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Photo: Kentucky State Parks, Pennyrile Forest
Learn about the route of the Cherokee Trail of Tears in western Kentucky during Pennyrile Forest State Resort Park’s Trail of Tears Weekend May 12-13.
The event, co-sponsored by the Friends of Pennyrile, will feature a bus tour of the trail in Caldwell, Crittenden and Livingston counties. The bus will take participants to Mantle Rock Nature Preserve, which is an important point on Trail of Tears National Historic Trail.
The Trail of Tears was a series of forced removals of the Cherokee living east of the Mississippi to what is now Oklahoma.
Guests can attend an introductory program on Friday evening and a historical and musical program on Saturday evening by Laura Hunt Angel.
Space is limited to 50 people.
The fee is $45 and includes the bus tour, a boxed lunch, evening programs and a tour guide. The park is also offering a 10 percent lodging discount. Call 800-325-1711.
The rustic wood and stone Pennyrile Lodge, with 24 rooms, sits serenely on a high cliff overlooking Pennyrile Lake. Open year-round, the park has 12 cottages in the wooded lodge area and on the lake’s shores. The restaurant seats 200, including a private dining room for up to 80. The park also offers hiking trails, fishing, basketball, tennis, camping and horse campsites that are available year-round.
Four teachers from Jefferson County Public Schools (JCPS) have been selected for 2018 Valvoline Teacher Achievement Awards (TAA), the Kentucky Department of Education (KDE) announced last week. The four join 20 other teachers throughout the state in competing for the 2018 Kentucky Teacher of the Year Award, which will be announced in May.
The teachers include:
· Mandy Ridenour, a fifth-grade teacher at Audubon Traditional Elementary School;
· Kim Joiner, a drama teacher at Noe Middle School;
· Apryl Moore, a science teacher at the Academy @ Shawnee; and
· Taylor Clements, a math teacher at Atherton High School.
“It’s always rewarding to be recognized for excellence in your field, but when that field is teaching our young people, the award takes on a special significance,” JCPS Superintendent Dr. Donna Hargens said. “I want to congratulate all the award recipients – I know you do the jobs that you do not for the accolades, but for the love of teaching, and that makes the real winners our students whose lives you touch.”
All 24 teachers will be honored at a May 16 ceremony in Frankfort, during which the Kentucky Elementary, Middle and High School Teachers of the Year will be named. The Kentucky Teacher of the Year will be selected from this group of three finalists, and will represent the state in the National Teacher of the Year competition.
The Kentucky Teacher Achievement Awards and the Kentucky Teacher of the Year programs are sponsored by Valvoline.
Attorney General Andy Beshear, the Child Sexual Abuse and Exploitation Prevention Board and the University of Louisville today announced an upcoming special screening of “I Am Jane Doe,” a worldwide documentary on child sex trafficking.
The 2017 film chronicles the battle of several American mothers on behalf of their middle-school daughters, who are victims of sex trafficking, against printed and online adult classifieds.
The film, narrated by Academy Award-nominee Jessica Chastain, will play at 6:30 p.m. on May 8 at the Clifton Center’s historic Eifler Theater in Louisville, located at 2117 Payne St. An expert panel discussion introduced by Beshear will follow the viewing of the film.
“We must continue to raise awareness on human trafficking and how it represents the worst form of abuse, often to children, in the Commonwealth,” Beshear said. “Human trafficking is increasing all over the Commonwealth, and as Kentuckians we must recognize the signs because it occurs in all our counties, cities and communities. By helping to bring this film to Kentucky, we have another opportunity to raise awareness about our obligation to prevent, identify and prosecute human trafficking cases.”
The Child Sexual Abuse and Exploitation Prevention Board, which is administered by the Office of the Attorney General, is co-sponsoring the film – currently only being shown in larger cities worldwide – through the Child Victims’ Trust Fund.
The Fund last year helped pay for nearly 400 child sexual abuse forensic exams and helped administer $160,000 in statewide grants aimed at teaching parents how to discuss child sexual abuse with children and how to keep children safe on the Internet.
Dr. Jennifer Middleton, director of the University of Louisville’s Human Trafficking Research Initiative, is spearheading the efforts to bring “I Am Jane Doe” to Louisville and is working with
Beshear’s office to raise awareness on human trafficking.
Beshear recently joined Dr. Middleton and her colleagues at the University of Louisville’s Kent School of Social Work to announce a study from the school that found that 40 percent of homeless youth surveyed in Louisville and southern Indiana reported being victims of sex trafficking, mostly in exchange for money or lodging.
“Based on the findings of our recent research study, it is clear that child sex trafficking is prevalent in our community, particularly among our most vulnerable children,” Dr. Middleton said. “The good news is that there is a lot that we can do to combat the issue and even prevent it from happening. And it starts with increasing the community’s knowledge and awareness about the issue.”
