Southern Regional Education Board Honors Kentucky First Lady Jane Beshear for Her Work in Education

The nonprofit Southern Regional Education Board (SREB) will honor Jane Beshear, the First Lady of the Commonwealth of Kentucky, at the 24th annual SREB High Schools That Work Staff Development Conference this week in Louisville, Kentucky, for her dedication to improving graduation rates in Kentucky and ensuring more students are prepared for college and careers.

Through her "GRADUATE KENTUCKY" initiative, First Lady Beshear has drawn attention to the importance of graduating more Kentucky students and preparing them for college, advanced training and careers. The initiative is raising awareness of the dropout problem as a community issue, instigates community discussions of the issue and helps to develop action plans to address it.

GRADUATE KENTUCKY is a first-of-its-kind comprehensive statewide conversation not only understand to why students are contemplating dropping out of school, but also to share ideas and best practices of how communities and schools can play a pivotal role in reducing the dropout rate and creating a strategic vision for keeping children engaged in school.

"First Lady's Beshear's efforts to reduce the high school dropout rate, along with her long history of striving to improve adolescent literacy, are closely aligned with two of SREB's major initiatives," said SREB Senior Vice President Gene Bottoms. "We commend Mrs. Beshear for the great progress she is making in improving education in Kentucky. "

First Lady Beshear has a long history of striving to improve education, with a particular focus on improving adolescent literacy. She is a Scholastic Reading Ambassador, encouraging children to read during their summer vacations. Mrs. Beshear began her own Reading Recommendations initiative in 2009 by releasing a list of 10 recommended books for children each season.
A graduate of the University of Kentucky and a former career/technical educator, Mrs. Beshear taught business education at Woodford County High School, which was a HSTW site for more than 10 years.

SREB's single largest program, HSTW is a national, comprehensive school improvement design based on the premise that most students can master rigorous academic and career/technical studies if school leaders and teachers create a school environment that motivates all students to make the effort to succeed. More than 1,100 high schools in 30 states and the District of Columbia participate in the HSTW school improvement initiative. Nearly 6,000 teachers, principals and other educators are expected to attend this week's conference in Louisville.

SOURCE: KDE press release

Decreasing state's high school dropout rate is summit's goal

This from Jim Warren at H-L:

Almost 6,500 students dropped out of Kentucky schools in 2008 — enough to make up a good-size small town — and faced an uncertain employment future without a high school diploma.

Kentucky first lady Jane Beshear said Wednesday that the state can't afford to keep sending so many young people handicapped by an incomplete education into an increasingly competitive job market.

"Together, as a community, we must find ways to keep all of our students engaged and in school," she said in a statement.

Accordingly, Beshear will host a summit in Frankfort on Sept. 11-12 called Graduate Kentucky: A Community Approach. It's aimed at developing a statewide action plan to raise Kentucky graduation rates and help prepare more young people for success in life.

Marian Wright Edelman, founder and president of The Children's Defense Fund, will be the keynote speaker at the summit. Gov. Steve Beshear will join other state and education leaders at the meeting, which will include discussion of best practices and ideas for raising graduation rates.

The Frankfort session will be followed by a series of regional summits, beginning this fall and continuing into next spring. The goal is to have a plan ready by summer to
attack Kentucky's dropout problem....

Graduate Kentucky

This from Cindy Heine at Prichard:

I am happy to announce that First Lady Jane Beshear and Education and Workforce Development Cabinet Secretary Helen Mountjoy have invited the public to participate in Graduate Kentucky: A Community Approach. This initiative will focus on raising awareness of the dropout problem in Kentucky, instigate a community discussion about the issue and develop an action plan to address the problem.

In Kentucky, more than 6,000 students dropped out in 2008, and nearly 26 percent of adults have less than a high school education.

These numbers have real consequences for the Commonwealth: High school dropouts are four times more likely to be unemployed than college graduates; one in four resorts to public assistance; and crime rates soar among those who have dropped out of school.

The dropout problem is affecting not only individual dropouts, but also our communities and society as a whole. And this is why communities and organizations like ours must be part of the solution.

On September 11-12, Mrs. Beshear will host a statewide summit at the Convention Center in Frankfort to begin this effort. Following the statewide summit, six regional conferences will be held throughout the year.

I encourage you to participate in both the statewide summit and the regional summits. If you are interested in attending the statewide summit or need more information on the broader initiative, please visit www.graduate.ky.gov or contact one of the individuals below.

Cindy Heine: Prichard Committee; cheine@prichardcommittee.org; Office: (859) 233-9849 x222

Colmon Elridge: Governor’s Office; Colmon.Elridge@ky.gov; Office: (502) 564-2611

Kate Wood: Governor’s Office; Kate.Wood@ky.gov; Office: (502) 564-2611

We are all needed to address this critical issue in the Commonwealth. As you are well aware, education is the key to success for an individual, a community and our shared legacy.

SIURCE: Prichard Communication