Kayla Jones holds a medallion that says "Under 40 to Watch"

Kayla Jones, a professional learning coach at the West Kentucky Educational Cooperative (WKEC), was named to the Association for Positive Behavior Support’s (APBS’) “Under 40 to Watch” list during the group’s national conference in March. Photo courtesy WKEC

(BOWLING GREEN, KY) – Kayla Jones, a professional learning coach at the West Kentucky Educational Cooperative (WKEC), has been named to the Association for Positive Behavior Support’s (APBS’) “Under 40 to Watch” list for her leadership in advancing positive behavior support practices in Kentucky schools.

Jones works in the Special Educational Regional Technical Assistance Center (SERTEC) at WKEC, where she focuses on addressing students’ social, emotional and behavioral needs. Her work includes supporting the implementation of the Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports (PBIS) framework and the Interconnected Systems Framework.

Her passion for positive behavior support began during her first year as a special education teacher at Mayfield Elementary School. Jones said she was drawn to the challenge of helping students with significant behavioral needs and quickly realized the importance of understanding behavior rather than trying to change it.

“I got into (PBIS) work six years ago because of my love for not just social and emotional behavioral needs but also supporting students with disabilities,” Jones said.

Jones has spent 16 years working in education, including roles as a special education teacher, school counselor and now as a professional learning coach. She said the recognition from APBS was unexpected but validating. 

“This work has been a passion of mine for I guess 16 years now, and I continue to strive to improve personally and professionally. I think that probably was a big thing for the selection committee,” she said.

Kayla said she thinks The APBS “Under 40” honor featured her because of her intentional, research-based approach to supporting schools and educators. She said the recognition is not just personal but also a reflection of the work her team has done at WKEC to implement and support PBIS.

“Throughout the year we do a cohort training module, so we will do trainings, but then other days we will follow up with coaching calls to individuals like administrators or counselors, or teacher leaders to support the work, and then sometimes that leads to walk-through visits,” Jones said.

Jones explained her daily work varies from conducting school visits and hosting coaching calls to facilitating training sessions and working one-on-one with teachers managing classrooms. She focuses on helping educators build systems that support students and create lasting change.

She said she is especially proud of the role she plays in encouraging teachers not to give up on students, even in difficult circumstances. She helps teachers build district structures and systems to be able to develop what the students, the school and the community need.

“Go slow to go fast,” Jones said. “And I say that because I was guilty of trying to just put everything in place right away. It’s not something that you can just get a piece of paper and check off the list and say, hey, I’m doing this, I got this. You have to really go slow and build your support.” 

Jones collaborates with the Kentucky Department of Education (KDE) and Kentucky’s other educational cooperatives to build scalable models of behavior support. She emphasizes the importance of pacing implementation thoughtfully to ensure success.

Across the state, numerous educational cooperatives were actively advancing positive behavior support initiatives. Backed by guidance from KDE and collaboration with Midwest PBIS, schools were beginning to benefit from a clearer, more connected system of support. This network made it easier for educators to know where to turn for help and how to access the right resources, laying the groundwork for greater consistency in implementing positive behavior strategies.

“We had to get to know some of the KDE leaders because knowing the right people to talk to helps us to get to where we need to be. Collaborating with other educational cooperatives across the state has been key to the success,” Jones said.

She said her motivation stems from her desire to give misunderstood students a voice and is fueled by her own family, particularly her 12-year-old son.

“Just because you’re a child doesn’t mean that you don’t have a voice, and you don’t have a say in things. But how can we hear those that are also trying to speak in other ways,” Jones said.

Jones said being named to the APBS “Under 40 to Watch” list is an opportunity to expand her professional network and continue growing in the field. She looks forward to learning from others and contributing to a national conversation about the future of behavioral support in schools.