The Eifler Theater at the Clifton Center seats approximately 500 guests. To obtain admission information and to register for the event, please visit the event page at http://bit.ly/2ogJzkh. The event is free to the public but space is limited, so pre-registration is strongly encouraged. For additional questions about the event, please call the Human Trafficking Research Initiative at 502-852-3651.
At the completion of the film, a panel will discuss with the audience the documentary and the signs of human trafficking. The panelists include: Donna Pollard, survivor and member of Beshear’s Survivors Council; Julie Horen, coordinator of the My Life My Choice prevention program at Catholic Charities Human Trafficking Program; Allyson Taylor, director of Beshear’s Office of Child Abuse and Exploitation Prevention; Michael Littrell, cyber investigator for Beshear’s Department of Criminal Investigations; and Angela Renfro, survivor and director of the Kristy Love Foundation.
“Human trafficking is a crime and its victims are often hidden, which makes awareness especially important and also difficult to achieve,” Renfro said. “It is important for everyone in our community to be aware of the human trafficking problem in our community. Because you can make a difference.”
Beshear is encouraging Kentuckians to support the Child Victims’ Trust Fund through private donations, proceeds from the purchase of “I Care About Kids” license plates or donations made through the state income tax refund check-off program. To support victims of child sexual abuse, Kentuckians may visit their county clerk’s office and request an “I Care About Kids” license plate or check the box on their tax returns to designate a portion to the CVTF.
The Council on Postsecondary Education set 2017-18 tuition and mandatory fee ceilings for resident undergraduate students at its meeting Friday at Northern Kentucky University.
The ceilings limit tuition and mandatory fee increases to 3 to 5 percent and include:
- 3 percent for Western Kentucky University
- 4 percent for the University of Kentucky and Northern Kentucky University
- 5 percent for Eastern Kentucky University, Kentucky State University, Morehead State University and Murray State University.
The ceiling for the Kentucky Community and Technical College System was set at $6 per credit hour, a 3.9 percent increase.
A ceiling was not set for the University of Louisville since the university’s board of trustees has already voted not to increase tuition next year.
The new tuition dollars will partially offset inflationary fixed costs, manage growth in employer-paid retirement contributions, and support continuing progress to produce a more highly skilled and productive workforce, create new jobs and grow Kentucky’s economy through higher levels of educational attainment.
“Setting tuition ceilings is not something we take lightly,” said Council President Bob King. “After a very thorough process, we believe these rates strike the right balance between keeping costs affordable for students and their families, while providing adequate funding for our campuses to address fixed and unavoidable budget challenges.”
Even with the additional tuition revenue, campuses will face an $11.5 million shortfall for the 2017-18 year.
The different ceilings for campuses reflect in part the equity adjustments of $2.5 million for Western Kentucky University and $5.1 million for Northern Kentucky University. These funds were provided in the current biennial budget. A condition of the agreement was that both campuses would set lower tuition increases.
Another factor considered in setting the tuition ceilings was the expectation that employer-paid contributions in the Kentucky Employment Retirement System (KERS) will continue to increase at an accelerated rate. Between 2011-12 and 2016-17, the mandated increases in campus contributions grew from $30.2 million to $72 million, or 138 percent.
Only two campuses, the University of Kentucky and the University of Louisville, do not have employees who participate in KERS.
Council staff stressed the importance of considering the net price of going to college as opposed to the published “sticker price.” The net price is the total cost of attendance, including tuition and fees, textbooks, and room and board costs, minus student financial aid from federal, state or local and institutional sources.
In Kentucky, very few students pay the stated sticker price because of liberal amounts of grant and scholarship aid provided by the state and postsecondary institutions. For example, even though annual resident undergraduate tuition and fees at Kentucky comprehensive universities increased by $1,191 between academic years 2011-12 and 2015-16, the average net price that students paid actually decreased by $186 during this period.
The tuition action also allows campuses to submit market competitive tuition and fee rates for graduate, professional and online courses.
Council action on campus tuition and fee proposals is set for the June 16 meeting at Spalding University.
In other action, the Council:
- Extended President Bob King’s contract two years.
- Approved a KCTCS request for six new capital projects funded with a combination of Kentucky Work Ready Skills Initiative funds ($30.5 million), private funds ($5.3 million) and agency restricted funds ($2.9 million).
- Approved three academic programs: Master of Science in Nursing, Family Nurse Practitioner, Morehead State University; Ph.D. in Radiation and Radiological Sciences, University of Kentucky; and Specialist in Gifted and Talented Education, Western Kentucky University.
- Awarded resolutions of appreciation for distinguished service for outgoing members Pam Miller, Glenn Denton and Dan Flanagan.
