19 May Advocate

Kentucky School Advocate

May 2019

 

Students at several high schools have been staying after school this year to play video games after Kentucky became one of the first states to sanction esports as an official sport. The number of participating schools has already tripled as districts look to provide another opportunity for students at what can be a minimal cost to the district.  

 

 

Legislative aftermath
The General Assembly adjourned, leaving with 198 new laws on the books. We break down what you need to know about the most important education bills to come out of the 2019 short session.

Softening schools, hardening buildings
The School Safety and Resiliency Act is in effect, now the work begins to figure out how much money will be needed to implement the bill designed to harden schools with safety improvements, while softening them with mental health supports. See how KSBA plans to help districts quantify what it will take.

 

Rocking the schoolhouse 
Many of the changes in state law after this year’s General Assembly impact schools and school safety. At this year’s KSBA Federal and State Law Update, find out why schoolhouses rock by touring Fayette County’s newest high school, learn how to implement the new school safety bill and keep up to date on policy, open meetings and other changes in education law.

Read all about it
Dayton Independent Schools was looking to foster a love of reading and encourage one-on-one reading time between students and parents when it started its Book a Week program. Four years later, the district is seeing improvements in kindergarten readiness among its students, and its efforts have won the district the Spring 2019 PEAK Award.

On a national stage
Kentucky school board members attended the National School Boards Association annual conference in Philadelphia to learn from their peers across the country. But it wasn’t all about learning, as two Kentucky school districts received national recognition at the event.