The new superintendent of Jefferson County Public Schools is in Louisville for the first time since she was hired for the post last month. Dr. Donna Hargens will be in town through Tuesday. She’s meeting with school board members and district officials, including interim Superintendent Dr. Freda Merriweather. She also made a stop at Churchill Park School.Hargens will take over as superintendent on August 1st. She says she’s focused on having a smooth first day of school two weeks later, mindful of the transportation problems last year that caused some children to get home hours after dismissal. "People looked at what happened and learned from it and now have put steps in place. You can ask for more than that to come up with a great first day. I’ll continue to stay close to dr. merriweather and stay on top of the plans that are in place," she said today.Hargens will be introduced at Monday’s school board meeting. The board is also expected to vote on her contract, details of which were still being worked out this week.
Rick Howlett was midday host and the host of LPM's weekly talk show, "In Conversation." He was with LPM from 2001-2023 and held many different titles, including Morning Edition host, Assignment Editor and Interim News Director. He died in August 2023. Read a remembrance of Rick here.
