KENTUCKY — The 60-day legislative session in Frankfort is now underway, where Kentucky lawmakers are saying to expect a busy education session with major proposals in the works, on different ways to improve Kentucky’s public education system. 

During this In Focus Kentucky segment State Sen. Gex Williams, R-Verona, joins the program to his work as the vice chair of the Senate standing committee on education and he shared some of his top education priorities for 2024, which includes adding a school choice measure for voters to consider this November.

In order to become law, a constitutional amendment has to be approved by three-fifths of each legislative chamber and a majority of Kentucky voters during a referendum.

If the legislature were to pass and then voters approved an amendment to the state constitution legalizing the appropriation of state funds to private schools, then it would allow for charter schools, voucher systems and scholarship tax credits in Kentucky.

“Well, one of the priorities that we really implemented already is just getting underway is a phonics based reading program that is proven successful in lots of different states. One of the impacts we have to that is our teaching universities in this state will not teach that program. They use a whole language or a whole word approach that they’re teaching teachers. And so we’re actually having to spend money to re educate teachers and how to teach reading at the elementary level that’s just a travesty. And they say that they got the academic freedom to teach wherever they want, and it’s costing us money as a state. So the legislature has got to address really better preparing teachers to teach reading and math. I think we have similar things in math as well,” said Williams.

You can watch the full In Focus Kentucky segment in the player above.