Since 1990, SEEK (short for Support Education Excellence in Kentucky) has been the Commonwealth’s main mechanism for funding our common schools. From 2008 to 2025:

• Local contributions to SEEK rose rapidly
• State funding grew much more slowly
• Combined funding did not keep up with inflation, growth in attending students, growth in students with added needs, or growth in transportation costs

In this post, we’ll offer brief background basics on the SEEK formula, and then break down changes to each part of the funding and the main context changes over these years. To start out, here’s a quick chart of the local and state changes over selected years.

BACKGROUND BASICS

The SEEK formula has three major funding components:

• SEEK Base provides the largest share of funding, determined by adding up a guaranteed amount per pupil, add-on amounts for students with added needs, and a transportation amount. The resulting total is paid by combining local tax and state dollars.
• Tier 1 also combines local and state dollars. It’s officially optional, but all districts now contribute enough local revenue to qualify for maximum state equalization.
• Tier 2 is strictly local dollars, with no state equalization.

For a more detailed demonstration of the SEEK formula at work, check out the newest edition of our “SEEK Explainer.”

State budget legislation has made four recent changes that make the formula more generous.

• Counting kindergarten students as full day students for Base funding purposes, starting in 2022
• Increasing the Base guarantee per pupil from $4,000 in 2020 to $4,326 in 2025
• Moving student transportation funding closer to covering full needs in 2025 than in recent past budgets
• Expanding Tier 1 eligibility to 17.5% of Base revenue

The analysis shared below includes the impact of all four of those changes.

SEEK BASE

The local share of SEEK base grew 81% from 2008 to 2025. That happened because assessed property values grew 81%, from $262 billion to $474 billion, and each district’s local share is defined as 30¢ per $100 of its assessed property value. Over the same years, state base funding grew only 1%.

TIER 1 EQUALIZED FUNDING

Local Tier 1 funding grew 42%, and state funding grew 50%. When districts set tax rates to bring in more than the 30¢ SEEK base revenue, Tier 1 provides state equalization dollars. Through 2024, districts could receive Tier 1 dollars up to 15% of their SEEK base revenue. In 2025, state budget legislation moved that maximum up to 17.5%.

TIER 2 UNEQUALIZED FUNDING

Tier 2 districts to go beyond Tier 1 to raise dollars that the state will not equalize. That further revenue is limited to 30% of their combined SEEK base and Tier 1 state and local funding, with all dollars coming from local taxation. From 2008 to 2025, that unequalized funding grew very fast, increasing by 199%.

COMBINED CHANGES

Combining Base, Tier 1, and Tier 2 state and local dollars together, SEEK saw an increase of 47% and $1,906 million. The two tables show the combined change results.

WAS 47% AN ADEQUATE INCREASE?

Growth at that pace, created mainly from local resources, created challenges for our schools.

First, the cost of living went up 50%. That’s based on changes to the Consumer Price Index from December 2007 to December 2024 (the midpoints of the two school years).

Second, transportation costs rose faster than inflation. The official state transportation calculation reported that getting students to school and home again had a price tag of $271 million in 2008 and $488 million in 2025—an increase of 80%. State law says the entire cost will be included in the SEEK funding process, but state budget bills have regularly provided less than that. As a result, each district receives a fraction of what the formula promises. In 2024 and 2025, state budget legislation increased transportation funding, but did not eliminate the shortfall.

‍

Third, student needs grew dramatically over these years.  Compared to 2008, 2025 Kentucky schools are serving:

• 82,029 more at risk students eligible for free meals
• 34,325 more students with limited English proficiency
• 4,754 more students with severe disabilities
• 1,188 more students with moderate disabilities
• 1,403 more students with communications delays
• 507 more students receiving home/hospital services

The SEEK formula identifies those students as adding to the costs of teaching and learning, but combined SEEK revenue showed no after-inflation growth that could have kept up with those added needs.

WAS THE INCREASE FAIRLY SHARED?

The changes relied heavily on unequalized Tier 2 dollars. When funding is unequalized, districts with less taxable wealth bring in less revenue than those with more resources, even when they set identical tax rates.

One way to show that wealth-based difference is to sort districts by their wealth per pupil, and then divide them into five roughly equal groups, often called quintiles. We did a quick and simple quintile analysis of 2025 Tier 2 revenue, and found far less Tier 2 revenue in the lowest wealth districts than in the places with the most wealth to tax. The chart below shows a 2025 funding gap of more than $500 million between the wealthiest and least wealthy set of districts.

