Kentucky Teacher

Grant funding is available from the Kentucky Arts Council for teachers and schools seeking assistance with transportation costs to and from arts events.

Kentucky schools, public or private, supporting grades pre-K through 12 may apply for a TranspARTation Grant. Grants are awarded based on mileage from the school building to the arts organization or performance venue and the number of buses necessary. There is a minimum grant amount of $100.

Schools must attend activities at one of several pre-approved arts venues. All arts organizations are participants in the Kentucky Arts Partnership program and demonstrate appropriate arts programming and the ability to provide supplemental educational materials to teachers and schools.

The March 1 application deadline applies to field trips that will occur between April 1 and June 30. TranspARTation grants are awarded on a quarterly basis. View guidelines and find an application form online at http://artscouncil.ky.gov/Grants/TranspARTation.htm. For more information about the TranspARTation grant, contact Dan Strauss, senior program analyst, at dan.strauss@ky.gov or (502) 564-3757, ext. 474 

New federal guidelines for the physical examination and Commercial Driver’s License (CDL) renewal process for bus drivers adopted by the Kentucky Transportation Cabinet (KYTC) in January 2012 may be creating confusion for some school districts.

Transportation directors and driver trainers have been aware of the changes for some months now. Since it is critically important that bus drivers are fully certified to drive, superintendents are being alerted so that steps can be taken, if needed, prior to the start of the school year to ensure qualified bus drivers are in place.

Adhering to the physical examination and CDL renewal policy will ensure that the district is protected from liability and that students are transported safely.

In April 2012, Kentucky Department of Education (KDE) staff was advised by KYTC of the new federally-required process and timelines click here to view the memo sent to KDE.

There is additional information for school districts about the new requirements on the KDE Pupil Transportation Web site here.

For more information, contact the KDE Pupil Transportation Unit at (502) 564-5279.

More than 30,000 junior and senior high school students from more than 2,000 schools affiliated with the National Forensic League (nflonline.org), which is the national high school speech and debate society, will focus this school year on the issue of “transportation infrastructure investment.”

The National Forensic League’s annual policy debate topic asks whether the U.S. government should substantially increase its transportation infrastructure investment. Students will research and debate the issue at local, state, regional and national competitions.

The American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials (AASHTO) is building a Web page that could serve as an informational resource for students interested in learning more about infrastructure investment. In addition, AASHTO will provide judges and guest speakers for special events throughout the school year.

More information on the National Forensic League and the national debate topic are available online at http://www.nflonline.org/StudentResources/Topics.  A listing of National Forensic League local contacts is available at http://www.nflonline.org/AboutNFL/DistrictContacts.

For more information, contact Lloyd Brown, AASHTO’s director of communications, at (202) 624-5802 or via e-mail at lbrown@aashto.org.

The 2011- 12 vocational transportation payments, based on districts’ 2010-11 VT-1 District Annual Claim Form submission, have been posted to the Web. Use the following link to review your districts’ payment information: Vocational Education Transportation.

Payments will be processed to districts soon.

For more information about your district’s payment amount, contact Chay Ritter at (502) 564-4403, ext. 4453.

The Kentucky Arts Council is offering a new grant to provide transportation funding to help students get from schools to arts events and performances.

The TranspARTation grant is open to any school, public or private, that needs transportation funding to attend activities at the following approved venues:

• Actors Theatre, Louisville
• Carnegie Visual and Performing Arts Center, Covington
• Explorium of Lexington 
• Kentucky Opera, Louisville
• Kentucky Symphony Orchestra, northern Kentucky
• KentuckyLexington Art League
• Lexington Children’s Theatre
• Living Arts and Science Center, Lexington Read the full story