Tuesday, December 23, 2008

Mountjoy: KET Programs that Promote literacy and Graduation Threatened

This from Tony McVeigh at WFPL:

KET Facing Staff, Program Reductions
Kentucky Educational Television is taking a major hit under Governor Steve Beshear’s budget-balancing plan.

Education Secretary Helen Mountjoy says KET is a member of the 18 percent club, meaning its budget has already been cut 18-percent this calendar year. Now it’s facing another four-percent cut.

“They’re probably going to have to discontinue the KET ED program, which is a whole series of programs that go directly into classrooms and are used all over the commonwealth,” Mountjoy said.

KET has already reduced its staff by 34 percent, and eight more layoffs may be coming.

Another member of the 18 percent club is the Kentucky Department of Libraries and Archives, which supports local libraries, and is a treasure trove of state documents.

Mountjoy warns that if new revenue is not found soon, the agency may have to cease operations.

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