‍

A CONCLUDING NOTE

SEEK was designed to provide a sturdy and fair financial foundation for Kentucky’s reformed school system. Changes since 2008 have weakened that foundation, with local districts now contributing substantially more than the state, but without enough combined revenue to keep up with costs and students needs and with sharp differences in resources available to districts with lower and higher levels of taxable wealth. To build a Big Bold Future, Kentucky will need a renewed commitment to adequate and equitable funding for all public schools.

‍

This analysis was prepared by Susan Perkins Weston. For further information on SEEK funding, check out:

• Our eight-slide explainer for general audiences: “The SEEK Formula: An Explanation of Kentucky’s Main Approach to Funding K-12 Education”
• Our two-page funding chart showing “SEEK Formula Funding for Selected Years”
• Our full spreadsheet of data and calculations for this post “SEEK Data and Calculations2008-2025”

This op-ed originally appeared in the Kentucky Gazette.

The Big Bold Future National Rankings Report, released biennially by the Prichard Committee for Academic Excellence, measures how Kentucky ranks on key indicators of education and economic well-being among the 50 states. While there were some bright spots this year—such as our high school graduation rate and improvements in fourth-grade reading—the overall picture is concerning. Kentucky’s progress in many important educational and quality-of-life indicators is too slow, and in some cases, we are falling behind. These results demand action.

The Prichard Committee’s 2025 Groundswell Community Profiles provide a tool to help us respond. The Groundswell Community Profiles offer an in-depth look at the state of education in each of Kentucky’s 171 school districts. They provide essential local data on learning progress, economic conditions, and health factors that influence student success. With this information, community members can compare their school district’s performance to state averages, identify areas that need improvement, and tailor solutions to fit their unique needs.

It is not enough to simply acknowledge these statistics. We must use them to drive real change. The success of our schools directly affects our economy, workforce readiness, and overall quality of life. By engaging with these profiles, local leaders, parents, educators, and concerned citizens can take meaningful action to improve education outcomes in their own communities. Here’s how:

1. Understand Your Community’s Data: The Groundswell Community Profiles provide a clear picture of where your local schools stand. Are reading and math scores improving? Is postsecondary enrollment increasing or declining? How does broadband access impact learning in your area? Identifying these trends is the first step toward creating a plan for improvement.

2. Start Conversations That Lead to Action: Data is powerful, but it only leads to change when people act on it. Use the Community Profiles to start discussions with school leaders, elected officials, and fellow community members. Attend school board meetings, organize forums, and encourage dialogue about local education challenges and opportunities.

3. Leverage Community Assets and Resources: Schools thrive when communities are actively involved. Volunteer at local schools, mentor students, or participate in programs that provide additional support to educators. When students see that their community values education, they are more likely to stay engaged and succeed. And remember, students’ needs don’t stop in the classroom; working toward removing non-academic barriers to student success (such as chronic absenteeism, food insecurity or mental health issues) is a powerful way to improve education outcomes.

4. Monitor Progress and Hold Ourselves Accountable: Change doesn’t happen overnight. The Groundswell Community Profiles are updated annually, providing a valuable tool for tracking progress over time. We should all use them to hold ourselves accountable for educational improvements.

We’re seeing the community-centered school model working through early data from the 20 districts across the state participating in the Kentucky Community School Initiative. This initiative champions community-led educational solutions tailored specifically for Kentucky students and their families. When implemented effectively, the community schools model has been proven to boost student outcomes, increase college enrollments, and contribute to the overall well-being of students, especially in high-poverty schools. The goal is to coordinate existing community resources to reduce non-academic barriers to learning—such as transportation, mental health, housing and hunger—so Kentucky teachers and students can focus on academics.

The challenges outlined in the Big Bold Future National Rankings Report are not insurmountable but addressing them requires collective effort. Every Kentuckian has a role to play in improving education outcomes, and the Groundswell Community Profiles and community schools model offer roadmaps for action. By using these tools to engage with our communities, work for change, and support students, we can build a stronger, more prosperous Kentucky.

Now is the time to act. Visit prichardcommittee.org/community-profiles to explore the data for your district and take the first step toward making a difference. A Big Bold Future for Kentucky starts with us.

‍

The 2025 legislative session came at a time when Kentuckians are not only demanding more from our education systems—they’re rethinking how those systems should work in the first place. The latest Big Bold Future National Rankings report confirms the stakes: Kentucky ranks 47th in preschool enrollment, 46th in postsecondary enrollment, and 44th in degree attainment. But across the state, communities aren’t waiting. Through FAFSA campaigns, early learning collaboratives, and new models for dual credit, tutoring, and diploma redesign, local leaders are building the future from the ground up. This session offered new tools to support that momentum—but real change will come from how we reimagine, re-center, and rebuild systems in partnership with the people they’re meant to serve.

