(FRANKFORT, KY) – Members of the Kentucky Board of Education (KBE) acted on several waivers requested from Covington Independent and designated eight schools and any other school or educational program operated and/or funded by the district as a school of innovation, opening the door for the district to participate in a pilot project established by lawmakers earlier this year.
Under KRS 156.161, a school district may request a school of innovation designation through waivers for schools or programs for the purpose of providing innovative educational opportunities to students. Covington Independent sought a school of innovation designation for each school and program within the district through a series of seven waiver requests the board considered during a special KBE meeting on Aug. 25. KBE members approved the district’s broader request to designate each school in the district as a school of innovation with a requirement to provide regular reports to the board on finances, operations and student outcomes.
KBE Chair Lu S. Young noted how the board and the Kentucky General Assembly have valued and created opportunities related to innovation for public schools.
“We have repeatedly demonstrated our support for schools and districts that are willing to rethink traditional approaches and pursue meaningful transformation in ways that better serve today’s students,” Young said. “We want to support districts like Covington and others who will follow that have a compelling vision for transforming the educational outcomes for all students, and we want to work within the framework established by the General Assembly to make innovation possible.”
Leaders with Covington Independent – school board Chair Tom Haggard and new Superintendent Cortnei Flucas – said they were seeking resources made available to the district through a pilot project established by Senate Bill 263 earlier this year, including $2.5 million in funding in the 2026-2027 fiscal year. The legislation required Covington Independent to file waivers for the school of innovation designation by Aug. 1 for consideration by the KBE.KBE members addressed seven specific waivers requested from the district, including requests dealing with school calendar requirements, school-based decision making councils, salary schedules, assessments, truancy reporting requirements and educator certification requirements for career and technical education. Most of the district’s waiver requests were denied with a few exceptions.
The board approved the district’s requests related to:
- A waiver of Section 2 of 701 KAR 5:100, a regulation on the timeline for establishing an alternative model for school-based decision making;
- A partial waiver of 702 KAR 7:140, school calendar regulations, to allow the district to modify its calendar to add instructional time without permitting a calendar that provides less than the minimum required instruction time per day.
The waivers granted by the KBE will expire on June 30, 2029.
KBE members noted that the district already had the ability to engage in some proposed practices without any waivers.
“We have a responsibility as the state board to ensure that the requests before us meet the requirements established in law and provide us with a reasonable basis for determining that the proposed changes will in fact actually advance student outcomes,” KBE Chair Lu S. Young said during opening remarks to board members.
Districts interested in pursuing waiver requests should seek out information on the process on the Kentucky Department of Education’s Kentucky Laws and Regulations page.
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