Kentucky School Advocate - People are Talking

"So many of the future jobs are going to be dealing with technology or (the) service industry, and then if you look at the number of computer science majors, women are still woefully underrepresented in those majors, so it’s an issue of economic justice for girls to have career options that will afford them more opportunities. I’m really interested in providing that sort of economic justice.” University of Louisville English professor Mary Sheridan on the digital media academy for Jefferson County middle school girls. From the Louisville Courier-Journal. PHOTO: Fifth-grader Lexi Benton of the Atkinson Academy (Jefferson County Schools) works on a storyboard for her video project. Photo provided by the University of Louisville

 

“I liked school before, but now that we’ve taken this initiative into project-based learning, I really, really like it. Before, we would take tests like every single day and write long answers. So the transition from that really tight, monotonous structure to a very free-flowing environment in the classroom might be a little different at first. We’re getting skills that we’re actually going to need later on in life. It’s really cool.” Bate Middle School student Charlie Hall assessing Danville Independent’s change to a project-based learning approach. From the Washington, D.C. National Public Radio.

 

“We’re not looking for a witch hunt or to be the police of Fairview. We want to prevent a child from making a grave mistake. We want to be here to help them.” Fairview Independent Schools Superintendent Bill Musick on drug testing students who participate in extracurricular activities starting this fall. From the Ashland The Independent.

 

“In a regular classroom environment, the students are listening to a lecture and taking notes and getting assigned homework and taking it home and working on it. In our environment, we have about 40 percent classroom time, 60 percent lab time where they’re applying what they learn. We teach them stuff that they can use for the rest of their lives, like how to build a picnic table or how to remodel or build their own homes in the future.” Dan Hicks, principal of the jointly operated Calloway County/Murray Independent Area Technology Center on one element that enabled the center to be among the top 10 centers in the state. From the Murray Ledger & Times.

“When we identified the strengths and weaknesses, opportunities and threats to Franklin County, three areas basically bold up as needs. Curriculum, instruction and assessment was one area. Culture and quality control were the other two. As a result of those three areas, we have developed the implementation guide or action plans. This is a three-year plan. Are there other things I would like to include? Absolutely. This is kind of a process where we can say, ‘These are our priorities.’” Franklin County Schools Superintendent Chrissy Jones on the bottom line of the district’s new three-year strategic plan implementation guide. From the Frankfort State Journal.

 

 

 

“We don’t want to go out and hire a bunch of teachers and then let them go (because of low numbers). We don’t want to make anyone lose their job.” Trimble County school board member Jill Simmons responding to a parents’ concerns about a possible enrollment-related staff reduction. From the Madison (Ind.) Courier.

 

“I have the thought of, ‘Let’s meet them where they are.’ They’re already here; they’re already on Facebook every night; if we’re trying to hit a high audience, let’s post things where they already are. Just the fact that there is a place where people can ask questions and get an answer — I think that’s one of the best things about it. I don’t mind doing that, because I know that it’s good PR for the district to be able to always know that somebody is going to answer your question.” Jessamine County Schools Technology Coordinator Erin Waggoner on the district’s use of social media to announce information like school closings this past year. From the Nicholasville Jessamine Journal.

 

“We have some medically fragile students in our school system – students with diabetes, seizure episodes, breathing difficulties. Having the nurses in the schools ensures that these students can attend school and still have the medical support that they require. The board understands that this is a financial risk for our district, but we need to try this, for the sake of the kids.” Rowan County Schools Superintendent Marvin Moore on the board’s decision to hire its own nurses after the regional health department stopped providing those services. From the Morehead News.

 

“We’re already ahead of the game a little bit when it comes to the standards, but we still have to finish designing the entire curriculum. It’s going to be a huge shift, but these standards are what science should have been all along. The standards make science more hands on. They make us do experiments – there aren’t a lot of worksheets like it was in the past – it’s a lot better than it was.” Marshall County Schools Elementary Supervisory Abby Griffy on implementing the state’s new science standards. From the Benton Tribune-Courier.

“When the school first opened, we gave (students) pieces of bricks because they were a part of the ‘original foundation.’ This just further symbolizes that.” Thomas Nelson High School (Nelson County) Principal Wes Bradley on creation of a TNHS Citizens Walkway with bricks bearing the names of the graduating members of the Class of 2014. From the Bardstown Kentucky Standard.

 

“This had nothing to do with opposition to Letcher (County’s vocational technical school). It’s just that Wise County (offers) so many opportunities. I was a principal in Wise County for years so I knew all about it. When I came over here (three years ago), I looked for something innovative for our school. We worked on it for about five months, got state approval and things worked out well. We’re right on the Wise County border, so it’s not a distance issue for us.” Jenkins Independent High School Principal David Lee on an agreement between his district and the Wise County, Va. system allowing Jenkins students to study vocational courses there. From the Kingsport, Tenn. Times-News.

 

“We look at school as a learning process. Any time you provide consequences, you want to get their attention on what they actually did and that they actually learned from that. If there was going to be any consequences given for a senior prank or something like that, it’s going to be congruent with what the action was. We look at this — it’s unfortunate that you had a prank and water got on the floor, but things like that happen from time to time. We’ve got really good kids in our school system, we’ve got a great community. These are seniors, they are getting ready to start the next level of their education. We wouldn’t want to do anything that’s going to deter that.” Boyle County Schools Director of Operations Chris Holderman on why district officials opted not to tie any graduation-related punishment to a senior prank in which students rolled a tractor tire into the school, causing damage to a gym floor. From the Danville Advocate-Messenger.

 

“The main thing we want with the internship program is we want them to know what it actually feels like to be in these large aluminum smelters, aluminum manufacturing facilities. That’s a belief that we have, we want these student to be able to be employed in the county. The students drove themselves, they had their own security passes to be able to get into Southwire, they were treated just like any other employee.” Hancock County Schools College and Career Readiness Coordinator Brad Goodall on a wire and cable industry’s internship program that gave students factory workplace experiences. From the Hawesville Hancock Clarion.

“As the Common Core were written, Kentucky educators suggested many adjustments, changes, additions and fixes for things we thought went too far, beyond college-ready. Common Core is different because both postsecondary and K-12 came together to develop the standards that exist. Previously, they were not communicated well; this time with these standards that conversation is occurring.” Sue Cain, college readiness and developmental education initiative coordinator for the Kentucky Council on Postsecondary Education, on the endorsement of Common Core state standards by leaders of most of the state’s higher education institutions.

 

“Common Core will generate more revenue for the colleges, and we will be back here in X number of years wondering why remedial rates are even higher. They will just keep lowering standards to meet goals to get funding.” Kentucky Tea Party Activist David Adams, who lost a lawsuit to block Common Core standards implementation in the state, claiming college leaders only backed the standards to get more funding.

 

From the Lexington Herald-Leader.