HIGHLIGHTS FROM THE 2025 SESSION

• HB 190: Automatic Enrollment in Advanced Coursework
  Ensures qualified students are enrolled into advanced courses starting in grade 4, reducing gatekeeping and increasing access based on demonstrated mastery.

• HB 193: Dual Credit Scholarship Expansion
  Removes grade-level restrictions on scholarships, allowing more students—especially in earlier grades—to access college-level coursework with financial support.

• HB 208: Cell Phone Policy in Schools
  Directs local school boards to implement prohibitions on student use of personal devices during the instructional day, balancing local control with statewide expectations.

• HB 240: Kindergarten Readiness and Retention
  Requires schools to give end-of-year reading assessments to all kindergarten and first-grade students, and to hold back students who do not meet reading goals for their grade level.

• HB 241: Virtual Learning Programs
  Ensures school districts can maintain funding during disasters by allowing them to make up instructional hours and waiving up to five days and also sets clear standards for virtual learning to maintain educational quality in any setting.

• HB 298: School Turnaround Flexibility
  Provides greater local flexibility in designing evidence-based improvement strategies for Comprehensive Support and Improvement (CSI) schools.

• HB 342: Financial Literacy Graduation Requirement
  Requires all high school students to complete a one credit course aligning academic experiences with essential life and workforce skills.

• SB 68: Learning Capacities Modernization
  Updates definitions and expectations around learning capacities in schools, focused on workforce readiness and essential durable skills like critical thinking and problem solving.  

• SB 207: Schools of Innovation and Instructional Materials
  Allows approved "Schools of Innovation" to access regulatory waivers to enhance student achievement and operations and establishes two new entities to support districts in selecting high-quality instructional materials.

These policies, if implemented well, can support the local momentum we are already seeing in place-based work across Kentucky. But policy alone is not enough. We must invest in the infrastructure, advising, data, and partnerships that turn policy into impact.

Even as momentum built around student opportunity and system innovation, one bill introduced significant questions about how we support access and student success in higher education. House Bill 4 limits how public colleges and universities in Kentucky can design programs or offer services that focus on identity or background. It prohibits institutions from funding or requiring certain trainings, offices, or programs—even those that have helped students feel seen, supported, and ready to succeed. While the bill aims to promote a range of viewpoints, it introduces new uncertainty that could impact how campuses support students.  

Because the language is broad, colleges may interpret the new law in different ways—some may continue offering broadly accessible supports and services, while others may limit programs out of caution. These varied responses could leave students unsure about the supports they can count on.

Even with these changes, the need for student support has not gone away. Community organizations will become increasingly important in helping students navigate college, stay on track, and reach their goals. It will be important to track the impact this has on already stagnant college going rates in Kentucky, particularly since an estimated 75% of good jobs will require some form of postsecondary training by the year 2040. To ensure all students continue to have a fair shot, colleges and partners must prioritize transparency—reporting on how policies affect access, persistence, and success—especially for those student groups already facing persistent achievement gap—and adjusting when needed.

THE PATH AHEAD

As the dust settles on the 2025 session, the Prichard Committee’s focus is squarely on turning policy into progress—through clear implementation, local engagement, and ongoing accountability. We are committed to a path forward built around:

• Empowering communities to lead improvement.
  Through community profiles and place-based strategies, we are working alongside Kentuckians to design local solutions to challenges in early learning, school climate, and student transitions. Across the state, we see the power of strong partnerships—between schools, families, and local organizations—to remove barriers, expand opportunity, and drive sustainable change.

• Expanding access to advanced coursework and postsecondary pathways.
  With HB 190 and HB 193 now law, our next steps include supporting districts to implement automatic enrollment fairly across the board, strengthen advising, and expand course availability—especially in under-resourced areas. We’ll continue working with partners to ensure students don’t just access advanced courses but thrive in them.

• Lifting up meaningful diplomas and transition readiness.
  We’re working with employers, educators, and families to define what a high school diploma should signify in today’s economy—and to ensure all students leave high school ready for college, career, and community life. That means strengthening advising, boosting dual credit success, and ensuring durable skills are embedded in core instruction.

• Building better early childhood systems through family voice and workforce focus.
  We are supporting communities in aligning early childhood programs with family needs and economic realities, including quality improvement strategies and support for providers. With Kentucky ranked 47th in preschool enrollment, this remains one of the most urgent investments the state must make.  

• Improving data transparency and shared accountability.
  We continue our call for strong public access to education data so communities can understand what’s happening and act on it. That includes data on school performance, course access, early learning participation, and postsecondary outcomes—broken down by region, race, and economic status.

