More On Bowling Green, Kentucky, Robbery Killing Of Larry Wayne Thomas By Dominique Wortham And Adriana Mason.

Robbery Gone Wrong: Suspects theft of $1,000 ends in death

Bradenton, Fla., freshman Dominique Wortham and Paducah resident Adriana Mason’s plot to steal $1,000 from Larry Thomas the night he was killed escalated from armed robbery to murder, investigators said at a preliminary hearing Wednesday morning for Wortham and Mason.
“It started as a shooting investigation and quickly became a murder investigation,” Bowling Green Police Department detective Matt Davis said to presiding Judge Sam Potter during the hearing.

Family members for both Wortham and Mason were in attendance.

Davis met an injured Thomas, his large intestines exposed, right before Thomas was airlifted to Vanderbilt Medical Center for emergency care where he later died.
Just before being put into the helicopter, Thomas told Davis that an “older black male” had shot him.
Davis later investigated the crime scene. He found no sign of forced entry. Davis said blood spatter was found on the bed spread and pillows of Thomas’s bed, as well as a small amount of blood on the wall.

After talking with neighbors at the Greenhaven Apartments, Davis learned Thomas’s cell phone had been stolen and that a neighbor who looked after a bleeding Thomas called 911.
Alyssa Rite and her boyfriend, both neighbors of Thomas, told the Herald last week that a neighbor who lived next door tried to keep him conscious until the police arrived.
“He was already really gray though,” Rite said of Thomas by the time the police arrived.
Phone records pulled by police revealed Mason had contacted Thomas 12 times on Sept. 2. Mason was at first uncooperative when police attempted to interview her.

After Davis, assisted by the Paducah Police Department, arrived at Mason’s home with the physical phone records, Mason confessed in front of her family and gave the detective her testimony.
Mason said in her testimony to Davis that Wortham and Thomas had prior drug dealings. Wortham had given Thomas $1,000 worth of marijuana to be paid back to Wortham after it was sold. Wortham had not received payment for the drugs, Mason told Davis.

Together, Wortham and Mason plotted a robbery to steal Thomas’s money. Mason spent part of the day with Thomas, all the while texting Wortham.
“During the entire time she is with Mr. Thomas, she is texting Mr. Wortham ... telling him when it is clear to come in on Mr. Thomas,” Davis said.

Mason told Davis the plan was for Mason to convince Thomas to take a shower, telling him that she would join him. With Thomas in the shower, Mason unlocked the door to the apartment to let Wortham in.
Wortham couldn’t find the money in time.
Thomas came out of the shower first and sat nude on his bed.

Mason said Wortham then entered the room and first pointed the gun at her before pointing it at Thomas. A fight between the two men quickly broke out.
“She described it as a very physical altercation,” Davis said. “...During the course of this fight, Ms. Mason said she was so close to the subjects she could see their fingers over the trigger going back and forth.”

After a struggle, and with Mason outside of the apartment, the fight ended with a single gunshot, followed by an “Ah!” from Thomas, Davis said.
Davis said the gunshot entered Thomas’s stomach at a downward angle.
Alan Simpson, Wortham’s attorney, asked Davis if the investigators knew who ultimately pulled the trigger. Davis said it is unknown at this time who fired the weapon.

Mason then told the detective that Wortham then turned the gun on her, threatening her and telling her if she spoke about the incident he would come after her.
“Ms. Mason told us that she did not have any choice, that she was forced to do this,” Davis said of her involvement.
Thomas went outside of his apartment and said, “I’ve been shot,” causing neighbors to run out toward him, Rite said last week.

Wortham and Mason left the apartment with $400, a platinum-gold watch and gold teeth.
The two checked into a local motel when Mason later told detectives in a separate one-on-one interview she had sex with Wortham, who pawned the teeth at a gold store in Bowling Green for $50 but kept the watch.

Later, cooperating with police, Mason made a phone call to Wortham while police listened in.
Wortham confirmed in his phone call to Mason that he was in Bowling Green in his Barnes-Campbell Hall room. BGPD, with the assistance of the WKU Police Department, arrested Wortham, who was wearing the stolen platinum gold watch at the time of the arrest.

Wortham, whose lawyer said he originally came to WKU with hopes of walking onto the WKU football team, then confessed to police about his role in Thomas’ death.

After the hearing, Dwight Burton, Mason’s attorney, said Mason’s current murder charge is unfortunate and that she is charged with murder because during the course of a felony, if a murder occurs, everyone involved is held liable for the act.
“My client didn’t really have anything to do with the shooting,” Burton said.

Simpson said after the hearing that it was obvious that this was never intended to be a homicide.
“It’s a very unfortunate series of circumstances that escalated in a matter of seconds,” Simpson said.
The two will go before a grand jury at a later date.

Update: Bowling Green Police Make Second Arrest In Killing Of Western Kentucky University Student, Larry Thomas, This Time It's Adriana M. Mason Of Paducah.

 More to follow shortly. Stay tuned.

School Superintendents React To Recommended Ruling In Bowling Green Versus Warren County Student Transfers Feud.

Superintendents React to Hearing Officer's Recommendation on Nonresident Issue

Some students in Warren County will finally know where they will attend school in a little more than a week.
Bowling Green Independent Schools and Warren County Public Schools have received the hearing officer's recommended order regarding the nonresident student agreement hearing.

Hearing officer Mike Wilson sent the recommendation to both districts today ordering Warren County to permit 750 resident students to attend Bowling Green Schools with state funding for the next two school years.
"That's what we had anticipated, and basically what we had been planning around since we approved our draft budget back in January," said Bowling Green Independent Schools Superintendent Joe Tinius.

The number agreed upon for several years was 850 students, but recently passed legislation already reduced that number by about a hundred students.
"The impact of House Bill 182... which was passed last spring by the Kentucky legislature, allowed the children of employees to come to the school district in which their parents work and the SEEK allocation to come with them," said Tinius.

