FCPS Superintendent Dr. Demetrus Liggins began his day at Booker T. Washington Elementary.
“Good morning. Somebody's excited to be here.” Liggins smiled and offered high-fives to students as they hopped off lines of buses.
Dr. Liggins says a lot has changed since he first took the job four years ago.
“Well, we're beyond the pandemic first and foremost and it's just an opportunity. We have kids that are coming to school unmasked, kids that are healthy, that's no longer something that we're having to to worry about, which is the biggest difference.” Liggins added, that educators are “continuing to make up for a learning loss that occurred during the pandemic and continue to work with our kids each and every day to ensure that we can put that behind us completely.”
Lexington Mayor Linda Gorton was also on hand to meet and greet students. I asked Gorton and Dr. Liggins, if they could travel back in time and meet with their kindergarten selves, what would be their advice for day one?
“Have fun, have fun,” Gorton laughed then took a more serious tone “and listen to the teacher."
Dr. Liggins said he would tell himself “Don't be so shy and know that your difference will someday be embraced… your uniqueness is what makes you you.”
Mayor Gorton also asks you to give yourself extra time, slow down, and stay off your cell phone or anything else that would cause distracted driving. She said traffic patterns will be monitored to ensure safety and the best routes as hundreds of school buses hit the roadways.
Several new laws are in place this year that affect Kentucky’s education system, ranging from who can be hired by K-12 schools to patrol campuses to curriculum requirements.
Truancy, which had been almost shelved during COVID is now covered by HB611. It requires officials to report cases where students miss more than 15 days during the school year to the county attorney to determine if the courts need to intervene.