• Rebuilding trust in public education through consistent community engagement.
  We’ll continue to mobilize families, students, and educators to take part in local school decisions, improvement planning, and accountability conversations—with a growing emphasis on student efficacy, so young people see themselves as capable agents in their own learning and success. As the Big Bold Future report states, “transparency, accountability, and community participation” must be foundational to every effort.

The policies passed this session set the stage—but they won’t deliver results on their own. The challenge now is to turn opportunity into impact. That means local partnerships must move from intention to action. Schools can’t do it alone. Community organizations, nonprofits, and families have a critical role to play in making sure students are supported, systems are responsive, and progress is real. This is the moment calls for community-building as implementation—because lasting change grows from relationships, trust, and shared responsibility.  

Kentucky’s future will be shaped by what we choose to do next, together.

‍

‍

March 28, 2025

Contact: Lisa McKinney, Communications Director, The Prichard Committee

(cell) 859-475-7202

lisa@prichardcommittee.org

Statement on the 2025 Kentucky Legislative Session from Brigitte Blom, the Prichard Committee

LEXINGTON, Ky — The 2025 General Assembly brought forward a series of education bills—some narrow in scope, others more sweeping—but together, they represent real shifts in how Kentucky supports students and schools. While no single measure defined the session, the cumulative effect is significant. Taken together, these policies signal new expectations for schools and postsecondary institutions—and new responsibilities for the communities that support them.

House Bill 190 is a powerful step forward in expanding opportunity and excellence in Kentucky high schools. The bill requires school districts to adopt plans to automatically enroll students who meet established benchmarks into advanced coursework such as Advanced Placement, dual credit, and other college-level classes. This is a needed step to ensure that readiness—not bias or barriers—determines access to challenging academic opportunities. When students are encouraged to take rigorous courses and supported to succeed, they are more likely to graduate prepared for college, career, and life.

House Bill 208 takes a proactive step to support student learning, focus, and well-being in Kentucky schools. The bill requires school districts to adopt policies prohibiting personal cell phone use during the school day—except for emergencies and instructional purposes—while also strengthening safeguards against harmful online content. By minimizing classroom distractions, the bill helps students stay engaged, build stronger peer relationships, and develop healthy digital habits.

House Bill 4 limits how public colleges and universities in Kentucky can design or fund programs for historically underrepresented students. With Kentucky ranking 46th in postsecondary enrollment and 44th in degree attainment—and wide gaps in outcomes by race and ethnicity—the state must closely monitor how these changes affect access, support, and completion. Today, 61% of Asian or Pacific Islander and 36% of white Kentuckians aged 25–64 hold an associate degree or higher, compared to just 29% of Black and 27% of Hispanic or Latino Kentuckians. As institutions adjust, local communities and nonprofits will play an increasingly important role in ensuring all students have the support they need to enroll, persist, and succeed.

The 2025 Big Bold Future National Rankings Report makes clear where Kentucky must focus its efforts—from early childhood to postsecondary access and degree attainment. It shows us not just where we stand, but where we need to go. Kentucky’s future will be shaped not only by what happens in Frankfort, but by the everyday decisions made in classrooms and communities across the Commonwealth. The Prichard Committee stands ready to support community members, state leaders, families, and schools in coming together for the common good of Kentucky’s students and the future of our Commonwealth.

------

The Prichard Committee believes in the power and promise of public education –early childhood through college– to ensure Kentuckians’ economic and social well-being. We are a citizen-led, non-partisan, solutions-focused nonprofit, established in 1983 with a singular mission of realizing a path to a larger life for Kentuckians with education at the core.

By: Jonathan Plucker and Brenda Berg

The Kentucky General Assembly is currently considering a bill that would require school districts to establish policies for automatic enrollment in the Commonwealth’s public schools. Introduced by Rep. Robert Duvall and co-sponsored by Rep. Vanessa Grossl, HB 190 passed the House unanimously and can be considered by the Senate in the session’s final two legislative days on March 27  & 28.      

Automatic enrollment is one of the most intriguing educational innovations in recent years. Also known as auto-, mandatory, or opt-out enrollment, the concept is simple: Students who perform at advanced levels in their classes oron state tests are automatically enrolled in advanced courses for the following academic year.

This commonsense reform is based on the observation that many high-performing students are not receiving advanced learning opportunities, even when there is clear evidence that they are ready to advance academically. This is especially true for low-income and rural students, who have much less access to rigorous advanced opportunities, ranging from gifted education to accelerated coursework to AP courses. Recent research demonstrates there are many such students, leading to a chronic under challenging of many of our brightest children. As a result, these students are less likely to be ready for today’s workforce or post-secondary education.