Wilson also advised the districts attempt to negotiate a multi-year agreement in the future.
"From reading the ruling, what the expectation will be is that between now and school year 2015-2016, that the two school districts will come to an agreement that will cover a more lengthy period of time," said Tinius.
"I can assure you as superintendent, that timing won't be an issue in the future," said Warren County Public Schools Superintendent.

Due to those expectations, Tinius says he doesn't anticipate the 86 students now allowed to attend city
schools will have to worry about their future in the district but according to Warren County School's Superintendent Rob Clayton there is still work to be done to come to a new agreement.
"Our board of education is not comfortable continuing with the agreement that has been in operation over the last several years. and so moving forward, it's about looking at how we can work with Bowling Green Independent," said Clayton.

Clayton says Warren County has not decided whether or not they will file an appeal at this point.
And while Clayton doesn't anticipate Warren County having to make personnel adjustments Tinius says Bowling Green may have to hire some teachers.

Bowling Green City School District Wins Case Against Warren County Schools Over Student Transfers.

City schools win student cap appeal

The Bowling Green Independent School District will get to keep 86 county-zoned students lost to a student cap set April 18 by the Warren County Public Schools, according to a ruling released this morning.

“Obviously, we think this is a good decision,” said Leslie Peek, city schools spokeswoman. City schools personnel are calling the parents of the 86 county-zoned (non-resident) students today to let them know that they can enroll in the city schools with the $300 tuition, but no additional money. The 62-page ruling from the Kentucky education commissioner’s office is titled a “Recommended Findings of Fact, Conclusions of Law and Recommended Order.”

Go to bgdailynews.com to read more.

Western Kentucky Regents Approve Bonds To Fund Honors Program, International Building, Give Basketball Coaches Raises.

WKU Regents Approve Bonds for Honors College, Raises for Basketball Coaches

The WKU Board of Regents has approved a $37 million bond issue to fund a new international center and Honors College building, as well as the next phase of the ongoing renovation of the Downing University Center.

While the motion passed, three regents voted against the proposal.
Faculty Regent Patty Minter joined Student Regent Keyana Boka and Staff Regent James Kennedy in dissent. Dr. Minter says while she fully supports the WKU Honors College and the school's efforts to grow its international student population, she questions the need to issue bonds and build a brand new facility.
“There were a lot of better ideas that were not explored," said the WKU History Professor. "For example, having a floor in the replacement building for the Gordon Ford College of Business—what a great place that would be. And it would also integrate that group and the international student services into the entire student population, as opposed to segregating them out.”

WKU President Gary Ransdell has said he believes a new Honors College building will help the program attract academically elite students to the school.

The WKU Regents also approved the purchase of property on Normal Street that will be used for the new Honors College-International Center building.

Raises for Coaches Harper and Clark-Heard

The WKU Board of Regents approved salary increases for the men's and women's basketball coaches. Following Friday's vote, men's coach Ray Harper will earn $500,000 a year, and women's coach Michelle Clark-Heard will get $200,000 annually.

WKU Athletic Director Todd Stewart says the money for Harper's raise is coming from an account containing revenue from WKU's NCAA basketball tournament appearances. Stewart says the raise for Coach Clark-Heard is being funded entirely through private donations over the next three years.
The WKU athletic director says revenues generated by the school's move to Conference USA in 2014 will then be tapped to sustain Clark-Heard's salary.

Western Kentucky University's Honors Program Building Project Draws Opposition, Even As Regents Meet To Approve It.

Honors College grad opposes $22M center

Opposition to the $22 million Honors College/International Center planned for Western Kentucky University has surfaced on another front.
 
Mark L. Reeves, a May 2012 Honors College graduate and international student worker, sent an open letter this week to members of the WKU Board of Regents, asking them to not approve a property purchase at 1590 Normal St. and a bonds sale Friday at their regular meeting, saying that approach would be “unwise.”

The Kentucky General Assembly approved the project as WKU’s contribution to a large capital projects program planned for several universities in Kentucky. University presidents and Gov. Steve Beshear approached lawmakers with the plan, where the state approves the projects while the universities themselves carry the debts. Currently, the Honors College and International Center at WKU are both housed in former residences on the main campus in Bowling Green.

Reeves objects to the planned $22 million in bonds and opposes the entire $37 million general obligation bond issue, which includes $15 million for the third phase of the renovation of Downing Student Union. He sketches a four-part argument in the letter.

Like Faculty Regent Patti Minter, Reeves objects to the university using revenue from international students’ tuition, particularly Navitas students. Reeves wrote that when WKU made the partnership with Navitas in January 2010, “ambitious promises” were stated about the number of students expected to come to WKU for the program. “In November 2010, Navitas projected it would bring 250 students in fall 2011, but even in the fall 2012 Navitas enrollment sat only at 126. By spring 2013, only approximately 56 students had matriculated into WKU, providing the projected revenue stream for debt service,” he wrote in the letter to the regents.

WKU President Gary Ransdell told the regents during a June 21 committee meeting, that if there weren’t 150 Navitas students to provide the necessary tuition revenue for paying the debt service on the bonds, any 150 of the 900 international students enrolled at the university would be used. At that committee meeting, university officials showed projections of growing numbers of international students in Bowling Green. Also, university officials this summer traveled to China to ink agreements to bring other international students to WKU.

“If, as been suggested, Navitas does not provide an adequate revenue stream, President Ransdell has proposed using the new difference in tuition paid by international undergraduate students from out-of-state students. However, to do so would lock in higher tuition rates for international undergraduate students for the next decades, removing WKU’s key competitive advantage in recruiting international students: low cost,” Reeves wrote. “As a friend of many international students, I can assure you that this is WKU’s key advantage, and locking in higher rates will hurt that advantage.”