- Chair Sherrill Zimmerman appointed Donna Moore, Joe Ellis and Ron Beal to the Council’s Executive Committee. Zimmerman and Vice Chair Ben Brandstetter also serve on this committee.
- Zimmerman appointed Lizbetthe Rodriguez to the Committee on Equal Opportunities.
The Council heard the following reports: CPE President, Kentucky Commissioner of Education, Strategic Agenda Metrics Accountability System Overview, Stronger by Degrees: Update on Opportunity, 2017 Legislative Session Summary and Committee on Equal Opportunities. Reports from the campuses were also available.
Additionally, new member Shawn Reynolds of Almo was sworn in at Thursday’s work session. His term expires Dec. 31, 2022.
Meeting materials are available at https://v3.boardbook.org/Public/PublicMeetingMaterials.aspx?ak=1001061&mk=50220579.
The Supreme Court of Kentucky will convene April 19-20 in Frankfort to hear oral arguments in civil cases that originated in Bell, Bracken, Fayette, Franklin and Jefferson counties. Proceedings are open to the public and will take place in the Supreme Court Courtroom on the second floor of the state Capitol at 700 Capitol Ave. in Frankfort.
The public may also observe oral arguments via the Supreme Court live stream on the Kentucky Court of Justice website. Oral arguments are available online as they occur in real time and are not available as archives.
The Supreme Court is the state court of last resort and the final interpreter of Kentucky law. Seven justices sit on the Supreme Court and all seven justices rule on appeals that come before the court. The justices are elected from seven appellate districts and serve eight-year terms. A chief justice, chosen for a four-year term by fellow justices, is the administrative head of the state’s court system and is responsible for its operation. The Supreme Court may order a ruling or opinion to be published, which means that the ruling becomes the case law governing all similar cases in the future in Kentucky.
WEDNESDAY, APRIL 19, 2017
9 AM ET
2016-SC-000008-DG
BIG SANDY REGIONAL JAIL AUTHORITY V. LEXINGTON FAYETTE URBAN COUNTY GOVERNMENT
“Sovereign Immunity. KRS 441.025. At issue in this matter is whether sovereign immunity bars an action by a regional jail against a county to recover the costs of housing that county’s prisoners, after they were arrested and held pursuant to a warrant from courts of that county. In addition, at issue is whether KRS 441.025 obligates a county to pay for the incarceration of prisoners arrested and held on warrants issued by the courts of that county which are served in the county where the prisoner is incarcerated.”
Discretionary Review granted 9/15/2016
Fayette Circuit Court, Judge Kim M. Wilkie and Judge Ernesto Scorsone
Attorney for Appellant: Nelson Theodore Sparks
Attorneys for Appellee: Michael Keith Horn and Charles Edwards, III
10 AM
2016-SC-000321-DG
KENTUCKYONE HEALTH, INC. V. BENJAMIN REID, JR., M.D.
“Health Care Quality Improvement Act. Rebuttable Presumption of Immunity. At issue in this case is whether the hospital’s actions against the physician constitute “professional review action” to which the rebuttable presumption of immunity provisions of the Health Care Quality Improvement Act apply. Additionally, if immunity did not apply to the physician’s claims against the hospital, was there sufficient evidence to support a summary judgment on the claims for breach of contract, tortious interference with a business relationship and slander.”
Discretionary Review granted 10/13/2016
Jefferson Circuit Court, Judge Audra Jean Eckerle
Attorneys for Appellant: Kathryn Ann Quesenberry and Michael P. Abate
Attorneys for Appellee: Larry B. Franklin, Kelly Jo Brownfield and Patrick John Smith
11 AM ET
2016-SC-000243-DG
ST. AUGSTINE SCHOOL, ET AL. V. JANET CROPPER
“Contracts. Ecclesiastical Abstention. Whether a breach of contract claim by a parochial school administrator involves a matter of internal church governance requiring judicial abstention.”
Discretionary Review granted 10/13/2016
Bracken Circuit Court, Judge Stockton B. Wood
Attorneys for Appellants: Richard G. Meyer and Nicholas Charles Birkenhauer
Attorney for Appellee: Gail Marie Langendorf
THURSDAY, APRIL 20, 2017
10 AM ET
2016-SC-000281-DG
COMMONWEALTH OF KENTUCKY, FINANCE AND ADMINISTRATION CABINET, DEPARTMENT OF REVENUE V. INTERSTATE GAS SUPPLY, INC., FOR THE USE AND BENEFIT OF TRI-STATE HEALTHCARE LAUNDRY, INC.
“Kentucky Constitution § 170. Tax Exemption. Institution of Purely Public Charity. The issue in this case is whether an institution of purely public charity should be exempt from payment of a use tax under § 170 of the Kentucky Constitution.”