As a case in point, Western Kentucky University and Johns Hopkins University recently collaborated on Project Launch Plus. This initiative identified talented students in low-income, rural communities in Kentucky and North Carolina and provided them with advanced education. Although we anticipated finding many eligible students, the sheer number exceeded our expectations. There is tremendous talent in every single one of Kentucky’s schools, but many of these students do not have the necessary opportunities to develop those talents fully. The provisions in HB 190 will help provide those opportunities.

We encourage Senate Leadership to bring final passage to House Bill 190 so that Kentucky students can begin benefiting from its provisions.

Concerns about automatic enrollment tend to focus on cost and implementation. Regarding cost, we point to North Carolina’s experience, which began with passage of its auto-enrollment law for mathematics in 2018. The state education agency and districts now have years of experience with implementation and have seen impacts well beyond expectations by elevating the overall importance of advanced coursework opportunities. Cost proved not to be an issue: In the end, the same number of teachers educates the same number of students, leading to no additional financial burden on the state or school districts.

Implementation was challenging in some districts but can be overcome. For example, due to teacher inexperience with advanced coursework and small numbers of identified students, some districts used a range of non-traditional staffing options to promote access, including staff-sharing, transporting students, and online courses to ensure that all eligible students are able to access challenging coursework. In other cases, it was simply not on their radar that they weren’t offering advanced courses commensurate with other districts, and they could just reassign existing staff to, for example, teach algebra instead of the standard 8^th grade course.

Despite these implementation challenges, North Carolina’s experience is a major policy success, with thousands of additional students enrolling in advanced math courses each year. An important key to the state’s success is that auto-enrollment begins in elementary school, before students get lost in the transitions to middle and high school. The effects appear to be most significant with middle school students and those from traditionally underserved backgrounds, such as the rural and low-income students noted above. Similar success in Kentucky would transform the STEM pipeline in the Commonwealth.

If passed and signed into law, House Bill 190 allows the Kentucky Board of Education to create regulations to administer the new provisions. We strongly encourage the Board to require the Kentucky Department of Education to (1) collect districts’ advanced education plans to promote public access to the information and (2) issue an annual report summarizing the impact of auto-enrollment, including district level reports of the number and percentage of eligible students served. Annual reports in North Carolina have been invaluable data sources for tracking the impact of the law.

HB 190 is bold, innovative, and highly likely to be effective. It will provide a strong foundation for efforts to help Kentucky’s students excel in the classroom and eventually in the workforce.

Jonathan Plucker is a professor at Johns Hopkins University and a past-president of the National Association for Gifted Children. Brenda Berg is President & CEO of BEST NC (Business for Educational Success and Transformation in North Carolina).

‍

March 12, 2025

Contact: Lisa McKinney, Communications Director, The Prichard Committee

(cell) 859-475-7202

‍lisa@prichardcommittee.org

‍

LEXINGTON, Ky — With the passage of Kentucky House Bill 208 in the House, the commonwealth is one step closer to fostering learning environments that prioritize academic success, social and emotional well-being, and safety in schools. Congratulations to bill sponsor Rep. Josh Bray for his work on the legislation.

The academic benefits of limiting personal device use in schools are well-documented. Research shows that grades improve when students are not dividing their attention between learning and their devices. Teacher morale and retention also improve when the burden of managing smartphone distractions is lifted, allowing them to concentrate on instruction and student engagement.

The social and emotional health benefits are equally compelling. Schools that minimize device use report increased feelings of connectedness and cohesion among students, leading to less loneliness and decreased bullying. Encouraging face-to-face interaction helps students develop essential interpersonal skills, build confidence, and foster healthy in-person relationships.

By creating learning environments free from the distractions and potential harms of personal devices, we empower all students to thrive.  

------

The Prichard Committee believes in the power and promise of public education –early childhood through college– to ensure Kentuckians’ economic and social well-being. We are a citizen-led, non-partisan, solutions-focused nonprofit, established in 1983 with a singular mission of realizing a path to a larger life for Kentuckians with education at the core.

March 7, 2025

Contact: Lisa McKinney, Communications Director, The Prichard Committee

(cell) 859-475-7202

‍lisa@prichardcommittee.org

‍

Statement from Brigitte Blom on the Passage of House Bill 190

‍

LEXINGTON, Ky — With the unanimous passage of HB 190 in the Kentucky House, the commonwealth is one step closer to expanding access to advanced coursework to every qualified student. Congratulations to bill sponsors Reps. Robert Duvall and Vanessa Grossl for their work on this key education legislation.

HB 190 directs each local board of education to develop an accelerated learning plan outlining how students in grades 4-12 can access advanced coursework in language arts, mathematics, social studies and science. The bill institutes automatic enrollment for students who achieve a Distinguished score on statewide assessments, while granting parents and principals the authority to withdraw students from these courses.
 
