Call to Order and Roll Call
The 5th meeting of the Interim Joint Committee on Education was held on Monday, October 13, 2014, at 10:00 AM, in Owensboro, Kentucky. Representative Derrick Graham, Co-Chair, called the meeting to order, and the secretary called the roll.
Present were:
Members: Senator Mike Wilson, Co-Chair; Representative Derrick Graham, Co-Chair; Senators Joe Bowen, David P. Givens, Jimmy Higdon, Stan Humphries, Alice Forgy Kerr, Reginald Thomas, and Johnny Ray Turner; Representatives Jeffery Donohue, C.B. Embry Jr., Kelly Flood, Jim Glenn, Richard Heath, Joni L. Jenkins, James Kay, Brian Linder, Mary Lou Marzian, Jody Richards, Tom Riner, Rita Smart, Wilson Stone, David Watkins, and Jill York.
Legislative Guests: Representatives Jim Gooch Jr., Suzanne Miles, Arnold Simpson, and Tommy Thompson.
Guests: Allyson Shelton, Kentucky Head Start Association; Peggy Grant, Kentucky Head Start Association; Clyde Caudill, Kentucky Association of School Administrators; Steve Loyah, Atmos Energy; Al Mattingly, Daviess County Judge Executive; Erin Klarer, Kentucky Higher Education Assistance Authority; and Ashley Parrot, Education Workforce and Development Cabinet.
LRC Staff: Jo Carole Ellis, Joshua Collins, and Daniel Clark.
Approval of the September 8, 2014, Minutes
Upon motion from Representative Jody Richards, seconded by Senator Mike Wilson, the September 8, 2014, minutes were approved by voice vote.
Welcome
Al Mattingly, Daviess County Judge Executive, welcomed the committee and thanked the members for coming to Owensboro. He said that Owensboro has formed a regional alliance for education and work with the surrounding counties, local colleges, and schools to better prepare students for the future.
Representatives Jim Glenn, Tommy Thompson, Suzanne Miles, Jim Gooch, Jr., and David Watkins and Senator Joe Bowen welcomed and thanked the committee members for attending the meeting. The legislators thanked Chairman Derrick Graham and the Legislative Research Commission for allowing the meeting to take place in Owensboro.
Reverend Larry Hostetter, President, Brescia University, welcomed and thanked the committee members for the work done in education and for their support of teachers across the state.
Dr. Nicholas Brake, Superintendent, Owensboro Public Schools, welcomed and thanked the committee members for attending the meeting and for how hard they work to support the children of Kentucky, especially in Owensboro.
Barton Darrell, President, Kentucky Wesleyan College, welcomed and thanked committee members for attending meeting.
Owensboro Community and Technical College
Jim Klauber, President, Owensboro Community and Technical College (OCTC), said OCTC’s four main focus areas are cost, convenience, quality, and careers. OCTC is an open enrollment institution that tries to keep tuition at a minimum. For fall 2013, in three of the seven high schools OCTC served, OCTC enrolled over 50 percent of their college-bound graduates. In the other four high schools, OCTC was the plurality leader. OCTC is close to home for a lot of the students who are enrolled and put education into a format that students want and need to meet their schedule with no hassle. Also, OCTC offers a quality curriculum with nationally accredited or recognized programs that are aligned with the needs of the community and the workforce to better prepare the students for the future.
Dr. Klauber said since 2010, there has been a lot of change at OCTC, especially in the Automotive and Diesel Program. In July 2010, the Automotive and Diesel Program had lost its accreditation, there was no curricular alignment, 85 percent of students were high school students who did not want to pursue a career in the field, and facilities were neglected with no motivation by faculty to improve them. As of 2014, OCTC has radically changed the southeastern campus and the Automotive and Diesel Program has become an accredited program with award winning faculty. It is also a top 20 finalist for the 2014 Tomorrow’s Tech School of the year.
Dr. Klauber said the Common Reading Program at OCTC is 10 years old and reaches out to all the other programs in OCTC. It is also tied with the Global Studies Program. The endowment of this program will forever tie the College of Humanities activities in Owensboro and engage the students like never before.
Dr. Klauber said OCTC’s Veterinary Technology Program started this year and is the only two-year program of its kind in Kentucky. Veterinary Technology is one of the fastest growing jobs in the United States, and it has significant agricultural implications in Kentucky. This program is a pathway to a bachelor’s degree and beyond at other four-year institutions.
Dr. Klauber said the Healthcare Facilities Leadership Program originated in Owensboro and was requested by Owensboro Health. The American Society for Healthcare Engineering and the Kentucky Society of Healthcare Engineers provided $35,000 each to help start this program and pay the instructors’ first-year salary. The program was approved in the spring of 2014 and is the first in the United States. The classes are all online, and OCTC is pursuing articulation agreements with Purdue, Texas A&M, University of Houston, Brigham Young University, Western Kentucky University, and Champlain College.
