It's time to invest in education and our children need it now.

Our job as elected officials is not to move Kentucky left or right, but to move Kentucky forward. By supporting education and educators, we can continue to build a better Kentucky.

Lieutenant Coleman and I have always run an education-first administration. As a parent and statewide leader, I know that the best thing we can do for every child in Kentucky is to ensure that they receive a world-class education.

As such, we are calling for action to better support school-age children, educators, and school personnel by implementing the Education First Plan. It’s time to invest in education and our children need it now. The World Health Organization says the end of the pandemic is in sight.My plan will help students progress in their studies after this deadly pandemic.

In 2021-2022, Kentucky school districts have had to make tough decisions to implement the distance learning days needed to prevent the spread of illness and death. Disruptions continued across the country as staff and students fell ill and missed school. Through these challenges, our educators have stood firm and done all they can to continue to provide quality instruction.

But to ensure that each child does everything possible to reach their full potential, we need to address the shortage of teachers in schools. Our teacher shortage is the result of years of cuts, the abolition of new teacher pensions, and the refusal to fund pay increases that have left schools underfunded.

There are currently about 11,000 teacher vacancies statewide. The reason is simple. You can’t keep up with your child in math without a math teacher.

Our schools are the backbone of our community and our teachers are the foundation of our future. , bus drivers, cafeteria workers, and school workers at a flat rate of 5%.

According to the National Education Association, Kentucky currently ranks 44th in the nation for starting salaries, averaging about $37,373 a year for new teachers. It has dropped two places from last year. In a competitive job market, we are heading in the wrong direction.

In the past two years, Kentucky has posted two of its largest budget surpluses in history. When you combine my Administration’s strong financial management with the biggest year of economic development in our state’s history in 2021, and the over 14,000 new jobs announced so far this year, we will fund this plan. Now is the time to make historic investments in our schools, educators and students.

Included in the Education First Plan is universal pre-kindergarten education. We know that Pre-K has positive results on children’s early literacy and math skills and promotes long-term educational success. To become and remain the top economy in the United States, we must continue to build a world-class education system that begins with pre-kindergarten.

You should also help with student loan forgiveness to keep teachers in the classroom. This relief is very important as we want our teachers to complete their higher education. My plan calls for an award of up to $3,000 for teachers employed annually in public schools.

Finally, Team Kentucky has always believed that mental health is just as important as physical health. As such, statewide staff and he proposed securing funding to bring together eight regional social-emotional learning institutions so that educators could access training on how best to help students. increase. Provides two new grant programs and other helpful training and resources for school districts to establish wraparound services for students affected by violence, substance abuse, child abuse, or parental incarceration.

The future of education in Kentucky isn’t red or blue, it’s about our children. We are united, committed to what we must do now to make up for the loss of learning, and united to embrace a brighter future. We must invest in our children and educators and move into their rightful place as national leaders. Our children depend on us.

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