Rockcastle County Superintendent Carrie Ballinger speaks with Rep. Tom Smith following the first Support Education Excellence in Kentucky (SEEK) roadshow event at the Southeast South-Central Educational Cooperative office in London. Photo by Joe Ragusa, Kentucky Department of Education, Dec. 13, 2024
(LONDON, KY) – Officials with the Kentucky Department of Education (KDE) hosted the first of a series of town halls dedicated to discussing the Support Education Excellence in Kentucky (SEEK) funding program at the Southeast South-Central Educational Cooperative office in London on Dec. 13.
The SEEK funding program is a formula-driven allocation of state-provided funds to local school districts. The formula includes base funding as well as funding for transportation costs and special needs students as reported by districts.
Associate Commissioner Matt Ross in KDE’s Office of Finance and Operations said the roadshow provides an opportunity for superintendents, district finance officers, other educators and stakeholders to discuss issues impacting their communities related to school funding.
“We wanted to provide opportunities for really anyone who is interested in a better understanding of SEEK,” Ross said. “We also hope these town halls open up discussion on how the program works now and how it could work better.”
Kay Dixon, executive director of the Southeast South-Central Educational Cooperative, said they were happy to host the event.
“One of the things we loved about it was that they weren’t just coming to us with a PowerPoint presentation,” she said. “They were coming to us in our area, in our region, to talk specifically about our needs that might be a little different from needs across the state.”
Some of the topics discussed during the meeting in London included challenges with funding for transportation, funding for students with special needs and district losses following the COVID-19 pandemic in terms of funding and students.
Rockcastle County Superintendent Carrie Ballinger was one of several superintendents in attendance. She said the meeting was a good opportunity to have a “deep and meaningful conversation about the impact state funding has on our local communities.”
“Everyone in this room has a goal of improving student achievement in our classrooms and in our school districts,” she said, “so what can we do to come together, work together, identify the needs and address those needs and develop solutions?”
Chay Ritter, director of the Division of District Support in the Kentucky Department of Education’s Office of Finance and Operations, presents an overview of the Support Education Excellence in Kentucky (SEEK) funding program. Photo by Joe Ragusa, Kentucky Department of Education, Dec. 13, 2024
Multiple legislators from the region were present and discussed funding topics with the educators in attendance: Reps. Timmy Truett, Derek Lewis and Tom Smith.
Truett, who is also principal of McKee Elementary School (Jackson County), said he enjoyed the feedback and discussing the questions those in attendance had about SEEK funding.
“The SEEK formula is a beast,” he said. “It’s something that is very hard to understand, and when I found out that KDE was going to come in and talk about that and explain that, it was important for me to be here.”
KDE is planning several more roadshow events with education cooperatives across the Commonwealth to discuss SEEK over the next few months:
- Dec. 19: Kentucky Educational Development Cooperative (KEDC) in Ashland, from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. ET.
- Jan. 22: Kentucky Valley Educational Cooperative (KVEC) in Hazard, from 9:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. ET.
- Jan. 24: Ohio Valley Educational Cooperative (OVEC) in Shelbyville, from 9 a.m. to noon ET.
- Feb. 5: Green River Regional Educational Cooperative (GRREC) in Bowling Green, from 11:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. CT.
- Feb. 13: Central Kentucky Educational Cooperative (CKEC) in Lexington, from 9 a.m. to noon ET.
- Feb. 19: Northern Kentucky Educational Cooperative (NKEC) in Cold Spring, from 9:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. ET.
- Feb. 26: West Kentucky Educational Cooperative (WKEC) in Eddyville, from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. CT.
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