Discretionary Review granted 10/13/2016
Franklin Circuit Court, Judge Thomas D. Wingate
Attorney for Appellant: Douglas M. Dowell
Attorneys for Appellee: Timothy Joseph Eifler and Stephen A. Sherman
11 AM ET
2015-SC-000489-DG
NAMI RESOURCES COMPANY, L.L.C., ET AL. V. ASHER LAND AND MINERAL, LTD, ET AL.
2016-SC-000235-DG
ASHER LAND AND MINERAL, LTD V. NAMI RESOURCES COMPANY, L.L.C.
“Oil and Gas. Contracts. Fraud. Punitive Damages. Issues involve alleged fraud and/or breach of contract in underpayment of oil and gas royalties pursuant to lease plus the propriety of imposing punitive damages.”
Discretionary Review granted 4/27/2016 and 8/17/2016
Bell Circuit Court, Judge Robert Costanzo
Attorneys for Appellants/Cross-Appellee: Michael D. Bowling, Virginia Hamilton Snell, Donald Joseph Kelly and Benjamin Todd Keller
Attorneys for Appellee/Cross-Appellant, Asher Land and Mineral, LTD: James C. Helton, Darrell L. Saunders and Michael J. Gartland
Attorney for Appellees, Vanguard Natural Resources, LLC and Vanguard Natural Gas, LLC: Mason L. Miller
Kentucky students are much more media literate than they are given credit for, said Bighill media artist Bob Martin. Martin is a teaching artist in the media arts category in the Kentucky Arts Council’s adjudicated Teaching Artists Directory.
“They want to be witnessed. They have a lot to offer regarding how they see our society,” Martin said. “Just about every young person has a camera in their pocket. Storytelling through social media is a wonderful opportunity to engage them.”
Those opportunities will become plentiful with more media artists to share their knowledge and experience, he said. To achieve that, the arts council is looking for media artists to add to the council’s Teaching Artists Directory.
“Media, by definition, is the plural of medium, and it’s through using multiple media that are evolving, adapting and unfolding that we get our stories across,” Martin said. “It’s up to us to fill the need of students for media art instruction, and help young people engage critically with art through media.”
Martin, who works regionally in theater and film, has been a teaching artist in the directory for about three years. Bringing media arts lessons to Kentucky students through the residencies offered through the arts council’s Teaching Art Together program is a source of satisfaction for him, and he said he thinks his fellow media artists will find the same level of fulfillment.
“I believe in the state creating spaces for artists to be able to make a difference in their communities as performing or teaching artists,” Martin said. “It’s a valuable use of state resources to say we value artmaking, creation and creative visioning as an investment strategy. I appreciate participating in that.”
The application deadline for the Teaching Artists Directory is April 13.
For more information or to apply, visit the Teaching Artists Directory program page of the arts council website, or contact Jean St. John, arts council education director, at jean.stjohn@ky.gov or 502-892-3124.
The Kentucky Arts Council, the state arts agency, fosters environments for Kentuckians to value, participate in and benefit from the arts. Kentucky Arts Council funding is provided by the Kentucky General Assembly and the National Endowment for the Arts.
Trigg County High School emerged from the largest field in the 16-year history of the National Archery in the Schools Program (NASP) Kentucky state tournament to win the team competition on April 1 at the Kentucky Exposition Center in Louisville.
The two-day event drew a record 6,071 students from 295 schools across the state.
“The tournament was awesome,” said Lisa Frye, state NASP coordinator for the Kentucky Department of Fish and Wildlife Resources. “Over 6,000 smiling faces participating in a culminating event showcasing the skills they learned as part of their in-school NASP program. For most archers, it isn’t about competition. It’s all about participating together in a common sport.”
Elementary, middle and high school student archers competed for individual and team honors. After practice rounds, each competitor shot 15 arrows from 10 meters and 15 arrows from 15 meters for a total possible score of 300 points.
Lincoln County High School junior Roby Mullins won the boys’ overall title with a score of 298 and Hancock County High School sophomore Kayla Woodward won the girls’ overall title with a score of 296.
Trigg County’s overall team title was its fifth in the past six NASP Kentucky state tournaments. Madison Central High School and Lafayette High School finished second and third behind the Arrowcats in the high school division.
Pulaski Northern Middle School won the middle school division and Morgantown Elementary placed first in the elementary school division.
The top 10 seniors in the boys’ and girls’ divisions received $1,000 scholarships to apply to any post-secondary education.
Complete state tournament results are available online at nasptournaments.org. Click on “Tournaments” then select “Kentucky” and “Completed This Season” from the dropdown menus.
The next step for many of the archers who competed in the state tournament is the 2017 NASP Nationals scheduled May 11-13 at the Kentucky Exposition Center.
