Kentucky lawmakers want changes after 'transportation disaster' at Louisville schools

Republican lawmakers in the Kentucky General Assembly want a special session to address issues in the state’s largest school district, which canceled classes Thursday and Friday after starting the school year Wednesday.

Jefferson County Public Schools decided early Thursday morning to close schools for the rest of the week after the district’s busing system experienced significant difficulties getting kids home after the first day of classes. Students waited several hours for buses to take them home, and some did not arrive home until nearly 10 p.m.

JCPS Superintendent Dr. Marty Pollio called it a “transportation disaster” in a video statement Thursday.

“We will not be in school until I know we can get kids home safely,” he said.

The school system, which covers Louisville, started a staggered schedule this school year. Schools across the city started and ended classes over two-hour periods in the mornings and afternoons. Bus schedules were generated using software from a Massachusetts firm and designed to make them more efficient. According to Louisville TV station WDRB, the union representing bus drivers raised concerns about the routes before Wednesday, with some workers opting to quit.

Republican state lawmakers whose districts include Jefferson County issued an open letter Thursday afternoon to the community, saying significant changes are needed.

House Majority Whip Jason Nemes, a Middletown Republican, was one of seven House members and five senators to sign the letter. He called Thursday’s debacle “a clarion call for change” in a tweet Thursday.

Those lawmakers want Gov. Andy Beshear, a Democrat, to call a special session of the legislature. In that session, the lawmakers said they would pass bills giving JCPS families the right to send their children to schools in their neighborhood. They also want a study to review where the school district should be broken up into smaller districts and changes to the JCPS Board of Education, which legislators say “is not up to the task” of overseeing the district with roughly 100,000 students, making it one of the largest in the nation.

Republicans also repeated their calls for a constitutional amendment to legalize educational opportunity accounts in Kentucky.

“We strongly support putting a school choice amendment on the 2024 ballot for the voters to decide,” the lawmakers said. “We believe in funding students, not systems.”

Earlier Thursday, during his weekly press conference, Beshear reminded reporters that he does not run the state Department of Education but added he would be upset, too, with what happened Wednesday.

“It’s just critical that they move forward, that they get it right, that the kids are safe, that they can get to and from school in a reasonable amount of time,” Beshear said. “And I trust that all of the leaders will be working as fast as they can towards making that happen.”