Navitas at WKU offers a University Pathway Program and Pre-Masters Program designed to prepare international students for university studies in America, according to its website.

Reeves also states that while WKU attracts a large number of international students from Saudi Arabia, “... the Saudi government pays their tuition (plus a stipend), and this program is highly contingent on global politics: Saudi international numbers nosedived nationwide after 9/11, and the current Saudi enrollment growth dates to a 2005 political agreement between the Saudi King and then-President George W. Bush. Moreover, due to high numbers of Saudi students at WKU already, the Saudi Arabian Cultural Mission has recently announced a freeze on sending Saudi students majoring in Business or Engineering (the main majors of Saudi students at WKU) to WKU,” Reeves wrote.

“... when Saudi students are removed from the international student population, international student growth at WKU is relatively flat from 2003 (497 students) to 2011 (505 students), the latest year for which country-specific data is publicly available,” Reeves wrote.

Reeves also told the regents in the letter that Honors College students should also pay in some fashion on the building’s debt service, not just international students; the project is not a priority to students at WKU and “WKU does not need to take on this massive debt project at a time when budgets have been cut and the fiscal future appears unclear,” Reeves wrote.

Reeves added that he doesn’t want the regents to shelve accommodations for the Honors College and international students at WKU. “I should stress that I do not urge the Board to reject building projects to create new or renovate existing spaces for the Honors College or international students. Rather, this specific project does not merit the risk of such a huge bond or such a huge, long-term financial commitment from WKU. Smaller-scale and lower-cost projects with different funding models should be encouraged and explored, in my opinion,” Reeves wrote.

Reeves said his views are his own, and don’t reflect his election in April as executive vice president of WKU’s Student Government Association.

The regents meet at 8 a.m. Friday in the Mass Media and Technology Hall.

Great Western Kentucky (WKU) News: School To Raise Admission Standards.

WKU to raise admission standards and accept fewer students

Fewer, but more qualified students may be making there way to WKU in the future as the Board of Regents discuss a change in focus for the university today at a board retreat at the WKU Glasgow campus.
 
Regents will be meeting with a state demographer at the retreat, who will help to provide key information to the university and its plan to change the course of growth development in the future.

President Gary Ransdell said the demographer will show that the pool of Kentucky high school students is not growing, and that the university will soon see a “paradigm shift” in its focus by raising admission standards and lowering student enrollment.
“As our university has grown dramatically over the past 15 years, we have penetrated that market pretty well,” Ransdell said. “In my opinion, we can no longer look to Kentucky students as a growth strategy.”

Ransdell said it’s time instead for the university to focus on the quality of students and retention rates.
“We are going to continue to raise our admission standards and accept fewer students,” Ransdell said. “Our strategy going forward is likely to be shaped around a slightly smaller student population.
Rather than aggressive growth, we’re going to focus on retention, graduation rates and higher academic standards.”

Targeting student populations where retention is needed is a center focus moving forward according to Joelle Carter, assistant vice president for Retention and Student Services.
“We look at retention across the board,” Carter said. “There are certain student groups where retention is more of an issue. We can look at those gaps and develop programs to help retention in that regard moving forward.”

Retention is a moving factor in this shift. Ransdell said the university must do better than a 75 percent retention rate for freshmen and sophomores. Actions towards implementing higher standards have already taken place. Ransdell said the university accepted 500 less students for the 2013-14 academic year than last year.

“We’ve put higher admission standards into play over the last couple of years and this is the first year we’re beginning to see a pay off on that,” Ransdell said.
Provost Gordon Emslie said even though admissions requirements have become more challenging, more opportunities for students have unfolded as well.
“With the state focus on retention and graduation rates we felt it appropriate to apply a different admission criteria,” Emslie said. “We’ve also added a significant number of new scholarships bringing the ACT and GPA range down. So we have more limited and partial tuition scholarships available to students who are fairly solid students, but were just not competitive for other scholarships in the past.”

Ransdell said a major part of the reasoning is because the university must control its own future financially rather than being dependent on Kentucky general assembly, which is facing financial challenges. WKU and education overall is only one of the many areas that receive funds from the state.

“While I believe we’ve reached an end to the budget cutting process for the foreseeable future, I am not optimistic that the general assembly will resume a significant level of new state funding,” Ransdell said. “We’re coming to the conclusion that state funding to support growing enrollment is not going to be forthcoming. Therefore, what we have to do as an institution is to ensure strong quality and strong financial underpinning.”

This shift in the university philosophy will be a highlighted topic with the regents Thursday. Ransdell said this process will take a lot of time and thought from the regents.
“These are all matters that we’re contemplating,” Ransdell said. “There is not a strategy manual in place. We’re studying all these dimensions and will discuss it with the board.”

We Congratulate The Former Kelli Stice, Now Kelli Brooks, On Becoming Principal At W. R. Mcneill Elementary School. A Great Choice.

Brooks named principal at McNeill Elementary

Six years ago, Kelli Brooks, a first-grade teacher at McNeill Elementary School, set a goal to become principal someday.
"I had stellar examples of leadership all around me," she said. "In the classroom with students, sitting back watching them, I wanted to be able to reach out even more."

Brooks achieved her goal today when she was named principal of McNeill. She will begin her responsibilities July 1, replacing current principal Marsha Ingram, who is retiring.

"I appreciate the confidence you've put in me," Brooks told the school's principal selection committee. "For 16 years, I've worked in the best school. I truly believe that. We're a great school, but we're going to be amazing. But I need help from all of you."

She said she's thrilled to be named principal at McNeill, where she did her student teaching 18 years ago and has been a faculty member for 16 years. "I've never wanted to be anywhere else," she said.

Brooks said she loves the sense of school pride, community involvement and the commitment to excellence at McNeill.

"I just want us to build on that excellence and get parents more involved," she said.

