In Press Release

Prichard Committee Statement on Kentucky Board of Education’s actions

By

July 10, 2020

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
For more information, contact:
Jessica Fletcher, Senior Director,
Communications & External Affairs
The Prichard Committee
859-539-0511 (cell)
jessica.fletcher@prichardcommittee.org

[wyde_heading subheading_tag=”h3″ style=”2″ title=”Prichard Committee Statement on Kentucky Board of Education’s actions” subheading=”Brigitte Blom Ramsey, President & CEO, comments on new commissioner and racial equity resolution” animation=”slideInLeft”]

“Congratulations to Dr. Jason Glass on being named the next Kentucky commissioner of education. The Kentucky Board of Education has chosen a highly experienced candidate with the capacity to return our state to its place as a national leader in educational improvement.

We were exceptionally pleased with the diversity of the final pool of candidates and urge Commissioner Glass to put together a diverse leadership team at KDE that reflects the diversity of Kentucky’s public school students. All three final candidates would have served Kentucky exceptionally well. We look forward to continuing to work with Dr. Cummings-Smith and Dr. Heilig in their positions at Jefferson County Public Schools and at the University of Kentucky.

Now, amid both the COVID-19 pandemic and a national awakening on systemic racism, we need a strong leader who can strengthen our education outcomes in this critical time in our history, and Dr. Glass appears to have all the right qualifications for this weighty task. Kentucky’s schools have simply failed to deliver for students of color, and it is imperative that Dr. Glass owns this truth and uses all available tools to close belief gaps, opportunity gaps, academic achievement gaps, and excellence gaps.

We are especially pleased that Dr. Glass has a history of championing student voice and look forward to inviting him to hold a conversation with our Student Voice Team at his earliest convenience. Our team uses the tools of civic engagement to elevate the voices of young people in education research and policy. We look forward to a productive partnership.

Finally, we applaud the Kentucky Board of Education for its passage of a resolution on racial equity in Kentucky’s K-12 school system. The resolution sends an important signal that now is the time to remedy historical injustices in education, born of racism.”

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The Prichard Committee for Academic Excellence is an independent, nonpartisan, citizen-led organization working to improve education in Kentucky, with excellence and equity – early childhood through postsecondary.

Author

Jessica Fletcher joined the staff of the Prichard Committee for Academic Excellence in January 2020. She comes to Prichard with more than 17 years experience working in communications, journalism and education advocacy. She has covered local school boards as a journalist in London, Ky. and Winchester, Ky., and communicated about the importance of education to Kentucky's workforce and economy as the Communications Director at the Kentucky Chamber of Commerce. She also served as the Executive Director of Communications at the Kentucky Education and Workforce Development Cabinet and as the Chief Communications Officer for the Kentucky Department of Education. A lifelong Kentuckian, she is a graduate of Rockcastle County High School and Eastern Kentucky University.

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