Owsley County Superintendent Invited to Participate in Education Writers Association National Seminar

Being a small district of two schools, one elementary and one middle/high school, and having a student population that is 89% free/reduced lunch eligible, has not hindered the Owsley County School System in Booneville, KY, from becoming one of the leading districts of innovation in the state.  Superintendent Tim Bobrowski, a 26 year veteran educator, realized six years ago that as leader of the school system he had to assemble a successful team of leaders and they had to “focus on building on their strengths instead of focusing on their weaknesses”.

Dr. Bobrowski’s leadership and the innovative learning experiences taking place in Owsley County have earned him an invitation to be part of a panel discussion relating to equity and access in classroom technology at the 70th Education Writers Association (EWA) National Seminar on June 2 in Washington, DC.  The theme of the summit, A New Era for Education and the Press, will be a comfortable fit for the superintendent who has been the inspiration for many innovative technology and learning opportunities for students in the district.

Technology and digital learning became a focus for the district when they began looking at budgetary concerns.  Loss of revenue from the reduction in the student population and the realization that they had to “live within their means”, Dr. Bobrowski said, led them to review data from the past ten years and to project data for ten years into the future.  Having an administrative team that understands the district can still provide a robust education in a 24/7 learning environment has led to the creation of initiatives that  allow the district to reach out to more students and to aid in developing a work force that’s ready to go to work when they graduate from high school and/or college.

Dr. Bobrowski states that the citizens of Owsley County “respect the history and roots of the area”.   Being an agricultural region has led the school board to support a Farm to School initiative that includes a farmers market on school property.  This innovative element of the education system affords the opportunity for produce grown by students to be on the tables in the school cafeterias as well as to provide a farmers market for the local folks every Saturday during the harvesting season.

The early college program has provided high school juniors and seniors the opportunity to earn college credit through dual credit classes on the high school campus.  One senior will receive an associates degree from Hazard Community and Technical College on the day of her high school graduation this month.

The Owsley County school district piloted the nontraditional instructional (NTI) school day concept for the Kentucky Department of Education in 2010.  The model has been replicated across the state and is now utilized by approximately 74 districts in Kentucky.

Another highlight of Dr. Bobrowski’s career as superintendent has been the honor of being the only District of Innovation in eastern Kentucky, and one of only ten in the state.  KRS 156.108 and 160.107 (House Bill 37, enacted 2012) provided Kentucky public school districts the opportunity to apply to the Kentucky Board of Education (KBE) to be exempt from certain administrative regulations and statutory provisions, as well as waiving local board policy, in an effort to improve the learning of students. Districts have been able to think outside the box in redesigning student learning that is more engaging and motivates students while at the same time increasing the number of graduating students who are college-and-career ready (http://education.ky.gov/school/innov/pages/districts-of-innovation.aspx).

The virtual school in Owsley County was created after the closing of the alternative school.  It is now being coupled with homebound schooling to provide adequate instruction for students who cannot operate in a normal school setting or whose health prohibits them from being on a school campus.  This cost-saving opportunity has given students access to the required curriculum online.

The district is a member of Digital Promise, a group of approximately 80 innovative schools from across the nation, that puts Dr. Bobrowski in contact with a group of thinkers that he says “give you ideas on how to meet the needs of the students”.  Face to face meetings of the leaders in this group provide opportunities to not only share educational ideas but to discuss new means of funding as well.

Upcoming digital initiatives for next school year in Owsley County include the 1:1 Initiative, which will provide a Chromebook for each student in grades 3-12.  The students will be allowed to take the devices home, where 94% of them have high-speed internet.  All students in kindergarten through second grade will utilize iPads, which are more developmentally appropriate for students in early primary grades.

Educators in the district will also have access to Open Education Resources (OER), which are “freely accessible, openly licensed documents and media that are useful for teaching, learning, and assessing as well as for research purposes” (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Open_educational_resources).  Since the district does not purchase textbooks, this enables teachers to enhance the curriculum while at the same time giving them choice in how the content is delivered in each individual classroom.

According to Dr. Bobrowski, funding for the technology initiatives has included the Race to the Top grant awarded to KVEC, which works with 21 school districts in eastern Kentucky to promote innovative instructional projects and personalized learning.  The Promising Neighborhood grant from Berea College has also been instrumental in providing funds to the school system.  District monies are applied to digital content instead of purchasing textbooks.

Dr. Bobrowski states that he “can’t do it by himself”.  He feels he has “assembled a good team” that is focused on the district’s mission of “creating an innovative learning environment that breaks down all barriers to student learning and prepares ALL students for college, career, and the 21st century world”.  He firmly believes that “the road we have in and out of Owsley County is the road you can’t see…connectivity of the internet”.  He is excited about participating in the panel discussion at the seminar in June.  He feels that since the audience will be comprised of columnists who are educational reporters that they will be more focused on the successes in education and he will be able to “tout the innovative things going on in the district for students and teachers”.

For more information on the Owsley County School District, visit:

https://www.owsley.kyschools.us/Page/1

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