November 14, 2022

As part of our commitment to open and transparent communication, we are pleased to share the "Board Meeting Brief," which is sent out after each school board planning work session.

Members of the Fayette County Board of Education honored Lexington Fayette County Urban League President and CEO P.G. Peeples, Sr., Monday, declaring that "Fayette County Public Schools is a better school system today because P.G. Peeples has devoted his time, talent, and tenacity to addressing uncomfortable truths, opening once blind eyes, demanding necessary change, planting seeds of wisdom, awakening the conscience of our community, establishing the imperative, and coalescing action for the benefit of all children."

• Read the full resolution here
• Watch a short video here

Among his many leadership roles during his more than five decades of advocacy, Peeples served for nine years as a founding member and the first chairman of the FCPS Equity Council, established in 1994 to drive change and advise the school district on issues of fairness and opportunity. In 1997, the council established an annual equity award, but that tradition was discontinued at some point with little fanfare.

Following the adoption of the resolution Monday, members of the current Equity Council Committee announced the restoration of annual award, renaming it the "P.G. Peeples Equity Champion Award," and selecting him as its first recipient.

• EARLY CHILDHOOD EDUCATION
• Board members heard from Meocha Williams, Associate Superintendent for Academic Service, about plans to work with community partners and families to support the development and early literacy of children from the time they are born until they enter kindergarten. "If we do this well – which I know we will – this is going to transform their educational path moving forward," said Vice Chair Amy Green. "They're going to hit those reading and math benchmarks and they can just do whatever they want and that's amazing." Board member Tom Jones praised the energy and enthusiasm for the initiative, confirmed that all members of the community – including youngsters in private and church daycare and preschool settings – will have access to the resources, and asked for additional information about how success will be measured. Board chair Tyler Murphy connected the early childhood efforts to the five strategic priorities, which were developed with significant community input in the district's recently approved strategic plan. "This initiative really hits on all of them," he said. "Establishing a clear foundation for children even before they get into our classrooms is key." View the presentation here
• Board members heard a proposal from Footsteps 2 Brilliance to purchase a perpetual license that would give all families in Fayette County access to interactive eBooks, songs, and games in English or Spanish. Miss Kentucky Hannah Edelen shared the success she's seen as a teacher using the platform in Northern Kentucky. View the presentation here

• SALARY STUDY During the 2021-22 school year, the Fayette County Board of Education contracted with Evergreen Solutions to examine the compensation and classification of hourly employees in the district. As a result of that study, all hourly employees received adjustments to their pay this school year. During the 2022-23 school year, the board has again contracted with Evergreen to do a similar study of the compensation provided to salaried employees of the district. The scope of work in the contract includes a market study of like positions in our area, potential pay compression issues and solutions, an evaluation of the various work calendars, and updated job descriptions. Board members received an update on the work already underway. View the presentation here

• INTERNAL AUDIT PLAN Internal auditor Nick Clark explained that the role of an internal audit is to provide independent and objective assurance that an organization's risk, governance and internal control processes are operating effectively. He then explained areas of focus planned for this year. View the presentation here

• BOARD MEMBER DISTRICT BOUNDARIES To ensure that each school board member represents roughly the same number of constituents in our community, district leaders have been working with a demographer to review the data from the 2020 U.S. Census to determine if any changes should be made. Board members heard Monday from Deputy Superintendent Houston Barber and a representative from Davis Demographics, a national company that specializes in advising school districts on this type of work. Two scenarios that include moving a few voting precincts from one school board member's district to another have been developed for consideration. Members of the public are invited to share their thoughts on the two scenarios during a public hearing to be held in Room 150 of the John D. Price Administration Building, located at 450 Park Place, at 5:30 p.m. on November 28, 2022.
• View Scenario 1
• View Scenario 2
• See an interactive online version of the proposals
• See the PowerPoint Presentation shared by Davis Demographics

• SUBSTITUTE SALARY INCENTIVE PROPOSAL In an effort to encourage more substitutes to accept assignments each day, district leaders proposed adding an incentive pay component to current salary schedules. Under the recommendation, which the board will consider at its meeting on November 28, substitutes would earn an additional $50 per day for special education assignments and $25 a day to work in schools where recent data showed more than half of substitute requests had not been filled. The plan also includes an additive for those who are multilingual – $15 a day for teachers and $2 per day for those filling hourly posts.

• HEALTH SERVICES As part of the district's commitment to meeting the needs of the whole child, FCPS partners with Lexington-Fayette County Health Department and HealthFirst Bluegrass to provide health services in our schools. During Monday's board meeting, board members heard annual reports from Yolanda Loveless, a nurse and manager of the School Health program for the Health Department and several members of the HealthFirst team, including Malia Jackson, Director of Operations, Britney Anderson, RN manager, Jennifer Angermeier, APRN Lead and TCHS APRN, Audrea Berrones, Behavioural Health Lead, and Dr. Chris Casterline DMD.
• See the HealthFirst Bluegrass report
• See the Lexington-Fayette County Health Department report

• NUTRITION AND WELLNESS REPORT Health Services Coordinator Debbie Boian and Child Nutrition Director Michelle Coker presented the Annual School Nutrition and Wellness Report. A public hearing to accept input on the report will take place at the John D. Price Administration Building, located at 450 Park Place, at 5:30 p.m. on January 23, 2023 View the report here

• SOCIAL EMOTIONAL WELLNESS Another aspect of addressing the needs of the whole child is focus FCPS has placed on social and emotional learning and well-being. As part of that effort this year, the board supported the implementation of a screening tool to help teachers and schools ensure we are helping all of our students become their personal bests. Board members received a report on the findings of this assessment tool from Chief Officer of Student Support Services Dedeeh Newbern. View the presentation here

WHAT IS A SCHOOL BOARD PLANNING WORK SESSION?

The Fayette County Board of Education meets twice a month. The planning work session is an opportunity to receive extended presentations, review the agenda for the action meeting later in the month, and provide time for board members to ask questions and hold discussions with staff. The action meeting is when the board votes on proposed items.

WHERE CAN I LEARN MORE?

Click here to see the full agenda.

Click here to listen to the meeting.