She has a bachelor's degree in early childhood education, a master's degree and a Rank 1 in educational administration, all from Western Kentucky University. She was named the 2006 Kentucky elementary school teacher of the year.

Ingram said there's no doubt in her mind that Brooks will do an outstanding job as principal.

"I could not be any more happy than I am today," Ingram said. "She already knows the students. She's an outstanding teacher. She was elementary school teacher of the year. She gets along with everyone. I can retire happy now, knowing that my babies are in good hands."

Rebecca Simpson, a parent representative on the principal selection committee, said Brooks met or exceeded all of the criteria the committee had for the position. Simpson was excited to offer Brooks the opportunity because she has enthusiasm and achieves excellence in everything she does.

"She's been an exceptional teacher in this school," Simpson said. "She's demonstrated the ability to be a communicator."

Bowling Green Independent Schools Superintendent Joe Tinius said Brooks is a great fit as principal because she's visible in the school, has a strong knowledge of elementary curriculum, is a good communicator and has demonstrated a strong commitment to McNeill for 16 years.

"I think Mrs. Brooks has all the qualities of an outstanding principal. ... I believe she will look after the children of McNeill as she does her own child," Tinius said.

He introduced Brooks to the students during a morning assembly at the school.

"I know I've got very big shoes to fill because hasn't Miss Ingram been a wonderful principal?" Brooks told students. "I need your help to make McNeill the best school in the world."

WARREN COUNTY SCHOOL'S DISTRICT BUDGET BALLOONS IN WAKE OF ATTORNEY HIRE.

WARREN COUNTY PUBLIC SCHOOLS District’s legal costs balloon

After spending no more than $65,684 on fees in any single year since 2007, board hired full-time attorney at $117,500 salary
By CHUCK MASON

The second-highest-paid employee in the Warren County Public Schools is its attorney.

While an attorney earning a good salary might not be surprising, Barton D. Darrell’s $117,500 salary as full-time legal counsel for the school system – compared to legal fees paid by similarly sized Kentucky school systems – is a healthy income indeed and an increase in legal spending for the district compared to years past.

From 2007-11, the highest amount the county school system paid for legal fees in a single fiscal year was $65,684 in FY 2010-11.

School officials say Darrell is worth the money. Superintendent Tim Murley – the system’s highest-paid employee at $145,000 – appreciates Darrell’s contributions to the management staff.

“He’s an expert in school law. Before (he was hired), I was making my best guess,” Murley said.

School board Vice Chairman Mike Wilson said the $117,500 paid Darrell annually is money well spent.

“His salary is below market value,” said Wilson, who considers Darrell’s professional expertise in school law an asset to the district.

“The cost is justified by the size of the district,” Wilson said.

Warren County serves nearly 14,000 students. With the size of the school district and the complexity of the legal issues confronted by the school board, the district could have a full-fledged legal department, Wilson said.

Murley said he has a good working relationship with Darrell and that it has been an asset to the district to have the board counsel on staff, rather than at the other end of a telephone line.

Darrell’s salary is part of a four-year contract with the Warren County Board of Education dated July 22, 2011. It runs through June 20, 2014, and is automatically renewed each fiscal year thereafter. He is subject to a yearly evaluation by the school board, a clause in the contract states. He is required to work 240 days each year.

The school board is required under the contract to pay his insurance, his contribution to the Kentucky Teachers’ Retirement System and $1,000 of membership dues to the Warren County Bar Association, the Kentucky Bar Association and the American Bar Association “unless paid by another entity.”

The school board is to pay for tuition costs for seminars Darrell might attend and $5,000 for professional malpractice insurance. He is to receive a district-provided cellphone for business use and a computer. He is also to be reimbursed for out-of-district travel and “reasonable expenses.”

Darrell said last week that he started paying his own retirement costs this year and has not chosen to bill the district for any expenses.

“I haven’t billed the district a dime,” he said.

The contract grants Darrell the same number of annual sick leave days, holidays, emergency days and personal days as administrators who work a 12-month schedule, and it mandates that Darrell maintain his license to practice law in Kentucky.

Spending comparisons, rising fees

The Bowling Green Independent School District, which serves just under 4,000 students, does not employ a full-time attorney. And other Kentucky school districts that are comparable in size to Warren County’s – Hardin, Daviess and Kenton – do not employ full-time attorneys and pay considerably less in annual legal fees than Warren County.

Before Darrell was hired, Warren County Public Schools paid considerably less annually in legal costs. In the five fiscal years from 2007-08 through 2011-12, the district paid a total of $199,605 for legal services through the Bowling Green law firm of Bell, Orr, Ayers & Moore.

Before serving as the Warren County schools’ legal counsel, Darrell was employed through Bell, Orr, Ayers & Moore as the legal counsel for the Daviess County Public Schools. Daviess County Superintendent Owens Saylor said Darrell was paid $130 an hour. Legal costs to the district in fiscal year 2008-09 were $6,973; in fiscal year 2009-10 they were $13,532 and in fiscal year 2010-11 they were $7,970, Saylor said.

Daviess County has about 10,000 students. Hardin County, which has about 13,000 students, paid $26,000 in legal costs in fiscal year 2010-11, Finance Director Gary Milby said. The district paid $29,000 in fiscal year 2011-12.

Kenton County, which has about 13,000 students, paid $67,945 in legal costs in fiscal year 2011-12, according to records listed online.

In a response to an open records request regarding the Warren County district’s current legal costs, Warren County Public Schools Finance Director Chris McIntyre said in an email:

“Due to the size, growth and complexity of the Warren County Public Schools, an in-house legal expertise was a logical choice. Although Bell Orr Ayers & Moore provided a vital resource, the availability to address vital issues that transpire all hours of the day, night and weekend was a hurdle.”