When qualified students are overlooked for advanced coursework, they miss out on key learning that will help them succeed post-graduation, and Kentucky’s economy misses out on opportunities to build a more skilled workforce. When students have access to advanced coursework, they are more likely to be prepared for college, career, and life after high school. By establishing a statewide framework for advanced coursework, HB 190 represents an important step toward expanding access to challenging learning opportunities for Kentucky students.  

-------

The Prichard Committee believes in the power and promise of public education –early childhood through college– to ensure Kentuckians’ economic and social well-being. We are a citizen-led, non-partisan, solutions-focused nonprofit, established in 1983 with a singular mission of realizing a path to a larger life for Kentuckians with education at the core.

‍

Contact: Lisa McKinney, Communications Director, The Prichard Committee

(cell) 859-475-7202

lisa@prichardcommittee.org

The Prichard Committee Releases 2025 Groundswell Community Profiles

Profiles show strong points and weak spots on indicators of education and economic well-being for each Kentucky school district

‍

LEXINGTON, Ky — The Prichard Committee for Academic Excellence today released the 2025 Groundswell Community Profiles, offering an in-depth look at the state of education in each of Kentucky’s 171 school districts. These profiles provide key indicators of learning progress from early childhood through postsecondary education, enabling communities to compare local school district performance to state averages on critical education measures.

As part of its commitment to fostering community engagement in education, the Prichard Committee updates and publishes the Groundswell Community Profiles annually ensuring Kentuckians have access to essential local data on educational progress.  

“Real, lasting progress in education and economic outcomes happens when communities are deeply engaged at the local level,” said Prichard Committee President/CEO Brigitte Blom. “It’s up to all of us to take an active role in shaping the educational landscape of our commonwealth. The Groundswell Community Profiles are designed to spark local discussions on bridging educational gaps, using the unique strengths and resources of each community to build a brighter future for all Kentuckians.”

Beyond education, the profiles incorporate economic and health data linked to educational success, illustrating the long-term influence of learning on both individual and community well-being.

The profiles are a companion to the Big Bold Future National Rankings Report, which was released last week by the Prichard Committee. Although the National Rankings Report showed Kentucky is recovering from COVID-19 learning losses faster than most states, many of the quality-of-life indicators show Kentucky declining in the rankings among the 50 states or improving too slowly to move Kentucky up into the top 20 states within a decade.

“The 2025 Groundswell Community Profiles complement the Big Bold Future National Rankings Report, illustrating how improvements at the local level collectively raise Kentucky’s standing among all 50 states,” said Todd Baldwin, director of the Center for Best Practices and Innovation at the Prichard Committee. “By identifying each district’s strengths and needs, the profiles help communities tailor strategies that boost student success, enhance workforce readiness, and improve quality of life. As more local districts make measurable progress, Kentucky moves upward in the national rankings—proving that when every community thrives, the entire commonwealth benefits.”

To explore the 2025 Groundswell Community Profile for your school district, visit prichardcommittee.org/community-profiles.

------

The Prichard Committee believes in the power and promise of public education –early childhood through college– to ensure Kentuckians’ economic and social well-being. We are a citizen-led, non-partisan, solutions-focused nonprofit, established in 1983 with a singular mission of realizing a path to a larger life for Kentuckians with education at the core.

Feb. 6, 2025

Contact: Lisa McKinney, Communications Director, The Prichard Committee

(cell) 859-475-7202

lisa@prichardcommittee.org

‍

Statement from Brigitte Blom, President/CEO of the Prichard Committee for Academic Excellence

‍

LEXINGTON, Ky — Today, the Prichard Committee released the 2025 edition of the Big Bold Future National Rankings Report, and bluntly, much of the new evidence is troubling.

In 2020, the Prichard Committee urged all Kentuckians to join the work of creating a Big Bold Future for the Commonwealth. To frame that work, we identified key indicators of educational achievement and quality of life to compile into a biennial national rankings report. Together, these data points let us:

• Compare our work to other states
• Analyze trends over the years
• See results for Kentuckians of varied backgrounds and ages
• Find cause for celebration
• Recognize areas of concern

The 2025 report contains some good news. Kentucky is moving back toward 2019 reading and math test scores, as shown in last week’s results from the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP). The NAEP scores indicate Kentucky has been more successful than most other states in recovering from the learning loss that was exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic. However, our NAEP scores have not fully bounced back to 2019 levels, and the 2019 levels were not strong enough. However, most other indicators show Kentucky declining in the rankings among the 50 states or improvement that is too slow to move Kentucky up into the top 20 states within a decade. Below are Kentucky’s rankings on the 14 included indicators: Bright Spots

• 4th of 50 states in high school graduation rate
• 4th in two-year postsecondary graduation rate
• 12th in grade four reading

