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156.095 Professional development programs -- Professional development coordinator -- Long term improvement plans -- Suicide prevention awareness information -- Electronic consumer bulletin board -- Tr

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156.095 Professional development programs -- Professional development coordinator -- Long term improvement plans -- Suicide prevention awareness <br>information -- Electronic consumer bulletin board -- Training to address needs <br>of students at risk -- Teacher academics. (1) The Kentucky Department of Education shall establish, direct, and maintain a statewide program of professional development to improve instruction in the public <br>schools. (2) Each local school district superintendent shall appoint a certified school employee to fulfill the role and responsibilities of a professional development coordinator who <br>shall disseminate professional development information to schools and personnel. <br>Upon request by a school council or any employees of the district, the coordinator <br>shall provide technical assistance to the council or the personnel that may include <br>assisting with needs assessments, analyzing school data, planning and evaluation <br>assistance, organizing districtwide programs requested by school councils or groups <br>of teachers, or other coordination activities. <br>(a) The manner of appointment, qualifications, and other duties of the professional development coordinator shall be established by Kentucky Board <br>of Education through promulgation of administrative regulations. (b) The local district professional development coordinator shall participate in the Kentucky Department of Education annual training program for local school <br>district professional development coordinators. The training program may <br>include, but not be limited to, the demonstration of various approaches to <br>needs assessment and planning; strategies for implementing long-term, <br>school-based professional development; strategies for strengthening teachers' <br>roles in the planning, development, and evaluation of professional <br>development; and demonstrations of model professional development <br>programs. The training shall include information about teacher learning <br>opportunities relating to the core content standards. The Kentucky Department <br>of Education shall regularly collect and distribute this information. (3) The Kentucky Department of Education shall provide or facilitate optional, professional development programs for certified personnel throughout the <br>Commonwealth that are based on the statewide needs of teachers, administrators, <br>and other education personnel. Programs may include classified staff and parents <br>when appropriate. Programs offered or facilitated by the department shall be at <br>locations and times convenient to local school personnel and shall be made <br>accessible through the use of technology when appropriate. They shall include <br>programs that: address the goals for Kentucky schools as stated in KRS 158.6451, <br>including reducing the achievement gaps as determined by an equity analysis of the <br>disaggregated student performance data from the state assessment program <br>developed under KRS 158.6453; engage educators in effective learning processes <br>and foster collegiality and collaboration; and provide support for staff to incorporate <br>newly acquired skills into their work through practicing the skills, gathering <br>information about the results, and reflecting on their efforts. Professional development programs shall be made available to teachers based on their needs <br>which shall include but not be limited to the following areas: <br>(a) Strategies to reduce the achievement gaps among various groups of students and to provide continuous progress; (b) Curriculum content and methods of instruction for each content area, including differentiated instruction; (c) School-based decision making; <br>(d) Assessment literacy; <br>(e) Integration of performance-based student assessment into daily classroom instruction; (f) Nongraded primary programs; <br>(g) Research-based instructional practices; <br>(h) Instructional uses of technology; <br>(i) Curriculum design to serve the needs of students with diverse learning styles and skills and of students of diverse cultures; (j) Instruction in reading, including phonics, phonemic awareness, comprehension, fluency, and vocabulary; (k) Educational leadership; and <br>(l) Strategies to incorporate character education throughout the curriculum. (4) The department shall assist school personnel in assessing the impact of professional development on their instructional practices and student learning. (5) The department shall assist districts and school councils with the development of long-term school and district improvement plans that include multiple strategies for <br>professional development based on the assessment of needs at the school level. <br>(a) Professional development strategies may include, but are not limited to, participation in subject matter academies, teacher networks, training institutes, <br>workshops, seminars, and study groups; collegial planning; action research; <br>mentoring programs; appropriate university courses; and other forms of <br>professional development. (b) In planning the use of the four (4) days for professional development under KRS 158.070, school councils and districts shall give priority to programs that <br>increase teachers' understanding of curriculum content and methods of <br>instruction appropriate for each content area based on individual school plans. <br>The