New role created but empty

The district has an unfilled assistant superintendent’s vacancy created last year. That vacancy can be filled only by someone holding a superintendent of schools certification.

Darrell is taking classes at his law school alma mater, the University of Louisville, to obtain his school superintendent certification.

Nine Warren County school employees, including Murley, already hold a superintendent’s certificate, according to Marcie Lowe, executive staff adviser/legislative liaison for the Kentucky Education Professional Standards Board in Frankfort.

Darrell earned his law degree in 1987. He is also a 1984 graduate of Kentucky Wesleyan College, where he serves on the college’s board of trustees. He described the desire to obtain his superintendent certification as a natural progression for him since he comes from “a long history of education” in his family.

While Darrell has neither taught in a public school nor served as a school principal, state law does not preclude him from serving as a superintendent once he receives his certification, which he said he might be able to complete by late spring or early summer of this year.

During a special board meeting June 19, the Warren County school board created a position described in the board minutes as “BOE General Counsel/Assistant Superintendent of Compliance.”

Murley asked the board to create the assistant superintendent position and said he currently has no plans to fill that position or to vacate his own job. Murley said he isn’t grooming anyone to be his successor, and when Murley does retire, the board will be charged with finding his replacement.

“I have 32 years in, and I am 55 years old,” Murley said. “I enjoy what I do, and I will know when it is time not to do it.”

Warren County has one assistant superintendent. A district the size of Warren County could use another assistant superintendent in the organizational structure, but the district can’t afford it, Murley said.

Darrell says he doesn’t have his eye on Murley’s job in Warren County at this time, but he doesn’t rule out applying for the assistant superintendent’s job once he obtains the certification.

“If I were certified and the district had the desire and I was still interested, I would apply for that position,” Darrell said.

School employees holding superintendent certificates

Nine Warren County Public Schools employees have the certification needed to become a superintendent.

Lori Ann Martin, John Dempsey, Joseph “Pat” Stewart, Kathy Goff, Ron Vinson, Reed Norris, Tommy Hodges, David “Shawn” Holland and Murley all hold superintendent certificates, according to an email from Marcie Lowe, executive staff adviser/legislative liaison for the Kentucky Education Professional Standards Board in Frankfort.

Goff is the assistant superintendent in the Warren County schools. Martin is an English as a second language teacher at Lost River Elementary School, while Dempsey is an assistant principal at Warren Central High School. Stewart is director of student services at the central office, and Vinson teaches at the Jackson Academy alternative school. Norris works in the central office as director of districtwide student services and is a former principal at Warren East High School, while Hodges is an assistant principal at Warren East. Holland serves as principal at Rich Pond Elementary.

BREAKING NEWS: KENTUCKY SUPREME COURT RULES THAT STUDENTS HAVE NO STATUTORY RIGHT TO ATTEND NEIGHBORHOOD SCHOOLS.

COURT: Ky students have no statutory "right" to attend neighborhood schools

LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) -- The Kentucky Supreme Court has ruled that Kentucky public school students have no statutory right to attend a particular school.

The ruling goes on to say that, "student assignment within a school district in Kentucky is a matter that the legislature has committed to the sound discretion of the local school board."

The decision comes as a serious blow to proponents of so-called "neighborhood schools."

Ted Gordon, the attorney for the plaintiffs' in the case, released the following statement after the ruling:

"While we will always respect the decision by the majority of the justices at the Kentucky Supreme Court, we have to wonder at the obvious attempts by JCPS to influence this decision by JCPS ever-changing student assignment plans," Gordon said. "With each new plan, JCPS has inched closer to neighborhood schools, which they realize that parents want and children need to improve the horrendous education that our children are now getting."

"All the parents in this case were courageous to take on the school system, and even though they did not win this round, they have made JCPS turn the corner, away from the outdated social experiment of busing," he continued. "Now these parents are hopeful that JCPS will start improving the education outcome for all our children."

JCPS officials have maintained that letting students attend the school closest to their home would return the community to segregation.

The court heard arguments from both sides in April, but the issue really boils down to one thing -- what does the word "enroll" mean?

Byron Leet of JCPS, said nowhere does the word "enroll" also mean "attend."

"We went to three different dictionary definitions of what it means to enroll. Not a one of those definitions, whether Black's Law Dictionary, the Oxford English Dictionary or the Merriam Webster Dictionary, tells us that the words enroll and attend mean the same thing," he said.

But Gordon, argued that it's clear what the legislature intended: "The common sense meaning applicable here is that enroll, there's no 'in,' there's no 'at,' enroll in that school is the contemplation that these children go to school where they enroll."

School district supporters warned of dire consequences should they lose.

"The schools in Jefferson County will resegregate," said Louisville NAACP president Raoul Cunningham in April. "There's no doubt. if you go back to a neighborhood concept of schools, there's no question, the schools will resegregate."

EDITOR'S NOTE: Click HERE to read the ruling.

Kentucky Supreme Court Rules Universities CANNOT Ban Guns In Glove Compartment Of A Car Parked On University Grounds, But May Do So Elsewhere.

