FRANKFORT, Ky. – Kentucky school boards could see significant structural changes under a bill currently being considered by the state legislature. Senate Bill 202, proposed by Senator Lindsey Tichenor (R-Smithfield), aims to tie the size of local school boards directly to the number of students enrolled in their districts. If passed, the legislation, slated to take effect beginning in , could reshape the governance of public education across the Commonwealth.
The core principle of the bill is to establish a tiered system for board membership. Districts with 15,000 or fewer students would be governed by a five-member board. As enrollment increases, so too would the number of board members: districts with between 15,001 and 30,000 students would have seven members. 30,001 to 45,000, nine members; 45,001 to 60,000, eleven members; 60,001 to 75,000, thirteen members; and those exceeding 75,001 students would be overseen by a fifteen-member board.
The Kentucky Board of Education would be responsible for determining the appropriate board size for each district based on average daily enrollment figures over the preceding three years. These determinations would be made initially by and then repeated every ten years thereafter.
The impact of this legislation would vary significantly across the state. Fayette County Public Schools, with an enrollment of 40,792 students in the school year, stands to see its board expand from five to nine members under the proposed rules. This represents a substantial increase in the number of individuals responsible for overseeing the district’s operations and policy decisions.
The bill also addresses the practicalities of implementation. If a regular school board election coincides with the year a district’s board size is adjusted, any additional members would be selected during that election. In cases where no regular election is scheduled, the newly created positions would be filled as vacancies until the next regularly scheduled election. Conversely, districts required to reduce their board size would do so by decreasing the number of seats up for election at the next scheduled election, ensuring a gradual transition.
The legislation maintains the existing requirements for county school districts to be divided into electoral divisions, ensuring representation from specific geographic areas. Independent school districts, however, would continue to elect members at-large. Crucially, county school boards would be required to redraw their divisions within 30 days of receiving notification from the state board, adhering to principles of equal population distribution and maintaining integral voting precincts.
While the major changes are slated to begin in , the bill includes a provision for an earlier initial assessment. The Kentucky Board of Education is mandated to make its initial determinations of board size by . This accelerated timeline suggests a desire to begin the process of restructuring school board governance sooner rather than later.
the bill specifically removes existing statutory language pertaining to the seven-member structure of the Jefferson County Board of Education. This structure was established following the consolidation of the Louisville city and county school systems, and its removal suggests a move towards a standardized, enrollment-based system across the state. This change could be interpreted as a step towards greater uniformity in school board governance throughout Kentucky.
The passage of Senate Bill 202 would represent a fundamental shift in how Kentucky’s public schools are governed. By linking board size to student enrollment, the legislation aims to ensure that school boards are appropriately sized to effectively represent and serve their communities. The bill’s implementation timeline and provisions for both expansion and contraction of board membership demonstrate a deliberate attempt to manage the transition smoothly. The coming months will be critical as the bill progresses through the legislative process and stakeholders assess its potential impact on the state’s education system.