Strong Trends (on pace to be one of the top 20 states in another decade)

• 25th and rising in voter turnout
• 27th and rising in four-year postsecondary graduation rate

Weak Trends (not on pace to be one of the top 20 states in the next decade)

• 32nd and rising slowly in grade 8 math
• 33rd and rising slowly in babies with healthy birth weight
• 46th and rising slowly in life expectancy

Declining/Flat Rankings

• 42nd and declining in households with broadband access
• 44th and unchanged in residents holding associate degrees or higher
• 46th and declining in children living at or above the poverty line
• 46th and declining in postsecondary enrollment
• 46th and unchanged in household median income
• 47th and declining in preschool enrollment

These results should summon us all to new effort.

The Prichard Committee now calls on the whole state to respond to this hard news with fresh energy and determination. As people who love Kentucky, let’s join together and get to work on building deeper insights, deeper engagement, and deeper investment, both at the state level and in each of our local communities. We invite everyone to explore the report’s evidence here, and we invite all Kentuckians to join us in renewed efforts to make education Kentucky’s pathway to a larger life and a Big Bold Future for all of us. The Prichard Committee believes in the power and promise of public education –early childhood through college– to ensure Kentuckians’ economic and social well-being. We are a citizen-led, non-partisan, solutions-focused nonprofit, established in 1983 with a singular mission of realizing a path to a larger life for Kentuckians with education at the core.

-------

The Prichard Committee believes in the power and promise of public education –early childhood through college– to ensure Kentuckians’ economic and social well-being. We are a citizen-led, non-partisan, solutions-focused nonprofit, established in 1983 with a singular mission of realizing a path to a larger life for Kentuckians with education at the core.

Jan. 29, 2025

Contact: Lisa McKinney, Communications Director, The Prichard Committee

(cell) 859-475-7202

lisa@prichardcommittee.org

Kentucky Shows Promise with Post-COVID Test Scores

Scores are a call to action for communities, families, educators  

LEXINGTON, Ky -- The National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) released their 2024 Nation’s Report Card today, which shows Kentucky is making progress on recovering from COVID-19 learning losses. NAEP scores are drawn from a representative sample of Kentucky 4th- and 8th-graders tested every two years in reading and math.

“In today’s NAEP release, Kentucky held its ground and even posted some gains during a period when results for many states declined,” said Prichard Committee President/CEO Brigitte Blom. “While the results do not show full recovery of recent losses—both during and before the pandemic—they do show Kentucky’s strength compared to national trends, even while our students face greater challenges and our schools work with fewer resources than the nation as a whole. These gains are a testament to the commitment of Kentucky educators to use the resources at their disposal effectively and efficiently.”

For 2024 percent proficient or above, Kentucky ranks among the states:

• 12th in grade 4 reading up from 29th in 2022  

• 26th in grade 8 reading up from 28th in 2022  

• 28th in grade 4 math up from 33rd in 2022

• 32nd in grade 8 math up from 41st in 2022

In percent of students reaching NAEP proficiency or above, Kentucky’s newest results are statistically tied with the nation in grade 4 reading, grade 8 reading and grade 4 math, with results below the nation in grade 8 math. Kentucky’s 4th-grade math results showed statistically significant improvement compared to 2022.

Kentucky’s results in 4th-grade reading and 8th-grade math and reading remained steady for percent proficient or above, which makes it the first year the commonwealth has stopped the backward slide that began prior to COVID-19 and was further exacerbated by the pandemic.  

“This data demonstrates that strategic investments in schools and evidenced-backed policy actions work to move the needle on education outcomes,” said Blom. “This is the moment for families, community members, state leaders and educators to rally together to build on these gains and continue in an upward trajectory through both local action and state policy.”

The Prichard Committee will release its biennial Big Bold Future national rankings report on Feb. 6, which includes the NAEP data as well as other indicators of educational achievement and quality of life. The report contextualizes the testing scores by looking at other indicators that affect education outcomes such as poverty levels and preschool participation. The Big Bold Future report will be available on prichardcommittee.org.  

LEXINGTON, Ky -- Congratulations to Gov. Andy Beshear on an inspiring and unifying State of the Commonwealth Address. Congratulations are also due for the many accomplishments in job creation and expansion of critical infrastructure like broadband and roads.

The Prichard Committee pledges to do its part to realize the Governor’s aspirations for the future of the state by continuing to work to ensure every Kentuckian has access to a meaningful education that imparts the knowledge and individual skills necessary to strengthen today’s workforce – and to be the job creators of Kentucky’s future.

We share the governor’s optimism that when Kentuckians work together toward shared goals, we have what it takes to build a better commonwealth for every family. In fact, we’ve proven that is true with education improvements of the past – and we must renew that commitment to stronger outcomes, with urgency, in the immediate years ahead.

