Throughout the month of September, members of the state Efficient and Effective School District Task Force have held two community meetings in Louisville high schools to discuss the function and performance of Jefferson County Public Schools. It was stated in the first meeting that the goal of the task force was to figure out more about how JCPS functions and find long-term pathways to success for the district. During these meetings legislators posed two questions to the community:

• How would you like to see the district’s academic offerings, educational capabilities, and operations improved?
• How have these factors affected the enrollment decisions for your child?

In their responses, members of the community including representatives from community organizations, students, parents, and JCPS staff and teachers, detailed their thoughts on the function of the district. Ideas ranged from increased funding for teacher and school support, diversifying content taught in schools, and keeping the district as one.

This task force comes from legislation in the 2024 session, House Concurrent Resolution 81 that established the task force as one in a three prong approach to reviewing JCPS, the other review mechanisms include a full audit by Auditor Allison Ball’s office (who also sits on the task force) and a review by the Office of Educational Accountability (OEA).

The task force includes six legislators as well as seven community members who fulfill a variety of statutory requirements. The next meeting of the task force will be held October 21 at the Capitol Annex. To view the community meetings in full, see here.