2019 KY Governor's race: on Education
Robert Goforth:
My strong public education overcame childhood poverty
I am a product of strong public education, and were it not for the educational opportunities that were available to me, I would have never overcome the soul-crushing poverty of my childhood to achieve the American dream. I empathize with the plights
of thousands upon thousands of my fellow Kentuckians because I am one of them. I was raised by a single mom in the kind of situation where a hot meal and a roof over our heads was not always a sure thing. I had to drop out of high school to support
my family, but I earned my GED and learned discipline serving as a combat engineer in the U.S. Army. After the Army, I worked in a factory until I suffered a major back injury that sidelined me from that kind of work.
The doctor who treated me encouraged me to do something else with my life, so I decided to pursue a long-forgotten dream and I enrolled at the University of Kentucky as a 23-year old freshman.
Source: MSN.com on 2019 Kentucky governor's race
May 10, 2019
Adam Edelen:
Support teachers with pensions and more in classroom
Edelen was highly critical of politicians in Frankfort. On education, he said Democrats are playing defense against cuts to education rather than leading the way. "We must reclaim the mantle of reform back from those who don't believe in public
education," Edelen said. "You see a lot of the political class in Frankfort playing defense. Well folks, games aren't won for playing defense."He added that politicians should be doing more than protecting teachers' pensions.
Edelen said he hopes modernizing the economy and rewriting the tax code will help provide the necessary revenue to pay for Kentucky's financially-ailing public pension systems.
"Folks, protecting pensions isn't the best we can do;
it's the least we can do," Edelen said. "Merely protecting pensions doesn't change the fact that every teacher I know buys materials for their kids out of their pockets."
Source: Lexington Herald-Leader on 2019 Kentucky gubernatorial race
Jan 7, 2019
Adam Edelen:
Don't make schools profit centers for charter corporations
Too many of our school districts are underfunded or allowing resources that should be spent in the classroom to be consumed by administration and bureaucracy. There is no "silver bullet" that will solve Kentucky's education problems, but it's certainly
not the idea that we need to turn our education system into a profit center for out-of-state charter school corporations. We need a new approach to public education by embracing evidence-based strategies, new technologies, and a commitment to
leaving failed ideas behind. - Universal Pre-K Make sure students have the tools and baseline skills necessary to achieve and excel.
- Respecting Kentucky TeachersTreat Kentucky teachers like the professionals they are.
Our teachers have been insulted and scapegoated.
- Funding Education, not Bureaucracy Ensure that state dollars make their way to the classrooms where they belong, not burnt up in administrative bureaucracy.
Source: 2019 Kentucky governor campaign website AdamEdelen.com
Dec 31, 2018
Adam Edelen:
Make college affordable to the children of working families
Kentucky's students are being left behind--and Frankfort is making it worse.- Affordable Higher Education A child with the ability to attend college and put their skills to work for Kentucky should not be turned away by cost of a
higher education. The leaders of tomorrow in Kentucky need an affordable education that allows them to build a life unsaddled by decades of student loan debt. Making college affordable to the children of working families will be a day-one priority for
Adam Edelen's administration.
- Real Opportunity for Students To empower students to meet the demands of a rapidly evolving economy, Adam Edelen will work with schools, community colleges, four-year universities,
and private industry to provide students with college credit classes, clear pathways to a degree, or the skills education that will make them career ready for our rapidly changing 21st century.
Source: 2019 Kentucky governor campaign website AdamEdelen.com
Dec 31, 2018
Andy Beshear:
Committed to a world-class public education
As a proud product of Kentucky's public schools, Andy knows that a quality education and talented, invested teachers can put Kentucky's children, and our economy, on the road to success.
He is committed to public education and will ensure our schools provide a world class education for each Kentucky child, and a guaranteed, solid retirement for our teachers.
Source: 2019 Kentucky governor campaign website AndyBeshear.com
Dec 31, 2018
Rocky Adkins:
Protect public education from private, for-profit schools
We must do all we can to protect the future of public employees, teachers and public education in Kentucky. What happened to teachers and public employees in the last legislative session is inexcusable. We made a promise to teachers, public employees
and first responders, and that is a promise that must be kept.As a former teacher and proud son of a father who taught in the classroom for 39 years, I know the importance of a strong public education system.
Charter school legislation passed in the 2017 legislative session takes money from public education--from teachers and students in those classrooms--and moves it to private, for-profit schools. Charter schools can pick and choose which students they
serve, and they often don't offer programs to assist low-income students. Education is the great equalizer so we must ensure that every student, from our rural towns to our urban centers, receives the highest quality education.
Source: 2019 Kentucky governor campaign website RockyAdkins.com
Dec 31, 2018
Andy Beshear:
Don't change teacher pensions to 401(k)-style plan
The Kentucky Supreme Court's ruling against the controversial pension reform bill handed a decisive victory to Andy Beshear, at the expense of Gov. Matt Bevin, who pushed for the law.Beshear has made fighting the pension law his main priority and has
frequently advocated against it as he challenges Bevin for the governor's seat in 2019. Highlights from Beshear's press conference:
- Beshear has targeted Bevin's pension bill from the beginning, filing lawsuits in conjunction with teacher
advocacy groups. His main sticking point was that it was done in secret, by slipping the pension bill into an unrelated sewer bill.