Supreme Court says gun in car is legal at University of Kentucky By Linda B. Blackford A University of Kentucky graduate student and employee was wrongfully fired for having a gun in his car, the Supreme Court of Kentucky has ruled. In its decision released Thursday, the justices reversed a Fayette Circuit Court decision that upheld Michael Mitchell's firing after police searched his car and found a gun on UK property. The case now returns to circuit court. It started in 2009, when Mitchell was an anesthesia technician and graduate student at UK. Some of Mitchell's co-workers reported that he had a gun in his locker at work. Mitchell told UK police officers that he had a concealed-carry license and kept a semi-automatic pistol in his car, which was parked at Commonwealth Stadium. UK then fired Mitchell for violating its policy prohibiting firearms on UK property. Mitchell filed suit, saying his firing violated the state and federal right to bear arms. The circuit court granted summary judgment in favor of UK, and Mitchell appealed the case to the Supreme Court. The justices said the case presented two conflicting issues: the right to bear arms versus UK's right to prevent them on campus. In the end, a majority of justices concluded that the conflict had to be resolved in favor of the intent of the Kentucky General Assembly. "We base this on the General Assembly's explicit statement that the concealed-carry licensing statute is to be liberally construed in favor of the right to bear arms, as well as the legislature's clearly expressed policy of exempting a person's vehicle from firearms regulation," the decision said. UK spokesman Jay Blanton said officials had not yet had time to review the decision Thursday morning. Mitchell's attorney, Christopher Hunt of Lexington, was not immediately available for comment. Read more here: http://www.kentucky.com/2012/04/26/2165507/supreme-court-says-gun-in-glovebox.html#storylink=omni_popular#wgt=pop#storylink=cpy Editor's note/comment: You can read the court's opinion here. Editor's note:Read the Supreme Court ruling against UK over firing of employee over gun by clicking here.

We Congratulate McNeill Elementary School In Bowling Green, Kentucky, ( My Kids' Elementary School) For Being Named A National Blue Ribbon School.

(Bowling Green City School Superintendent Joe Tinius greets Principal Marsha Ingram as she walks the halls Thursday at W.R. McNeill Elementary School.)

McNeill school wins Blue Ribbon status
By LAUREL WILSON

W.R. McNeill Elementary School was named a National Blue Ribbon School on Thursday.

The honor is given to public and private elementary, middle and high schools where students achieve at high levels or where the achievement gap is narrowing. In McNeill’s case, it’s because of high scores on state assessments, said Joe Tinius, superintendent of Bowling Green Independent Schools.

Tinius said he’s excited for McNeill and proud of the school community.

“I think this recognition is acknowledgment of the commitment and dedication of the faculty and staff of McNeill over the years,” Tinius said.

It can also be attributed to the students and families who have attended the school, he said.

McNeill Principal Marsha Ingram said she thinks the recognition is “awesome” for the school’s students and teachers.

“It’s an outstanding honor, not just for McNeill, but for the district,” Ingram said.

She said it speaks highly of the district that three of its schools have now been named Blue Ribbon Schools. T.C. Cherry Elementary was given the honor in 2003 and Potter Gray Elementary was selected in 2009, according to a news release. Among Warren County Public Schools, Lost River Elementary was recognized in 1996 and 2005.

“I think it gives us reason to believe that many of the things we’re doing in our elementary schools are having an impact on students,” Tinius said.

McNeill is one of 305 schools in the nation to be honored this year, and one of just six in the state, according to the news release. Kentucky’s commissioner of education nominates schools in the spring, and when test scores and No Child Left Behind results are determined, the U.S. secretary of education decides which schools receive a Blue Ribbon.

The recognition sets high expectations at the school from now on, Tinius said. However, he’s confident that McNeill will continue to excel.

Ingram said she’s proud of her staff and students, and knows they’ll keep doing well.

“We have always been a school of excellence, and we’ll continue to do what we’ve always done - meet the needs of our students,” Ingram said.

Congratulations To Swarthmore College On Being Ranked Number 3 Best College In The Nation By U. S. News And World Report. A Well Deserved Honor.

Check out the rankings here.

Notice University Of Louisville is ranked PATHETICALLY at number 164 in national ranking.

David Williams Takes Steve Beshear To Task Over Public Prayer.

David Williams calls on Gov. Steve Beshear to defend public prayer
Written by ROGER ALFORD

FRANKFORT, Ky. — Questions in a rural southeastern Kentucky school district over whether ministers should be allowed to lead public prayers at athletic events spilled over into the governor’s race Friday after an email surfaced showing a state government bureaucrat was the one who advised against the practice.

In the email, Kentucky Department of Education attorney Amy Peabody advised the Bell County school district that she believes allowing Christian prayers at the beginning of football games is unconstitutional. She advised the district to “cease this activity immediately.”

Republican gubernatorial candidate David Williams criticized Democratic Gov. Steve Beshear for not getting involved. Williams, the state Senate president, is one of two candidates running against Beshear in the Nov. 8 election.

“I call on Gov. Beshear to denounce this attack on prayer at public functions and lead the efforts of state government to defend our citizens’ right to voluntarily pray anywhere they choose,” Williams said in a statement.

Beshear spokeswoman Kerri Richardson had no immediate comment.

Bell County schools Superintendent George Thompson said last week that the public prayers had been halted after receiving a complaint from the Freedom From Religion Foundation. Local pastors had been invited to lead the prayers over loudspeakers in the stadium.

Thompson said previous court rulings made him believe the county would lose a legal battle if the matter went to court.

Williams, a darling of the state’s social conservatives for his stands against abortion and gambling, said in a statement that he considers it “a travesty” that Beshear has remained silent on the issue.

“Steve Beshear has a troubling history of failing to protect our precious freedom of religion,” Williams said. “As attorney general, he ruled that posting the Ten Commandments in classrooms was unconstitutional. As governor, he decided to call the state’s Christmas tree a ‘holiday tree.’ And now his administration has advised the Bell County school system to end the tradition of praying before football games.”

Courier Journal Editorial Criticizes JCPS Student Assignment Court Hearing. So Why Am I Not Surprised? WINK.

JCPS student assignment hearing off point

The Kentucky Court of Appeals hearing Wednesday on the legality of the Jefferson County Public Schools student assignment plan was a deplorable display of inappropriate judicial conduct.

Presiding Judge Kelly Thompson urged the district to drop its voluntary diversity plan as a failed “social experiment” and said the county needs to return to neighborhood schools.

Say what? First of all, that’s an insultingly dismissive description of an intensive — and court-ordered — effort of more than 35 years to provide equal educational opportunity to all of the county’s children, a process that has left public education countywide incomparably stronger than it was in the mid-1970s.