Dr. Klauber spoke about different careers and said OCTC, along with other postsecondary institutions, must align offerings with the needs of the community, region, and Kentucky. In the past five years, OCTC has started seven new programs and has closed five programs in the past three years. The programs that closed were not meeting the needs of the local economy. Most all of OCTC programs provide a pathway to a bachelor degree, internship opportunities, and numerous transfer options.
Senator Joe Bowen commended Dr. Klauber and OCTC for the work they do and said the Automotive and Diesel Program at OCTC is a great program and has a wonderful facility.
Senator Reginald Thomas said he admires Dr. Klauber’s passion and enthusiasm for his job. He also said that the success of the Automotive and Diesel Program at OCTC is very timely considering Kentucky will soon be second in the nation in manufacturing automobiles.
In response to Senator Reginald Thomas’s question regarding the Healthcare Leadership Program, Dr. Klauber said it is an online program available at OCTC.
In response to Senator David Givens’ questions regarding the opening and closing of programs at OCTC, Dr. Klauber said OCTC closed the programs that were dying out and were not competitive in the local community’s workforce. He said there needs to be a constant dialogue between the Council on Postsecondary Education and the General Assembly since the General Assembly sets the strategic plan for two- and four-year institutions.
In response to Chairman Derrick Graham’s question regarding certified builders in the build and trade industry, Dr. Klauber said there are regular discussions about building construction but there is no place for a two-year degree in building construction in Kentucky because there is no requirement for a builder’s contract or contractor’s license.
Kentucky Head Start Programs
Allyson Shelton, Executive Director, Kentucky Head Start Association, said Head Start began in 1965 as an eight-week summer program for preschool children from low-income families. Since then, Head Start has become the country’s premier preschool program. Head Start focuses on school readiness and takes a comprehensive approach for the child and family. Kentucky has 32 Head Start programs with a total enrollment of 21,046 children. Kentucky Head Start programs partner with the Governor’s Office of Early Childhood, Cabinet for Health and Family Services, and the Department of Education.
Ms. Shelton said Head Start and Early Head Start’s quality is the highest in the nation with continuous quality improvement efforts, designated and individualized curriculum, and optimal levels of teacher/child interactions. Also, families who participate in Head Start are more likely to invest time and literacy activities with their children, both while enrolled and years after their children graduate from the program. A child who attends Head Start is less likely to need special education services or engage in unhealthy behaviors and is more likely to achieve success in school and life.
Peggy Grant, Director, Audubon Area Head Start (AAHS), said the Audubon Area Community Services Head Start Program is located in Owensboro and serves 16 different counties across western Kentucky. The program was a National Center of Excellence in 2010 and has been named a National Program of Excellence by the National Head Start Association since 2002. All of the teachers in the AAHS program have an early childhood degree and, the program serves over 2,500 low-income children.
Ms. Grant said school readiness is permeated throughout Head Start, Early Head Start, and Migrant Head Start and AAHS collaborates with multiple local community partners to ensure over 2,000 preschool children are ready for kindergarten. The program also helps prepare over 400 Early Head Start parents of infants and toddlers to value education and start early preparation for kindergarten.
Ms. Grant said since AAHS has become a National Center of Excellence, AAHS has been able to guide other Head Start programs in successful collaboration with school districts and child care. Also, AAHS has been able to disseminate research-based preschool teaching practices across the nation to early childhood educators at local, state, and national conferences, as well as provide onsite training.
Ms. Shelton said there are 101,000 children from ages zero to five living in poverty in Kentucky. There are 203,903 children in Kentucky who potentially need early care and education. Early childhood education should be a priority in Kentucky. There needs to be support of early childhood stakeholders for their efforts to collaborate and combine resources, use local data to guide decision-making about Head Start programs, support early care and education initiatives for professional development opportunities and education, and recognize the economic impact of Head Start in Kentucky.
Chairman Derrick Graham praised Governor Steve Beshear and First Lady Jane Beshear for making early childhood education a top priority in Kentucky.
In response to Senator Jimmy Higdon’s question regarding collaboration with local school systems, Ms. Shelton said Kentucky Head Start programs are prepared to collaborate with any local school system.
In response to Representative Rita Smart’s questions regarding examples of changes and goals Head Start makes for families, Ms. Grant said the Dialogical Reading Program is a reading program where parents read with their children daily and has produced positive results for parents and children.
In response to Representative Jim Glenn’s question regarding the percentage of Head Start students ages zero to five living in poverty in Kentucky, Ms. Shelton said Head Start serves about 20 percent of children up to age five living in poverty.
Representative Mary Lou Marzian thanked the presenters for their passion for the young children of Kentucky and said it is disappointing that the General Assembly does not invest more money in early childhood education.
Chairman Derrick Graham said educators have an obligation to focus on excellence for the children of Kentucky and to make sure the children are served in the highest capacity.
Representative James Kay thanked the presenters for their presentation and said it is lawmaker responsibility to make lives better for people of Kentucky. It starts by teaching children at birth and investing funds in early childhood education.
Senator Alice Forgy Kerr talked about her experiences as a social worker aid and classroom aid with Kentucky Head Start.
With no further business before the committee, the meeting was adjourned at 12:10 p.m.