Kentucky school district express concerns over unintended consequences of SB 181

BARBOURVILLE, Ky. (FOX 56) — FOX 56 is your Homeroom Headquarters, and as more students head back to the classroom this week, every school district in Kentucky is adjusting to new laws that have gone into effect.

Chief among them is Senate Bill 181, which requires all school-related communication between students and school staff to be on an approved, traceable platform.

But some districts are expressing concerns about the unintended consequences of the new law.

In Knox County, district leaders believe that what SB 181 is trying to do and what it is trying to prevent is a good thing, but it has created several ripple effects that have required districts to figure out.

Director of District Communications & Governance for Knox County Public Schools, Frank Shelton, said the biggest unintended consequence of the law for the district was that they had to change vendors for communication.

The district now uses a site known as ParentSquare.

Key features of ParentSquare include:

• Instant alerts for families
• App access on iPhone and Android devices
• Web-based view for desktop users
• Chat-like text messaging between staff, students, and guardians
• Full visibility by the district to ensure accountability and transparency

Families who wish to allow certain communications with their child outside of the ParentSquare system, such as with a trusted coach or volunteer, must submit written consent to authorize that communication.

Shelton said for a district like Knox County Schools with roughly 4,000 students, the change cost the district an additional $11,000, for a total of $16,000 to change.

He said he and his team have been working to train staff on the platform and are ready to go for the first day of classes on Monday, but he can’t help but think about what the district could have done with that Monday if they didn’t have to change vendors.

“Districts, you know, are charged by him. Instruments they have and for these services, and they are not the cheapest, usually per student, so for a district like ours, 10,000 extra, around half of what we were already paying, that is a bus monitor, that could be an instructional assistant,” Shelton explained.

Another unintended consequence of SB 181, Shelton said, is that the law punishes the good people the district has because of the actions of a few bad actors in other parts of the state.

Shelton noted how a number of the people the district employs carry other titles in the community.

Aside from being parents, the people are coaches and volunteers.

Some even have fully separate jobs like pastors or daycare employees.

Everyone knows everyone in the community, and Shelton said, with this extra hoop, it discourages people from joining the school district.

He also said there’s been a definite learning curve for the system, manually inputting all the information for each student and family.

A process where, if there’s a mistake, it could turn a manageable situation into a big problem.

“It’s easy to mis-tap a number or a letter in the contact information,” Shelton explained. “But when you’re using this platform for everything, that one little mistake and cut off all communication with the household. If you’re at school, you have the paper copy and you can look at and say, ‘Oh, here’s the phone number.’ If you’re not at school, you’re relying basically on this platform, having all the updated information.”

Shelton hopes that when the General Assembly meets for the next legislative session in January, state lawmakers will make changes to SB 181.