The KSBA School Board Member of the Year (BMOY) Award was established in 2021 to honor the exemplary service of association members and to celebrate the critical roles school boards play in the advancement of public education in the Commonwealth of Kentucky. BMOY honorees are those who have made significant contributions to public education through service on their local boards. Given annually, the BMOY award is presented to an individual board member who:
- Exemplifies leadership best practices.
- Passionately advocates for needs of his/her district and public education.
- Demonstrates the highest ethical standards and celebrates the values of public service.
- Actively engages in KSBA training and events.
- Exhibits a keen understanding of district governance and operations.
Previous winners:
Nominations for the 2024 Kentucky School Board Member of the Year award are now open.
It is recommended that nominators carefully review the criteria and instructions and read the tips outlined below proceeding to the online nomination form.
Online nomination form tips
The BMOY nomination form is only available online. It is recommended that nominators prepare some of their form responses in advance, before beginning the online form, so as to not inadvertently lose your progress or submit something in error. Below are some tips for those who wish to submit a nomination form.
Open-ended questions:
Some questions included in the online nomination form are open-ended. It is recommended that nominators type out the answers to these questions in advance for easy copying/pasting into the form fields. These open-ended questions are designed to address the nominees’ qualities in the following areas: Advocacy, Leadership and Student Achievement. The questions are provided below (as they appear on the form) for your convenience:
Advocacy: (500 words max) Please explain how the nominee has advocated on behalf of his/her district and public schools. (Examples: Communication with legislators, constituents and community at large; actively engaged advocacy campaigns on social media; participates in events/initiatives/groups in support of public education; actively participates in KSBA programming and events and encourages colleagues to do the same.)
Leadership: (500 words max) Please explain the actions taken by the nominee to contribute to the effective governance of his/her district. How has the nominee demonstrated strong leadership? (Examples: Has the nominee demonstrated the ability to be a team player during both good and challenging times? Does the nominee have a stellar meeting attendance record and does he/she attend district events on a regular basis? Does the member always cast a vote - rarely/never abstaining (unless there is a conflict of interest) - even regarding contentious discussions and action items? On what district/board committees has the nominee served?)
Student Achievement: (500 words max) Please describe how the nominee has supported student achievement. (Examples: addressing the graduation rate, achievement gaps, equity, family engagement, learning loss, career readiness, holistic education, etc.)
Attaching/uploading supplemental materials
The nomination form also includes options to attach/upload a PDF document with supplemental materials as supporting evidence for the nominee. It is recommended that you finalize this document prior to beginning the nomination form so that attaching/uploading is successful. Note: PDF is the only format accepted. The form also includes an optional space to copy/paste links to online supporting materials such as online news articles, videos, etc. It is recommended that nominators collects these links in advance of beginning the nomination form.
“What if I accidentally submit an incorrect and/or incomplete nomination form?”
If you submitted an incorrect or incomplete nomination form, and you would like to resubmit it, you may do so as long as the resubmission is received by the nomination deadline. We also ask that you please notify Josh Shoulta
via email if you plan to resubmit so that we may remove the incomplete/incorrect nomination form from consideration.
Questions about KSBA’s BMOY Award may be directed to KSBA Director of Communications Josh Shoulta at (502)783-0073 or
via email.
The 2024 Kentucky School Board Member of the Year is sponsored by American Fidelity Educational Services, a longtime KSBA Affiliate Member, sponsor and exhibitor.
