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Education Briefs

Kentucky School Advocate
December 2018

Flynn named superintendent association director
Jim Flynn, superintendent of Simpson County Schools, has been named executive director of the Kentucky Association of School Superintendents. Flynn, who is in his 16th year as superintendent in Simpson County, will begin his duties July 1, 2019, taking over for Tom Shelton who has led KASS since 2015.

Flynn was named 2015 Kentucky Superintendent of the Year, has served as president of the Kentucky Association of School Superintendents and was appointed by the General Assembly to the Local Superintendents Advisory Council.

He is a graduate of WKU, where he earned his bachelor’s degree, Rank I and superintendent certification. He received a master’s degree from Texas A&M University and a doctoral degree from Northern Kentucky University.

Flynn and his wife reside in Franklin and have three children.

Good news in high school senior ACT results
ACT scores released this fall showed a slight increase in the percentages of last year’s seniors who hit the state’s college readiness benchmarks. Kentucky’s improvements came as ACT scores dipped nationally.

The increases came in English, mathematics and reading, according to data released by ACT. The state benchmarks, set by the Council on Postsecondary Education (CPE), are the minimum scores that guarantee entry into credit-bearing courses at Kentucky colleges and universities.

Kentucky seniors also fared well nationally with an overall composite score of 20.2 – just 0.6 points off the national average of 20.8. Kentucky ranked sixth for the highest overall composite school of the 20 states that test all or most of their high school seniors, according to ACT’s report The Condition of College and Career Readiness 2018.

Two Ky. school public relations professionals recognized
Two Kentucky school public relations professionals are part of the National School Public Relations Association’s (NSPRA) fourth class of 35 Under 35, which recognizes young professional members who are making a difference for their school districts or education-related employers.

Frank Shelton of Knox County Schools and Hillary Wright-Kaufman of Washington County Schools were selected for the 2018 class. They were among more than 60 people nominated for the honor – the highest number of nominations for a class since the program began in 2012.

“While the faces of NSPRA are changing, the dedication, professionalism and enthusiasm for our profession remain the same," said NSPRA Executive Director Rich Bagin. “The insight of these 35 individuals is invaluable, and we look forward to seeing them grow in their careers.”

Each honoree will have a question-and-answer feature in an upcoming issue of NSPRA This Week.

New board member in Fayette County
Will Nash, a former teacher who now helps train educators, has been appointed by Education Commissioner Wayne Lewis to the Fayette County school board.

Nash, 35, replaces Melissa Bacon, who resigned in August. He will serve for one year and the seat will be up for election in the fall of 2019. Nash is the former executive director of Teach for America-Appalachia where he worked with 20 school districts in eastern and southeastern Kentucky. He now works for New Leaders, a group that helps develop the leadership of principals, teachers and superintendents.

In a statement, Lewis noted that Nash has spent most of his career serving traditionally underserved student populations.

“Most important of all, Will is driven by the desire to ensure that all students, regardless of their background, have access to an education that prepares them to make meaningful contributions to the world around them,” he said.

Nash is a graduate of Glasgow High School and the University of Kentucky. After graduation he taught middle school math in Louisiana after Hurricane Katrina.

Education Calendar
Dec. 3–9: Computer Science Education Week and Hour of Code
Dec. 5: Kentucky Board of Education meeting, Frankfort
Dec. 11: The General Assembly’s School Safety Working Group meets in Prestonsburg
Dec. 12: Look for KSBA’s AWARE newsletter in your inbox
Jan. 1–31: School Board Member Recognition Month
Jan. 1–31: National Mentoring Month
Jan. 8: The 2019 regular session of the General Assembly begins
Jan. 9: Look for KSBA’s AWARE newsletter in your inbox
Jan. 21: Martin Luther King Jr. Day
Jan. 23: KDE’s Charter School Advisory Council meeting
Jan. 24: Look for KSBA’s AWARE newsletter in your inbox