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Kentucky School Advocate
July/August 2018

KSBA Executive Director Kerri Schelling (center), KSBA Board Team Development Director Laura Cole (right), and interim KDE general counsel Todd Allen (left)

Above and beyond
Kentucky school board members collectively topped their training performance in 2017, earning nearly 11,531 hours of credit, besting the 2016 amount by 844 hours. Perhaps more significantly, 91.5 percent of board members were able to exceed the minimum training requirements, also up from 2016, even though they began taking the additional state-mandated training on charter school authorization.

KSBA Executive Director Kerri Schelling and Board Team Development Director Laura Cole (at right with interim KDE general counsel Todd Allen) presented the 2017 training report to the Kentucky Board of Education June 6. Training requirements for school board members are based on length of service and a mandate for training in the specific areas of superintendent evaluation, finance and ethics, in addition to the new charter school mandate.

A total of 32 school board members did not meet minimum training requirements; of those, 21 were appointed after March 1, 2017. At KSBA’s request, the state school board granted the 21 an extension of time to meet the standard. The board also granted waivers to seven board members who met the requirements, but fulfilled them after the deadline of Dec. 31, 2017. The remainder will receive a warning letter and could face removal if they continue to be in noncompliance.

Regional officer change
The KSBA Board of Directors is proposing a bylaws change that would affect the terms of its regional chairpersons. Under the change that will be presented to membership for input, regional chairpersons, who are elected to three-year terms during their respective Fall Regional Meetings, would take office on Jan. 1 of the following year. Currently, they take office immediately upon election; the change will standardize the terms and give regional chairpersons a transition period to work with their predecessor and to receive KSBA orientation prior to attending their first board meeting as a director.

The proposed amendments also encompass procedural revisions to more precisely reflect the election process for directors-at-large as provided in the bylaws. Directors-at-large also serve three-year terms.

Members will be mailed a copy of the proposed bylaws with the changes before the board of directors takes final action at its Sept. 22 meeting.

Transcript travails
KSBA has provided general guidance for school board members and prospective school board members who need to meet the new state law requiring that they provide with their nominating petition a transcript evidencing completion of the 12th grade or the results of a 12th-grade equivalency examination. This applies whether they are filing for the first time, filing for re-election or filing as a write-in candidate. The new requirement was mandated by the 2018 General Assembly in Senate Bill 101 and is now part of KRS 160.180.

A college transcript showing that the candidate completed the 12th grade or passed a high school equivalency test possibly may be used, but only if the high school transcript or GED results are not available. Public school districts are required to keep student transcripts permanently. KSBA suggests redacting personal information on the transcript, including grades, and then taking a redacted version and an unredacted version of the transcript to the county clerk for filing (in case the clerk requires an unredacted copy for filing), and retaining an unredacted copy.

To access KSBA’s guidance, go to www.ksba.org and click on “Being a School Board Member,” then scroll down to “Running for School Board in Kentucky.” For information beyond these general guidelines, candidates should contact their legal counsel. g

New school safety resource
The National Threat Assessment Center has issued a new guide to enhancing school safety using a threat assessment model. The guide is the first step in an initiative by the U.S. Secret Service to provide updated research and guidance to school personnel, law enforcement and other public safety agencies on preventing school violence. The publication outlines how to create a targeted violence prevention plan and includes several pages of resources. Access it here.