Some Senate Bill 1 costs will be paid this year by cutting what Kentucky school districts receive for professional development.
SB 1 is the 2009 legislation that called for Kentucky to adopt new, college-and-career-ready standards, assessments to support those standards, and new efforts to prepare teachers to deliver on the standards for all students. It set an important and positive overall direction for Kentucky education, but it came without added dollars for the added work that will be required. For a little while, the federal Race to the Top competition also seemed like a way Kentucky might find the resources to implement the bill's mandates, but Kentucky did not win a grant in either the first or the second round of the competition.
According to a "Fast Five on Friday" message sent to superintendents last week, the Department reallocated state-level funds to meet most of the SB 1 costs for this fiscal year, but still found itself "short of approximately $2.6 million necessary to implement all required components." Holding back the professional development dollars will fund those other components.
It's good to see SB 1 implementation moving forward, but this is a painful way to make it happen!
[Hat tip: KSBA]
Funding SB 1 should not be about tradeoffs -- it should be about getting it right. Professional development will be critical to preparing teachers for the demands of SB 1. I certainly understand the DOE is trying to make the best of a tough situation -- but Kentucky's kids deserve better.
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