But the bigger point here is: Who cares what Judge Thompson thinks? His role isn’t to decide whether Jefferson County is doing the right thing or the wrong thing, or whether busing for diversity has worked or not worked. That’s the responsibility of the elected Jefferson County Board of Education. Judge Thompson’s job, and that of the court, is to make the narrow judgment of whether the student assignment plan conforms to state law.

And then there was Judge Michael Caperton, who questioned the wisdom of sending students from areas noted for low academic achievement across the city to school. Just what is that supposed to mean? It’s hard to come up with any translation other than: Keep your struggling students in the low-income or minority areas where they belong.

That said, the legal issue before the court is a tough one. The U.S. Supreme Court ruling in 2007 that struck down JCPS’ racially based assignment plan removed the federal mandate for busing. It is plausible to argue that as a consequence, a state statute that says parents can “enroll” their children at the nearest school now gives students an absolute right to attend that school.

Our hope, however, is that the courts will decide that the broader weight of state law and practices gives each Kentucky school board the power to determine what schools students attend.

No matter how the appellate court rules, and no matter whether its decision is appealed to the state Supreme Court, this important case deserves judges focused solely on the relevant legal issues.

Kentucky Court Of Appeals Judge, Kelly Thompson, Favors Neighborhood Schools In Jefferson County.

Watch video below, and read more after the video:

Ky. judge pushes for neighborhood schools
By BRETT BARROUQUERE

LOUISVILLE, Ky. (AP) — A Kentucky appeals court judge called Wednesday for the state's largest school district to end the "social experiment" of busing students for desegregation purposes and revert to neighborhood schools, stepping into what has become a high-profile political issue.

Judge Kelly Thompson said Jefferson County Public Schools should "get out of the courtroom" and abandon any plans that include having students ride school buses across the county.

"I'd like to ask that you concentrate on neighborhood schools and get out of the courtroom," Thompson said at the end of two hours of oral arguments over how the Louisville-based school district assigns students to schools. "You've got more litigation than any school district in the country."

Although Thompson made his opinion clear, the court did not rule Wednesday.

The hearing was an appeal of a 2010 decision by Jefferson Circuit Judge Irv Maze, who dismissed a lawsuit brought by parents who contend the school district must allow their children to attend the school nearest their home. Maze said state law clearly reserves for school boards the right to "determine what schools the students within the district attend."

The appeals court arguments are the latest volley in a long-running battle over how students in Louisville are assigned to schools. The school district voluntarily continued busing students to maintain diversity in the classroom after a judge lifted a mandatory busing order in 2000 after 25 years.

The court case and Thompson's comments also touch on a current political issue. State Senate President David Williams, a Republican running for governor against incumbent Democratic incumbent Steve Beshear, has pushed legislation to allow Louisville public school students attend the school closest to their homes. Williams has said the bill would empower parents frustrated by school assignment plans.

Opponents say the measure would erode local control of schools and would relegate many poor and minority students to underperforming schools.

The central legal issue is whether Kentucky's law, which says parents may "enroll" a student at the school closest to their home, also entitles that student to attend the same school.

Sheila Hiestand, one of three attorneys for the parents challenging the student assignment plan, told the judges that there's no practical difference between "enroll" and "attend" when it comes to the law.

"What we need to do is use our common sense and allow our children to grow in their communities," Hiestand said.

During arguments, there was little question which way Thompson and Judge Thomas Caperton were leaning. Judge Sara Combs, the widow of former Gov. Bert T. Combs, did not reveal her own opinion, but did not object when Thompson told Teddy Gordon, another of the attorneys for the parents, he could take the rare step and skip a rebuttal argument.

Thompson and Caperton repeatedly grilled the attorney for the school board, Byron Leet, about the necessity of putting students on buses for 90 minutes or more each day. Thompson noted that the U.S. Supreme Court, in 2007, struck down Jefferson County's student assignment plan because it called for each school to have between 15 and 50 percent minority students.

Since then, the board has adopted a plan aimed at diversity that keeps the 15 to 50 percent requirement, but no longer bases it strictly on the race of the students. It now also looks at factors such as economics and academic achievement.

"I'm concerned about an attitude ... of a school board that gives lip service to the courts," Thompson said. "You keep coming back with a 50 percent plan of quotas."

Leet told the judges that the high court decision dealt with placing students primarily on the basis of race, something the school board no longer does.

"No individual students are being treated differently based on their race under this plan," Leet said.

Caperton questioned the wisdom of taking students from areas of the city noted for low academic achievement and sending them across town to go to school.

"Rather than hire a teacher ... it's better to put them on a bus and ride them around for a few hours," Caperton said.

"Merely pouring money into a school will not achieve the desired result," Leet said.

After the hearing, Leet was hesitant to call the case a loss.

"I've been at this a little while," said Leet. "I think it's perilous business to predict what a judge will do in a particular case."

Gordon said he saw the judges' comments as good for his side.

"It was exactly what I've been saying for the last 11 years," Gordon said.

Editor's note: Click it.

Congratulations To Gatton Academy Of Mathematics And Science On Western Kentucky University’s Campus On Being Named Nation's Top Five High Schools.

Honor for high school a huge deal
By the Daily News

Being named one of the top five high schools in the country is no small honor. Indeed, it is a huge honor.

It just so happens that one of those top five high schools that were ranked recently by Newsweek magazine is the Gatton Academy of Mathematics and Science on Western Kentucky University’s campus

. Gatton was ranked fifth. It was joined in the top five by preparatory and charter schools in Arizona, Texas and Florida.

This is a significant accomplishment and a credit to the students and teachers at the relatively young but already highly regarded institution.

The Gatton Academy earned the high ranking largely because of its students - all students graduate high school and all students attend college.