district may use up to one (1) day to provide district-wide training and <br>training that is mandated by state or federal law. Only those employees <br>identified in the mandate or affected by the mandate shall be required to attend <br>the training. (c) State funds allocated for professional development shall be used to support professional development initiatives that are consistent with local school <br>improvement and professional development plans and teachers' individual <br>growth plans. The funds may be used throughout the year for all staff, <br>including classified and certified staff and parents on school councils or committees. A portion of the funds allocated to each school council under <br>KRS 160.345 may be used to prepare or enhance the teachers' knowledge and <br>teaching practices related to the content and subject matter that are required <br>for their specific classroom assignments. (6) (a) By August 1, 2010, the Kentucky Cabinet for Health and Family Services shall post on its Web page suicide prevention awareness information, to <br>include recognizing the warning signs of a suicide crisis. The Web page shall <br>include information related to suicide prevention training opportunities <br>offered by the cabinet or an agency recognized by the cabinet as a training <br>provider. (b) By September 1, 2010, and September 1 of each year thereafter, every public middle and high school administrator shall disseminate suicide prevention <br>awareness information to all middle and high school students. The <br>information may be obtained from the Cabinet for Health and Family Services <br>or from a commercially developed suicide prevention training program. (7) The Department of Education shall establish an electronic consumer bulletin board that posts information regarding professional development providers and programs <br>as a service to school district central office personnel, school councils, teachers, and <br>administrators. Participation on the electronic consumer bulletin board shall be <br>voluntary for professional development providers or vendors, but shall include all <br>programs sponsored by the department. Participants shall provide the following <br>information: program title; name of provider or vendor; qualifications of the <br>presenters or instructors; objectives of the program; program length; services <br>provided, including follow-up support; costs for participation and costs of materials; <br>names of previous users of the program, addresses, and telephone numbers; and <br>arrangements required. Posting information on the bulletin board by the department <br>shall not be viewed as an endorsement of the quality of any specific provider or <br>program. (8) The Department of Education shall provide training to address the characteristics and instructional needs of students at risk of school failure and most likely to drop <br>out of school. The training shall be developed to meet the specific needs of all <br>certified and classified personnel depending on their relationship with these <br>students. The training for instructional personnel shall be designed to provide and <br>enhance skills of personnel to: <br>(a) Identify at-risk students early in elementary schools as well as at-risk and potential dropouts in the middle and high schools; (b) Plan specific instructional strategies to teach at-risk students; <br>(c) Improve the academic achievement of students at risk of school failure by providing individualized and extra instructional support to increase <br>expectations for targeted students; (d) Involve parents as partners in ways to help their children and to improve their children's academic progress; and (e) Significantly reduce the dropout rate of all students. (9) The department shall establish teacher academies to the extent funding is available in cooperation with postsecondary education institutions for elementary, middle <br>school, and high school faculty in core disciplines, utilizing facilities and faculty <br>from universities and colleges, local school districts, and other appropriate agencies <br>throughout the state. Priority for participation shall be given to those teachers who <br>are teaching core discipline courses for which they do not have a major or minor or <br>the equivalent. Participation of teachers shall be voluntary. Effective: July 15, 2010 <br>History: Amended 2010 Ky. Acts ch. 6, sec. 1, effective July 15, 2010. -- Amended 2009 Ky. Acts ch. 101, sec. 8, effective March 25, 2009. -- Amended 2002 Ky. Acts <br>ch. 302, sec. 2, effective July 15, 2002. -- Amended 2000 Ky. Acts ch. 162, sec. 4, <br>effective July 14, 2000; ch. 452, sec. 3, effective July 14, 2000; and ch. 527, sec. 10, <br>effective July 14, 2000. -- Amended 1998 Ky. Acts ch. 514, sec. 4, effective July 15, <br>1998.; and ch. 609, sec. 1, effective July 15, 1998. -- Amended 1996 Ky. Acts <br>ch. 362, sec. 6, effective July 15, 1996. -- Amended 1990 Ky. Acts ch. 476, Pt. I, <br>sec. 13, effective July 13, 1990. -- Amended 1985 (1st Extra. Sess.) Ky. Acts ch. 10, <br>sec. 1, effective October 18, 1985; Amended 1978 Ky. Acts ch. 155, sec. 82, <br>effective June 17, 1978. -- Amended 1956 (1st Extra. Sess.) Ky. Acts ch. 7, Art. II, <br>sec. 2. -- Created 1950 Ky. Acts ch. 127, sec. 1. Legislative Research Commission Note (7/14/2000). This section was amended by 2000 Ky. Acts chs. 162, 452, and 527. Where these Acts are not in conflict, they <br>have been codified together. As to subsection (7) of this section, a conflict exists, in <br>part, between Acts chs. 452 and 527. Under KRS 446.250, Acts ch. 527, which was <br>last enacted by the General Assembly, prevails in this conflict.