July/August 2018Growing their ownMercer County Senior High School leaders weren’t influenced by recent worries about the future of the teaching profession when they started their own grow your own initiative. The district’s Principles of Teaching class is still going strong after a decade.
UndeterredMost students taking Mercer County Senior High School’s Principles of Teaching class say they are still committed to pursuing the profession, despite pension changes and political upheaval.
Mercer student does internship in her mom's classroom
Talking about trauma Teachers and staff in the Frankfort Independent district are learning what trauma does to a child’s brain and how to help students in their schools who are affected. It’s the latest in the district’s strategies to help overcome learning barriers. For more on trauma-informed care, see this month’s In Conversation With… on page 20.
KSBA’s Summer Leadership Institute: From safety to budgets and more Back to the (safety) basicsKentucky Center for School Safety training coordinator Dan Orman reminded Summer Leadership Institute attendees that school safety essentials don’t have to be high-tech or expensive.
State budget mysteries revealed Why does KSBA’s governmental relations staff do a word search for “notwithstanding” in every state budget bill? Board members learned the answer to that, and about other important aspects of the state budget in this first-ever session.
A better way to budgetSchool district leaders shouldn’t view the budgeting process through just the current-year lens, with academic goals, instruction and finance siloed. A national organization shared its tips for getting the most from a school district budget.
Parsing charter applicationsAt 50 pages, the state’s charter school application is rigorous and detailed. School board members are learning what to look for in those applications as part of their new role as charter school authorizers.