The ranking says much about the caliber of Gatton Academy, which has been in existence for only a few years and was in competition with schools that, in some cases, have been around much longer.

Gatton Academy allows high school students to live on campus and take college courses their last two years of high school. Most students take advanced college courses that many college students don’t take until their final semesters of college. In 2010, Gatton’s average ACT score was 31.2 of 36 points, and of those top five schools, the academy had the highest average SAT score at 2,053.

Gatton Academy graduates gifted students who have a chance to attend some of the nation’s finest colleges and universities.

Current and prospective students realize what this ranking will look like on a college application.

This ranking should undoubtedly give these bright students much better odds of getting into the colleges of their choosing.

Those involved with Gatton Academy should take great pride in this lofty ranking. It’s a great and well-deserved honor.

Louisville Courier Journal Editorial: JCPS Board Fails To Find Sound Candidate; Search Must Resume.

Editorial: JCPS Board fails to find sound candidate; search must resume

The debacle that began one chilly night last November, when the Jefferson County Board of Education narrowly voted not to renew Superintendent Sheldon Berman's contract, has come to a crisis point with the selection of two woefully inadequate finalists to replace him.

This outcome should come as no surprise to anyone who has watched this dysfunctional, divided board at work. But the possible consequence — appointment of a candidate who cannot even comment effectively about the most significant issue facing our schools, the student assignment plan — is unacceptable. Selecting a superintendent at this moment in history — when the JCPS assignment plan is under assault and when some of its schools have been labeled “failures” by the state — is the biggest choice to face Louisville in a long time. To get this wrong could mean that our children, and all the rest of us, will pay a terrible price.
Stakes are high

Why are the stakes so high? To begin with, the desegregation of local schools has been perhaps the most difficult and important challenge this community has faced in the past 60 years. Some people literally bled to effect change; opponents of desegregation rioted in the streets, but, in time, the student assignment plan became accepted, even popular, with most local parents and pupils.

Indeed, surveys have consistently shown that the public schools here — which attract an amazing 80 percent of eligible families — are highly regarded in part because people understand the critical importance of diversity to create high achievers and to make our children competitive in a global economy. And the assignment plan is vital in a city like Louisville, which has one of the most segregated housing patterns in the nation and a sordid history of racial discrimination and inequity.

A few years ago, Justice Stephen Breyer characterized the case that overturned Louisville's race-based assignment plan (written by the conservative point man Chief Justice John Roberts) as the worst thing he had seen come through the Court in his tenure. Sadly, this is now the law of the land, and ways must be found to continue to achieve the goals without using race as the basis for assignment.

GED Program At Jail Gives Inmates Hope, And My Client Is One Of Them.

GED program at jail gives inmates hope

Some people simply take the wrong paths in their lives and as a result end up paying for their mistakes by being incarcerated, but this shouldn’t keep some of them from getting back on the right path and continuing their education from behind bars.

Some inmates at the Warren County Regional Jail are showing initiative by completing their GED program while incarcerated in the hope that they can put their diplomas to use once they are released back into society.

On Tuesday, 26 inmates at the jail received their general equivalency degree. The inmates, dressed in blue gowns and caps with gold tassels, received their diplomas in a ceremony at a modestly furnished jail library for those who completed their GED program. Eleven inmates were on hand to receive their diplomas - the other 15 have either been released or transferred to other facilities.

The experience of receiving their GED certificates had to be a very uplifting experience for these inmates, especially given their circumstances.

It should provide a greater hope of a second chance of life without crime once they are released from the jail.

Having a GED will also increase their chances of getting a job once they are back on the streets.

The inmates at the jail are fortunate to have this program and should be commended for doing something positive with their time.

Lyndell Graven, an education instructor from Bowing Green Technical College, said he estimated that about 90 to 95 percent of those who begin the GED program at the jail stay with it through graduation.

Some of the inmates said at their graduation ceremony that receiving their GED certificate gives them hope and they are glad they completed the program.

We are too, and we wish them luck. This program has given them an extra advantage to lead productive lives once they are released.

Complaint Alleges Jefferson County Public schools (JCPS) Discipline Discriminates Against African American And Disabled Students.

Complaint alleges JCPS discipline discriminates against African American and disabled students

A complaint filed Friday on behalf of six students and their families accuses Jefferson County Public Schools of violating federal civil rights laws with “vague and ambiguous discipline procedures” that punish African-American and disabled students more harshly and more often than white students.

The 26-page complaint, filed by several prominent legal organizations, including the Southern Poverty Law Center in Alabama and the Lexington-based Children's Law Center, asks the U.S. Department of Education to require the district to change its disciplinary policies.

The students and their families are not seeking money and instead want “systemic change” in the district, said Rebecca DiLoreto, litigation director of the Children's Law Center.

The changes include requiring the district to adopt training for teachers and administrators in “positive behavior interventions,” revising the school code of conduct and tracking and reviewing data on school disciplinary practices to eliminate discrimination against students.

“There is an overall question of fairness and whether the treatment of these students is appropriate,” DiLoreto said Friday. “But there is also a question about Jefferson County's overall use of discipline as a way to push these students out of school and into the criminal justice system.”

The complaint does not name the students and DiLoreto also declined to name them.

The organizations said they tried but failed to reach a negotiated settlement with the district, as they have with Fayette County. They said they are also negotiating settlements with eight other Kentucky school districts.

Jefferson County Superintendent Sheldon Berman said in a statement that the district hasn't had time to review the complaint, but was “disappointed to learn that these organizations have chosen to file a complaint after we provided extensive data and statistics that prove that JCPS has an excellent track record in dealing with discipline issues involving minority and disabled students.” ...

Editor's note: follow linked caption to continue reading the sad story.

If this happens in Jefferson County, the rest of the Commonwealth really has no hope of being in better condition for these folks!