Kentucky Teacher

By Education Commissioner Terry Holliday

At the August Kentucky Board of Education (KBE) meeting, my annual evaluation was completed. Over the past month I have seen that many local boards and superintendents are completing the same process. The KBE has also expressed an interest in local board evaluations.

Over the past two years I have mentioned the issue of superintendent evaluations on numerous occasions at speeches and in my weekly blogs. This is a perfect time for local boards and superintendents to look carefully at the goals and measures for superintendent evaluation and local school board self-evaluation of key processes. Continue Reading

The National Teachers Hall of Fame annually honors five teachers who have demonstrated commitment and dedication to teaching. Anyone may nominate a teacher by completing a nomination packet. Candidates must be certified public or nonpublic classroom teachers with at least 20 years experience of teaching in grades preK-12. Nomination forms may be obtained on The National Teachers Hall of Fame website at www.nthf.org or by contacting the Hall of Fame office at (620) 341-5660. For more information, call Jenny Harder at (620) 341-5660.

The Kentucky Department of Education (KDE) has posted a Scholastic Audit/Leadership Assessment Team Member request for proposals (RFP) on the Finance and Administration eProcurement website. To apply, click here, then click “View Solicitation.” To view KDE solicitations, enter 540 in the “Departments” field, then click on Browse. Select the RFP number of the solicitation, and click to open. The deadline to submit a proposal in response to this RFP is Sept. 23.

Kentucky’s annual, award-winning, statewide serial story begins Sept. 11, and this year’s theme is the Civil War. The serial features Kentucky author Leigh Ann Florence’s Doghouse Divided, with canines Woody and Chloe. For more information, visit www.kypress.com or contact Kriss Johnson at the Lexington Herald-Leader.

Commissioner Terry Holliday

This time of year has always been a period of excitement for me. As a former high school band director, this was time spent in preparation for the upcoming football and marching band season. As a principal, it was time for focusing staff on instruction and expectations for the school year. As a superintendent, it was time to make certain that all systems were functioning smoothly and that funding was in place to meet the needs of our students and teachers.

This year, I am experiencing excitement about the implementation of the Kentucky Unbridled Learning – College/Career Readiness for ALL plan. This plan is an outgrowth of 2009’s Senate Bill 1 and the Governor’s Transforming Education in Kentucky Task Force. 

Unbridled Learning – College/Career Readiness for ALL has a metric of increasing the percentage of college/career-ready graduates of Kentucky high schools from the current 34 percent to 67 percent by 2015. We have been communicating this goal and strategies to reach this goal for months. During the 2011-12 school year, we will begin to see the strategies implemented and begin to see if they yield the results for our students. Continue Reading

Bellarmine University will host a workshop about Pig E. Bank Economics Sept. 15.

Pig E. Bank is the lead character in the Piggy Bank Primer lesson series, which teaches economic and financial literacy concepts to students in grades K-4.

The latest installment in the series, 25 Cents’ Worth of History teaches economic concepts and mathematics applications using the state coins produced by different states.

At this workshop, teachers will receive samples of the materials that are free for classroom use. The lessons have been written based on national standards for economics and social studies.

Contact Caryn Rossiter to register or for more information.

The Kentucky School Public Relations Association fall institute will be Sept. 29-30 at the Embassy Suites in Lexington.

Click here to register. For more information, contact Nancy Howe at (859) 824-2859.

The Teacher’s Curriculum Institute (TCI) is offering a free webinar series beginning in September. These one-hour events occur on the first and third Wednesday of each month and deliver practical ideas teachers can immediately implement in their classrooms. Teachers also can find a wealth of professional development by viewing TCI’s on-demand webinars at www.teachtci.com/webinars.html.

Sept. 7 – Getting Started with the Interactive Student Notebook

Sept. 23 – The Best Ideas for Managing and Evaluating the Interactive Student Notebook

Oct. 5 – Gaming for Class Success

Oct. 19 – Getting the Most Out of Class Discussions

The National Assessment Governing Board (NAGB) is seeking nominations of qualified individuals to serve as members of the board for a four-year term beginning Oct. 1, 2012.

Congress established the 26-member board to set policy for the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP), also known as The Nation’s Report Card, which informs the public about student achievement nationwide in a number of core subjects. U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan will appoint the members from a list of finalists submitted by the board.

For 2012, NAGB is seeking nominations for five positions in the following categories:

• testing and measurement expert
• local board of education member
• state legislator (Republican)
• non-public school administrator
• general public representative

The deadline for receiving nominations is Sept 30.

More information about the nominations process can be found at www.nagb.org/nominations2012.

The Kentucky Reading Association will host its annual conference Oct. 27-29 in Lexington.

This year’s theme is “Lenses of Literacy: Multiple Perspectives.” The theme highlights the emphasis the Common Core State Standards place on the various but integrated strands of literacy – reading, writing, speaking and listening, viewing and visually representing.

Keynote speakers include authors Stephanie Harvey, Cris Tovani and Donna Alvermann and professor Peter Johnston, who also has written several publications.

For more information on the KRA Conference, go to www.kyreading.org/Preview.aspx or contact Diana Porter.