirms that Principal Lester Diaz acted in good faith throughout this matter,” Scully said. “FDHS will continue its commitment to putting students first and expanding opportunities for every student at Frederick Douglass High School.”

This story was originally published June 30, 2026 at 8:20 AM.