|
Dear Colleagues:
Lately I have been giving thought to our collective work on equity in the Commonwealth. Conversations about equity within our schools, our districts and at the state level are difficult and emotional.
Depending on where we come from in these discussions, people often feel some combination of defensiveness, regret, anger over real or perceived past treatment, frustration at the pace of change, or outrage at being labelled or stereotyped in some way.
Still, as public educators, it is vitally important that we have these conversations for at least two important reasons.
First, one of the most important purposes of public education is the preparation of students to be active citizens in our republic. Representative democracy is, by design, messy and filled with conflicts over interests, ideas and perspectives. Practically all matters of importance at the local, state and national levels are also conflict-laden.
In the course of educating our young people, we must teach them how to engage civilly and directly with people who disagree with them, to evaluate the quality of different ideas and concepts, and to work together toward the actualization of that “more perfect union” envisioned in the U.S. Constitution.
Any effort to limit discussions in communities or classrooms is misguided because it insulates our students from the critical thinking experiences that come from evaluating different ideas and arriving at independent conclusions. Preparing our students to be citizens necessarily means preparing them to participate in difficult and complex issues.
In short, we do our future citizens - and our nation - no favors by avoiding thought-provoking conversations on important, real world topics.
A second reason our conversations about equity are important is that they are essential to the full realization of the concepts set forth in the Preamble to the Constitution.
"We the People of the United States, in Order to form a more perfect Union, establish Justice, insure domestic Tranquility, provide for the common defense, promote the general Welfare, and secure the Blessings of Liberty to ourselves and our Posterity, do ordain and establish this Constitution for the United States of America."
Our government is enacted and owned by its people. For this concept to be fully realized, equity matters. The idea of our government becoming a plutocracy, oligarchy or aristocracy would have been antithetical to the republic our founding fathers envisioned. “We the people” has evolved to be inclusive, not exclusive.
Keeping and restoring the foundations of American democracy is part of the task we undertake as public educators. All peoples and races in the United States are part of this effort. There neither can be – nor can we hope to sustain – concepts such as domestic tranquility, a common defense, the general welfare or secure the blessings of liberty unless we take proactive and positive steps to ensure that all of America’s (and Kentucky’s) citizens (and students) are included.
Our conversations about equity are not some new addition to our work in our schools and communities. The strive for equity is woven into the most fundamental concepts upon which our country was founded.
Kind regards,
Jason E. Glass, Ed.D.
Commissioner & Chief Learner
KDE Releases Memo on ESSER Funding
The Kentucky Department of Education’s (KDE) Division of District Support has issued Memorandum No. 48 to district finance officers, facility directors, design professionals and construction managers regarding ESSER funding.
Email Thelma Hawkins for assistance with questions regarding ESSER funds.
Memorandum No. 48 addresses the processes and procedures associated with the use of ESSER funds related to capital construction projects administered by the District Facility Branch under 702 KAR 4:160, 702 KAR 4:180 and KRS 157.620 for required reporting to the Kentucky Legislature.
New IC Functionality Coming for Supplemental School Year Program
In response to the implementation of Senate Bill 128 allowing students a supplemental year for the 2021-2022 school year, many districts have questions with the end of year approaching. New functionality is being added to Infinite Campus to appropriately flag students participating in the Supplemental School Year Program (SSYP). Details will be released when it is available, hopefully by mid-summer.
Students participating in the SSYP should not be considered or marked as “Retained” on the student’s enrollment in Infinite Campus (IC). SSYP students will not be considered a retention in state reporting.
Information on the new process to flag SSYP students will be provided in conjunction with the July Infinite Campus release.
Resources for Summer Learning
The Kentucky Department of Education (KDE) supports family engagement all year long. During the school year, the Standards Family Guides are a resource parents and caregivers may use to initiate conversations with their children regarding what they are learning at school.
Learning can continue when school is not in session. The summer months are an opportunity to further encourage families to enjoy literacy and numeracy experiences together in their own homes.
To support educators, parents, families and caregivers in encouraging summer learning, KDE is providing resources through the Summer Support webpages to help keep children’s minds active. Available resources include:
Reminder: 15-Passenger Vans Illegal in Kentucky for Transporting Students
The safest form of transportation to transport school children to and from school or school activities is a school bus. Per the National Highway Transportation Safety Administration (NHTSA), students are about 70 times more likely to get to school safely when taking a school bus instead of traveling by car. Buses are the most regulated vehicles on the road - they’re designed to be safer than passenger vehicles in preventing crashes and injuries, and in every state, stop-arm laws protect children from other motorists.
There are federal guidelines for 15-passenger vans which are set forth by NHTSA. The Safety Act prohibits a school or school system from purchasing or leasing a new 15-passenger van if it will be used significantly by or on behalf of the school or school system to transport preprimary, primary or secondary school students to or from school or related events. A school in violation of this requirement may be subject to substantial civil penalties under the Safety Act.
A school may not rent or purchase a 15-passenger van and pull out seats to make it hold fewer passengers. It must be manufactured as a nine-passenger or less vehicle.
The Kentucky Revised Statute 156.153 prohibits the use of passenger vans that transport more than nine passengers.
The Kentucky Administrative Regulation 702 KAR 5:130 provides further guidance on the requirements for vehicles that carry nine passengers or less.
For more information, email Elisa Hanley.
|
