The public comment period will be from Monday, February 28 to Friday, March 4

FRANKFORT, Ky. (WTVQ) – The Kentucky Department of Education (KDE) is seeking public comment on the state’s waiver request for temporary changes to accountability, school identification, and requirements Statement in the Primary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA) for 2022- 2023 School Year.

According to KDE, the public comment period on the Model 2021-2022 COVID-19 Addendum to the Kentucky State Plan will be held from Monday, February 28 through Friday, March 4. Public comments must be received by 5 p.m. ET on March 4.

The waiver request, which will be submitted to the United States Department of Education (USED), is intended to address the extraordinary situation resulting from prolonged and widespread school closures due to the COVID-19 pandemic, according to KDE. It also supports the advancement of student academic achievement by maintaining the integrity of Kentucky’s accountability system.

Through the waiver, KDE seeks to:

• Shift the calendar of its long-term objectives by two years;
• Temporarily adjust the state’s methodology for identifying Targeted Support and Improvement (TSI) schools to reflect gaps in available testing data;
• Exempting the 2019-2020 and 2020-2021 school years from regulatory timelines for exiting Comprehensive Support and Enhancement (CSI) and Additional Targeted Support and Enhancement (ATSI) status; and
• Temporarily change exit criteria for schools currently identified with CSI or ATSI status.

The full waiver can be viewed online at the KDE website. To request an accessible version, please contact Meredith Brewer, Director of Education Policy for KDE, at [email protected]