More than 100,000 Jefferson County Public Schools students are back in class next Tuesday and there are several changes that officials hope will improve student achievement.
We'll be joined by Superintendent Donna Hargens today at 1 p.m. to discuss all this plus more and we'll be taking your calls. What questions do you have about the state of public education in Louisville? Call 502-814-8255 to participate or you can reach us on Twitter and at Facebook. Listen at 89.3 or stream here. Things of note for this school year:
- The Kentucky Department of Education will tentatively release all assessment data during the last week of September. It should show which schools have improved over the following year and this will be the first year we can compare the state's new Unbridled Learning accountability model with the previous year's data.
- Commissioner Terry Holliday has warned JCPS that KDE may decide to take over one (or some) of JCPS' lowest achieving schools. The decision will come after school assessments are released this fall.
- This will be the second year of implementation for the Kentucky Core Academic Standards (also known as the Common Core Standards). Around half of the state's teachers say they want more professional development to teach the standards.
- JCPS is one of four Districts of Innovation, which received certain exemptions from KDE regulations.
- JCPS has a new student assignment plan for elementary schools that will mean shorter transportation distances for some 2,000 students while still maintaining adequate diversity requirements as determined by the school district.
- JCPS and the Jefferson County Teachers Association have agreed to a new multi-year contract that includes more choice for principals and schools when hiring new teachers. Teachers will not receive raises.
- JCPS will provide extended learning services at struggling schools. It's among several programs that target at-risk students this year.
