156.405 State Textbook Commission -- Textbook reviewers.
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/ky/chapter-156/156-405A research copy — for the controlling text, always check the official state or federal source. Not legal advice.
(Effective until July
1, 2026)
(1)The purpose of the State Textbook Commission is to provide a recommended list of
current and high quality textbooks and instructional materials to local school
districts that complement the educational program in Kentucky schools; to provide
a consumer guide to schools to aid with the selection of materials; and to provide
for public participation in the evaluation process.
(2)The State Textbook Commission shall consist of the chief state school officer and
ten
(10)appointive members. The ten
(10)members shall be appointed by the
Kentucky Board of Education upon the recommendation of the chief state school
officer for terms of four
(4)years with two
(2)appointments each year, except that
every fourth year there shall be four
(4)appointments. No member shall be eligible
to serve more than two
(2)full terms consecutively. All vacancies that occur on the
State Textbook Commission shall be filled in like manner for the remainder of the
unexpired terms. The Department of Education and the State Textbook Commission
shall receive assistance in the textbook evaluation process from professionals and
lay citizens who will be referred to in this chapter as the "textbook reviewers."
(3)The State Textbook Commission shall:
(a)Select and direct the activities of the textbook reviewers who develop
selection criteria and review textbooks and programs;
(b)Develop selection criteria and evaluation forms with the help of the textbook
reviewers and Kentucky Department of Education staff to be used in the state
level review process;
(c)Approve the evaluative criteria and forms used by the commission and
textbook reviewers;
(d)Review the textbook reviewers' evaluations, and textbooks or programs as it
deems necessary, in order to select from them a recommended list of high
quality materials;
(e)Provide notice of and the opportunity for public inspection of textbooks and
programs offered for adoption and use in the public schools;
(f)Conduct a public hearing for the purpose of receiving public comment
concerning textbooks and programs under consideration;
(g)Select, recommend, and publish a list of high quality textbooks and programs;
and
(h)Publish a consumer guide and distribute it to Kentucky public schools.
(4)The textbook reviewers shall be comprised of twelve
(12)individuals for the area or
areas being considered for adoption. The textbook reviewers shall be approved by
the State Textbook Commission based on the recommendation of the chief state
school officer.
(5)The textbook reviewers shall:
(a)Develop and submit to the commission subject specific evaluative criteria to
be used in reviewing textbooks and programs;
(b)Review textbooks and programs to determine those of high quality, using
evaluative criteria and forms approved by the commission;
(c)Submit to the commission reviews and evaluative forms regarding reviewed
textbooks and programs;
(d)Attend meetings and training sessions as requested by the commission and the
Department of Education; and
(e)Ensure that textbooks are free from factual error.
(a)1. Eight
(8)of the appointive members of the State Textbook Commission
shall have had not less than five
(5)years teaching or supervising
experience in the public schools of Kentucky and shall have had at the
time of their appointment at least four
(4)years of college training in a
recognized institution of higher education.
2. Five
(5)members of the commission shall be classroom teachers
actively employed in the public schools of Kentucky as teachers in
subject field or fields for which the commission will select books.
3. Two
(2)members shall be principals, supervisors, or superintendents of
public schools or public school systems.
4. One
(1)member shall be a member of the faculty of a public institution
of higher education engaged in teacher preparation.
5. Two
(2)members shall be lay citizens, one
(1)of whom shall have a
child enrolled in a public school at the time of appointment.
(b)In recommending the members of the State Textbook Commission the chief
state school officer shall give due regard to representation from rural and
urban areas and from the elementary, middle, and high school levels when the
educational levels are included in the subject field or fields for which
adoptions are to be made.
(7)Textbook reviewers shall have the following qualifications: Six
(6)of the textbook
reviewers shall be instructional supervisors and classroom teachers in various and
appropriate grade levels primary through grade twelve (12), with experience and
training in the subject areas to be reviewed. One
(1)reviewer shall have expertise
and training in learning theory as applied to the classroom situation. One
reviewer shall be a current or former university faculty member with expertise in
the content area of the textbooks to be reviewed. One
(1)reviewer shall have
experience and training in readability and formatting of textbooks. Three
reviewers shall be parents, two
(2)of whom shall have a child currently enrolled in
public schools in Kentucky.
(8)Members of the State Textbook Commission shall receive fifty ($50) dollars per
day and reimbursement for their actual expenses while attending commission
meetings. Textbook reviewers shall receive remuneration based on the amount of
textbooks and programs to be reviewed and criteria to be developed as determined
by the chief state school officer. Textbook reviewers shall be paid one hundred
dollars ($100) per day, not to exceed one thousand dollars ($1,000) annually.
Textbook reviewers shall also receive reimbursement for actual expenses while
attending reviewer or commission meetings.
(9)The meetings of the State Textbook Commission shall be open to the public and
shall be held at least once every quarter and notice of such meeting shall be given in
accordance with KRS 424.110 to 424.210.
(10)Not later than May 1 each year the chief state school officer shall call the State
Textbook Commission into session. The members of the State Textbook
Commission shall elect one
(1)of its voting members as chairman and shall adopt
administrative regulations for the procedure of the commission. The chief state
school officer shall be the secretary of the commission.