- Beshear, looking ahead to the next legislative session, said the high court ruling will force lawmakers to be
more open with their bills.
- Beshear has said repeatedly that the "inviolable contract" of pensions, the idea that you get the benefits that you entered a job with, was harmed under Bevin's bill, which proposed a new 401(k)-style plan.
Source: Louisville Courier-Journal on 2019 Kentucky governor race
Dec 14, 2018
Matt Bevin:
Legislature should decide teacher pensions, not judges
Governor's statement on teacher pensions: "Today's ruling by the Supreme Court is an unprecedented power grab by activist judges. By striking down SB 151 based on process, rather than merit, the Kentucky Supreme Court has chosen to take for itself the
law-making power that the constitution grants to the legislature. This is very dangerous. In the long-term, this will erode the rule of law that is the foundation of our government, but more immediately, this will destroy the financial condition of
Kentucky."The greatest financial threat to the commonwealth has now been made worse by [gubernatorial opponent] Andy Beshear's self-serving, political lawsuit, and it places the retirement security of tens of thousands of our teachers and public
employees at greater risk of failure and further credit downgrades. This is unacceptable. All options must remain on the table to solve this crisis because without real structural reform, the pension system is on the fast track to failure."
Source: Louisville Courier-Journal on 2019 Kentucky governor race
Dec 14, 2018
Matt Bevin:
Proposed school cuts of $128M; legislature restored them
The state House was scheduled to vote on a new two-year, $22 billion state budget that restores most cuts to education proposed by Gov. Matt Bevin and a revenue bill that raises $250 million in new taxes on cigarettes and opioid prescription pills.
The new taxes will be in the form of an additional 50 cent tax (on top of the current 60 cents) per package of cigarettes and a 25 cent tax on each opioid dose prescribed in Kentucky. The revenue bill also raises money by eliminating a $10 personal tax
credit for Kentucky taxpayers.
The budget actually increases SEEK funding for public schools from $3,891 per pupil to $4,055 per pupil in the first year and $4,056 in the second. It also restores $127.8 million in state funding for school
transportation costs that Bevin would have cut in his proposed budget. And it spends $11.8 million in FY 2019 and $3.16 million in FY 2020 to fully fund the Teachers' Retirement System employer match, including retiree health insurance.
Source: The Morehead News on 2019 Kentucky Governor race
Mar 2, 2018
Andy Beshear:
Only legislature can implement charters, not Governor
On June 2, 2017, Gov. Bevin signed an executive order that made modifications to several of the state's education-related boards. The order modified the structure and membership of three existing state educational boards, abolished five more boards and
reestablished them under new guidelines, and created a new Charter Schools Advisory Council. In a press release announcing the order, Bevin cited the need to enforce Senate Bill 1, which had revised the state's educational standards, and House Bill 520,
which implemented a charter school system.On June 16, 2017, the Attorney General Beshear filed a lawsuit, arguing that the executive orders exceeded the governor's authority. The court ruled that a part of Bevin's executive order related to the
Education Professional Standards board was unconstitutional, since it required teachers to appeal disciplinary decisions to the state board of education instead of the state court system [and the rest were all legal].
Source: Ballotpedia on 2019 Kentucky gubernatorial race
Nov 30, 2017
Andy Beshear:
Only legislature can cut state college budget, not Governor
Beshear filed a civil suit against Gov. Bevin on April 11, 2016, which claimed that budget cuts made by Bevin violated the Kentucky Constitution's distribution of powers article. Bevin had announced a 2% budget cut to state colleges and universities.
Beshear called the decision illegal and asked the court to order Bevin to release the funds.On May 19, 2016, the Franklin County Circuit ruled against Beshear. The decision stated that the constitution did not prevent Bevin from instructing colleges
to spend less money, as he did in the executive order, but did prevent him from altering the funding they receive. Beshear appealed the ruling and on September 22, 2016, the Kentucky
Supreme Court ruled that Bevin did not have the authority to control the budgets of public colleges and universities without the legislature's approval. This reversed the lower court's decision.
Source: Ballotpedia on 2019 Kentucky gubernatorial race
Nov 30, 2017
Matt Bevin:
2% budget cut to state colleges and universities
Beshear filed a civil suit against Gov. Bevin on April 11, 2016, which claimed that budget cuts made by Bevin violated the Kentucky Constitution's distribution of powers article. Bevin had announced a 2% budget cut to state colleges and universities.
Beshear called the decision illegal and asked the court to order Bevin to release the funds.On May 19, 2016, the Franklin County Circuit ruled against Beshear. The decision stated that the constitution did not prevent Bevin from instructing colleges
to spend less money, as he did in the executive order, but did prevent him from altering the funding they receive. Beshear appealed the ruling and on September 22, 2016, the Kentucky
Supreme Court ruled that Bevin did not have the authority to control the budgets of public colleges and universities without the legislature's approval. This reversed the lower court's decision.
Source: Ballotpedia on 2019 Kentucky gubernatorial race
Nov 30, 2017
Page last updated: Dec 01, 2021
Beshear(D)
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