With the 2025 General Assembly session upon us, top priorities to realize such improvements, include:

• Ensuring access to advanced coursework so Kentucky students prepared for higher level learning can excel; this is critical for the future of STEM fields like space science, advanced manufacturing, and healthcare.  
• Continuing to strengthen postsecondary education – where individuals and families gain skills for the workforce and realize increased social mobility as a result – which, in turn, strengthens our P12 education outcomes.  
• Broadening access to childcare for working families by creating the conditions for the small, often women-owned, business to grow, particularly in areas of the state where far too little high-quality childcare exists.

We look forward to working with the Governor and the General Assembly to make the vision of a big, bold future for every Kentuckian a reality.

Report shows employers value durable skills such as critical thinking and collaboration  

LEXINGTON, Ky -- The Prichard Committee for Academic Excellence today released results of the 2024 Meaningful Diploma Employer Survey, offering critical insights into the workforce readiness of Kentucky’s high school graduates. Based on responses from over 600 employers across more than 20 industries in the state, the report provides a detailed examination of employers' confidence in graduate preparedness, the value of durable skills, and opportunities to strengthen school-business partnerships.

"Kentucky's high school diploma must be evidence that Kentucky’s high school students are prepared for post-high school success," said Prichard Committee President and CEO Brigitte Blom. "While we celebrate Kentucky’s high graduation rate, the reality is that too many students leave high school without the academic knowledge, career preparation, and durable skills needed to succeed in college and the workforce. Ensuring Kentucky’s high school diploma is meaningful is about giving every Kentucky student genuine opportunities for economic mobility, strengthening our talent pipeline, and ensuring our state's future prosperity. This work is essential not just for individual student success, but for breaking cycles of poverty, building generational wealth in our communities, and positioning Kentucky as a leader in both postsecondary attainment and workforce participation."

The findings shed light on gaps in workforce readiness while outlining opportunities for education and business leaders to collaborate on solutions that ensure graduates are equipped for post-secondary success—whether pursuing higher education or entering the workforce.

Key Findings from the Report:

• Employer Confidence in Graduate Preparedness
  While 56% of Kentucky employers report moderate to high confidence in the preparedness of recent high school graduates, only 12% express strong confidence, with 14% reporting none. Employers identified significant gaps in essential workplace competencies, such as professionalism, critical thinking, and communication, with less than 10% rating graduates as well-prepared in these areas.

• The Importance of Durable Skills
  Durable skills, including professionalism, work ethic, interpersonal skills, and emotional intelligence, are viewed as critical for success by 78.5% of employers. The findings underscore the importance of integrating these skills into K-12 education to better prepare students for life beyond high school.

• Untapped Potential in Work-Based Learning
  Practical work experience is highly valued by employers, yet only 21.4% currently offer these opportunities. Encouragingly, over 54% of employers expressed a willingness to provide work-based learning, signaling significant potential to expand real-world learning opportunities for students.

• School-Business Partnerships
  Collaboration between schools and businesses is viewed as essential by 83.7% of employers surveyed. However, only half of respondents have engaged with K-12 schools, and less than 20% report frequent interactions. Employers showed strong interest in partnering on curriculum development (55%) and supporting career preparation initiatives (65%), highlighting the need for stronger communication and coordination.

• Barriers to Workforce Readiness Programs
  The report identifies key challenges in implementing workforce readiness programs, including a lack of qualified instructors or mentors (50%), student engagement challenges (45.8%), and scheduling coordination difficulties (45.1%).

“The postsecondary transition and workforce landscape has shifted dramatically,” said Delaney Stephens, Prichard Committee Director of Policy for Meaningful Diplomas. “Today's high school graduates are making different choices than their predecessors did just a few years ago. More are heading straight into the workforce or combining work with further education. This makes it more important than ever that a high school diploma represents real preparation for success, whether a graduate's next step is college, career, or both.”

The 2024 Meaningful Diploma Employer Survey reveals a clear need for stronger alignment between Kentucky’s education system and workforce demands. By addressing gaps in graduate preparedness, expanding work-based learning opportunities, and fostering robust school-business partnerships, Kentucky can ensure all graduates are equipped to thrive in the modern workforce.

"The findings of this survey highlight both the challenges and opportunities before us," said Blom. "It’s a call to action for educators, policymakers, and the business community to come together and develop innovative strategies that will prepare every student for a successful post-high school pathway."

The full report is available for download here.  

For more information on how employers and schools are working toward creating meaningful and relevant educational experiences in Kentucky communities, visit the Prichard Committee’s Meaningful Diploma Spotlight series here.