Kentucky Teacher

Fifty-six Kentucky school principals will receive executive-level leadership training as participants in an institute created and funded by the state’s business community through the Kentucky Chamber Foundation.

The principals were chosen as the class of 2013 (two groups of 28 each) for the Leadership Institute for School Principals that will begin this summer at the nationally-recognized Center for Creative Leadership (CCL) in Greensboro, N.C. It will continue with two follow-up sessions in the fall and early next year at the Kentucky Chamber’s headquarters in Frankfort.

CCL is a top-ranked global provider of executive education founded in 1970 that established an education and nonprofit section in 1988. Many Kentucky corporations use CCL to provide training for their executives.

Elementary, middle and high school principals from across Kentucky representing both public and private schools applied for the institute. Participants were selected by an advisory board made up of business leaders and school superintendents. The institute is being supported by generous donations from businesses across the state. Read the full story

Even though the school year is winding down, Kentucky Teacher is still looking to profile outstanding leaders in Kentucky’s public school districts.

From superintendents to classroom teachers and aides and everyone in between, these profiles are intended to offer insight into what it takes to be a strong leader and to say “well done” to those who excel at it.

If you know of an excellent district staff member who has innovative ideas, strong leadership qualities and a passion for helping students become college- and career-ready, e-mail the following information to Susan Riddell:

• nominee’s name, position, school and district
• contact information for nominee
• examples of how nominee has served in a leadership capacity
• what makes the nominee a strong leader

One leader will be profiled monthly in the Leadership Letter section of the Kentucky Teacher website. For more information, contact Riddell at (502) 564-2000, ext. 4621.

Lori Ricks

Lori Ricks, an engineering teacher at Trigg County High School, said she works hard on her own leadership skills because she knows that inspiring her students to develop and communicate their visions and show their leadership capabilities are key components in making them successful engineers one day.

“These capabilities include the ability to assess risks and take initiatives, the ability to make logical decisions, a sense of real-world constraints, flexibility in the face of failures and trust in their team,” she said.

Ricks, who has taught engineering at Trigg County High for eight years, has experienced several moments of success in that area with her students.

She also has been honored for her work with them, winning numerous honors from multiple organizations.

After working more than eight years as a marketing and technical service engineer for Trane, Ricks introduced Trigg County High to Project Lead The Way (PLTW) “to open doors that were closed for students exploring careers in engineering,” Ricks said. “I was originally hired to lead public relations activities with the goal of introducing the PLTW program to Trigg County students, ultimately increasing enrollment to 20-25 percent of the high school students in the PLTW classes.”

Ricks soon began teaching the program and has had the number-one test scores in Kentucky for three consecutive years on the PLTW end-of-course assessments, she said. Read the full story

Bob Fortney, a senior consultant in the Kentucky Department of Education’s (KDE’s) Office of District 180, is the recipient of the 2012 Kentucky Society for Technology in Education (KySTE) Outstanding Leader award, which will be presented at the KySTE spring conference March 9 in Louisville.

Each year, KySTE presents awards for outstanding leader, teacher and technology staff member, based on their work and achievement in the education technology area. State-level winners’ names are submitted to the International Society for Technology in Education (ISTE) for consideration of national-level recognition.

Fortney, a resident of Lexington, was nominated by Tara Rodriguez, a teacher liaison for the Kentucky Virtual High School in the KDE Division of Student Success. In her nomination, Rodriguez noted Fortney has a belief that online or blended learning can improve the educational experience for students from all backgrounds, abilities and talents.

“He also envisions the possibilities that individualized digital learning can offer to disengaged students or those who attend failing schools,” said Rodriguez. “Bob’s enthusiasm for digital learning is evident in his work, his professional associations and in his communication with colleagues and parents.”

Fortney has worked closely with the Kentucky Virtual High School, the federal Ready to Teach program, the Continuous Instructional Improvement Technology System (CIITS) project and other digital learning projects. Read the full story

Christine Wynne

Christine Wynne thrives on being a positive role model for her students.

“Kids, especially high school kids, are savvy enough to differentiate between those who ‘talk the talk’ but don’t ‘walk the walk’ and those who do. They are very sensitive to hypocrisy. They need men and women in their lives who show them how to be successful adults by modeling successful adult behavior. I am grateful to work at a school where my colleagues do just that,” Wynne said.

A 24-year teaching veteran, Wynne taught biology in North Carolina for two years before moving to Kentucky. She taught in the Pulaski County school district for 11 years, and she is currently in her 11^th year at Paducah Tilghman High School (Paducah Independent). 

A national board certified teacher, Wynne said she encourages leadership from her students.

“I try to do this by modeling positive leadership behavior with the hopes that they will internalize it and make it their own,” she said. “I start by showing them how and then step back and let them assume ownership.”

As sponsor of the Recycling Club, Wynne has club members collect paper and plastic from classrooms on a weekly basis. Read the full story

The Kentucky Board of Education is accepting nominations for the Dr. Johnnie Grissom Award, which honors a Kentuckian or a Kentucky organization for outstanding dedication to improving student achievement and for closing the achievement gap; and for the Joseph W. Kelly Award, which honors a businessperson who has offered outstanding leadership and service toward promoting school improvement and equity of educational opportunity for all Kentucky children.

 The deadline for nominations for both awards is November 14. Click on the links for details and nomination forms for both the Grissom Award and Kelly Award.

Local, state and federal education leaders from across the country will be in Boston April 20-23 for the 2012 National School Boards Association conference. These participants will get multiple opportunities to gain insights from Kentuckians at the conference.

NSBA recently announced the selection of 166 workshop presentations from 400 submissions. A total of 10 Kentucky proposals were chosen for featured clinics at the 2012 event. Only California, Illinois and Texas will have more workshops on the conference calendar. Read the full story

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. Read the full story

Kentucky Teacher is looking to profile outstanding leaders in Kentucky’s public school districts. If you know of an excellent district staff member who has innovative ideas, strong leadership qualities and a passion for helping students become college and career ready, e-mail the following information to Susan Riddell:

• nominee’s name, position, school and district
• contact information for nominee
• examples of how nominee has served in a leadership capacity
• what makes the nominee a strong leader

One leader will be profiled monthly in the Leadership Letter section of the Kentucky Teacher website. For more information, contact Riddell at (502) 564-2000, ext. 4621.

The Kentucky School Boards Association (KSBA) is accepting nominations for local board members interested in running for a seat on the association’s 27-member board of directors.

Five director-at-large seats will be filled by election during the business session of the 2012 KSBA Annual Conference, Feb. 4.

The five positions currently are held by the following people, all of whom are eligible to seek either re-election or election (for appointees filling vacancies):

• Linda Duncan, Jefferson County
• Eugene Peel, Jessamine County
• Jeff Eaton, Allen County
• Catina Hasty, Rockcastle County
• Eddie Cornett, Paintsville Independent

The seats held by Duncan, Peel, Eaton and Hasty are for three-year terms, while Cornett’s seat will be filled for the final year of the unexpired term.

In keeping with the association’s bylaws, any Kentucky school board member can place his or her name before the committee by completing and submitting the attached form by Sept. 23. Nomination forms may be sent by mail, fax or e-mail per the instructions on the form.

A nominating committee appointed by President Tom Blankenship of Lincoln County and chaired by Immediate Past President Delmar Mahan of Whitley County will report back to the membership with its recommendations in November.

For more information about the nominating process or about service on the board of directors, contact Bill Scott, Kathy Amburgey or Brad Hughes toll-free at (800) 372-2962.