The Kentucky Department of Education (KDE) has released the names of the 67 people who have been asked to serve on the new Kentucky United We Learn Council.
The council will support the three big ideas of United We Learn, the state’s vision for the future of public education in Kentucky. This vision builds around three big ideas: creating a more vibrant experience for every student, encouraging innovation in our schools – especially when it comes to assessment – and creating a bold new future for Kentucky’s schools through collaboration with our communities.
The council will coordinate three standing committees – Creating Vibrant Learning Experiences, Accelerating Innovation and Building a Bold New Future with Communities – that meet regularly to advance work on the council’s missions and deliverables. It also will partner with KDE and the Kentucky Board of Education to advance the work laid out in the United We Learn report.
“We really appreciated those who applied to join this council,” Commissioner of Education Jason E. Glass said. “We had a wide array of people who were willing to commit their time and expertise to help drive the three big ideas behind United We Learn forward. We hope as we move ahead with this work, our schools, districts and KDE will continue to foster more and deeper relationships with families and their communities to find which best practices can keep education improving in the Commonwealth.”
Those named to the council include educators, administrators, family members, students and community members from across Kentucky. The people and the sectors they will represent include:
• Nisha Ajana, student, Fayette County
• Rachel Albright, educator, Ohio Valley Educational Cooperative
• Rader Barnes, student, Jessamine County
• Darlene Barnes, family, Jessamine County
• Wallace Caleb Bates, student, Eastern Kentucky University
• Brigitte Blom, community, Prichard Committee for Academic Excellence
• Noah Brown, student, Pike County
• Becky Burgett, community, Kentucky School Boards Association, Prichard Committee for Academic Excellence, Gallatin County
• Eddie Campbell, educator and Kentucky Education Association
• Marcia Carmichael-Murphy, family, Jefferson County
• Michelle Chappell, educator, Henderson Community College
• Penny Christian, family, Fayette County
• Susan Cintra, community, Kentucky Education Association
• Robin Cochran, educator, Washington County
• Jerry Cooper, community, Cognia
• Alfonso De Torres Núñez, educator, Jefferson County
• Anne DeMott, former educator and now student, University of Kentucky
• Elizabeth Dinkins, educator, Bellarmine University School of Education
• Susan Dugle, community, retired educator and member of the Kentucky Coalition for Advancing Education
• Heather Dunn, educator, Kenton County
• Justin Dunning, student, Lyon County
• Raima Dutt, student, Jefferson County
• Hannah Edelen, former educator and now student, University of Kentucky
• Betty Edwards, community, former educator, Special Olympics Unified Champion Schools, National Education Leaders Network
• Holly Elmore, family, Washington County
• Suzanne Farmer, educator, Danville Independent
• Elaine Farris, former educator, Shelbyville
• Jim Flynn, educator, Kentucky Association of School Superintendents
• Azurdee Garland, community, Kentucky Department of Juvenile Justice
• Audrey Gilbert, student and the Kentucky Student Voice Team, Frankfort Independent
• Brooke Gill, community, Prichard Committee
• Travis Hamby, educator, Allen County
• Shelly Hammons, family, Daviess County
• Amy Harris, educator, Williamstown Independent
• Sarah Hatton, educator, Adair County
• Michael Hesketh, community, Shelby County
• Adam Hicks, educator, Shelby County
• Jenny Hobson, family, Berea Independent
• Cassie House, educator, Franklin County
• Brandy Howard, family and educator, Bullitt County
• Erika Hranicky, family and educator, Fayette County
• Tracy Huelsman, educator, Shelby County
• Jessica Jenkins, family, Berea Independent
• Kerry Markham, community, Madisonville
• Shiryl McAdams, educator and family, Daviess County
• Solyana Mesfin, student, University of Louisville
• Julie Monarch, business, Cloverport Independent
• April Mullins-Datko, family, Berea Independent
• Lonnie Nixon, educator, Berea Independent
• Arivia Parks, family, Jefferson County
• Julia Pile, community, Boone County
• Will Powers, educator, Student Alliance for Mental Health Innovation and Action
• Lauralyn Randles, business, American Printing House for the Blind
• Edna Schack, family, Morehead
• Caryn Scheiding, educator, Williamstown Independent
• Renee Scott, educator and disability advocate, Kentucky Department of Education
• Robb Smith, educator, Kentucky Association of Educational Cooperatives
• Katie Smith, educator, Grayson County
• Rose Snell, student, Madison County
• Whitney Stevenson, educator, Fayette County
• Kathy Stovall, educator and community member, Louisville
• Aaron Thompson, educator, Kentucky Council on Postsecondary Education
• Ernestine Weems, business, Eastern Kentucky Concentrated Employment Program
• RaShaun West, family, Fayette County
• Bentley White, student, Kentucky School for the Deaf
• Carrie Wilkerson, educator, Daviess County
• Kris Williams, educator, Kentucky Community and Technical College System
The effort is supported with funds from the 2022 Competitive Grants for State Assessments award from the U.S. Department of Education, which will help advance innovations to move the state’s assessment and accountability system toward a competency-based education model.
From Kentucky Department of Education
