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Governor Steve Beshear
Governor Beshear believes a good education is critical to the success of our Commonwealth. He is working hard to ensure every child in Kentucky has access to a quality education from early childhood education through higher education. He recently announced an innovative financing initiative to ensure student loans remain available to Kentuckians from the state’s only public, nonprofit student loan provider.
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Kati Haycock
Keynote Speaker
Kati Haycock is one of the nation’s leading children’s advocates in the field of education. She currently serves as President of The Education Trust in Washington D.C., which advocates for young people, especially those who are poor or members of minority groups. The Trust also provides hands-on assistance to educators who want to work together to improve student achievement, pre- kindergarten through college. Haycock served as Executive Vice President of the Children’s Defense Fund, the nation’s largest child advocacy organization.
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Education and Workforce Development Cabinet Secretary
Helen Mountjoy
Secretary Mountjoy will moderate our panel discussion. Immediately prior to Secretary Mountjoy’s appointment as Education and Workforce Development Cabinet Secretary, she served as Vice President of the Greater Owensboro Economic Development Corporation, where she worked primarily in the areas of workforce development and education. Mountjoy is no stranger to the Kentucky Education and Workforce Development Cabinet, having served on the Kentucky Board of Education for 15 years (1991-2006) and as chair of the Board from 1998 to 2004. Mountjoy has received such awards as: a Leadership in Education Award from the Kentucky Association of School Administrators, the Distinguished Service Award from the National Association of State Boards of Education, an honorary doctorate from Kentucky Wesleyan College, and an honorary degree from Brescia University. In addition, she was the inaugural recipient of the The Prichard Committee Award of Excellence.
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David Adkisson
David Adkisson is the President and CEO of the Kentucky Chamber of Commerce. He earned a masters degree from Harvard University in 1975. At age 34, Mr. Adkisson was elected mayor of Owensboro and re-elected four years later. He has held several statewide leadership posts including: Chairman of the Kentucky Advocates for Higher Education, President of the Kentucky Chamber of Commerce Executives (KCCE), and Chairman of the Kentucky Center for Public Issues.
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Dr. Cheryl King
Dr. Cheryl King is the current President of Kentucky Wesleyan University. She is the former Study Director for the National Commission on Adult Literacy and is an advocate for marketing and public awareness in education.
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Robert Sexton
Robert Sexton is the founding executive director of the Prichard Committee for Academic Excellence, an independent, statewide, non-profit, non-partisan advocacy group dedicated to the improvement of education for all Kentuckians. He is author of the book Mobilizing Citizens for Better Schools and founded the Kentucky Governor's Scholars Program and the Commonwealth Institute for Teachers. He also founded and is president of the Kentucky Center for Public Issues and is publisher of The Kentucky Journal.
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Gary Keller
Gary Keller was a high school administrator in Kentucky for 15 years before becoming a school improvement consultant for the Southern Regional Education Board’s High Schools That Work initiative. He is owner of Educational Solutions, providing educational consulting. Gary was named the Kentucky Principal of the Year in 1998 by the National Association of Secondary School Principals. His school, Daviess County High School in Owensboro, Kentucky was named a Kentucky Blue Ribbon School of Excellence in 1998 and 2000. In addition, Daviess County High School was designated a National Blue Ribbon School by the United States Department of Education in 2000. In 2001, Daviess County High School was named a New American High School.
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Jerome S. Bowles
Jerome S. Bowles is the founder & CEO of the Bowles Center for Diversity Outreach, Inc. Diversity Education Consulting Firm. He has earned a Rank 1 Teacher Certification & Instructional Leadership P-12 Principal Certification Level 1, as well as a Level II Certification for Instructional Leadership, P-12 Principal. Mr. Bowles serves as the current president of the Northern Kentucky Branch of NAACP.
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Michele Reynolds
Michele Reynolds is the current Principal of Lincoln County, Kentucky McGuffey 6th Grade Center. She was named the Kentucky Department of Education Highly Skilled Educator 2004-2006. She has earned B.A. and M.A. degrees in education, two Rank 1 Degrees, and is currently working on her Ed. D. in Educational Leadership and Policy Studies.
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Community Presenter Biographies:
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Eileen Pickett
Eileen Pickett is the Senior Vice President of Community & Economic Development for Greater Louisville Inc. She leads a team of professionals which helps existing companies expand in the Greater Louisville area and works to attract new businesses to the region. In community development, the key areas of emphasis include the attraction and retention of professionals to the area, amenity development, community branding, development of community recruitment programs and outreach to existing industry regarding workforce issues. Eileen has played a large part in the success of the Every1Reads mentoring program in Louisville.
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Judith L. Rhoads
Judy Rhodes is the current President of Madisonville Community College.
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Judy Moore
Judy Moore is the Coordinator of Special Projects and School Counts! at Madisonville Community College.
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Karen Cheser
Karen Cheser is the Director of Elementary Teaching and Learning for Boone County Schools. She has been a leader in the design and implementation of Northern KY’s successful Champions for Education summits, including chairing the Literacy: Help NKY Invest in Tomorrow Today event this fall. These initiatives, part of Northern KY’s Vision 2015 systemic plan, have brought together almost 1500 stakeholders to make a difference in the lives of children in the region. Prior to working in KY education as a teacher, principal, Distinguished Educator and district administrator, Karen worked for Procter & Gamble Inc. in sales and brand management in Alabama. She has served as the president of state organizations, such as the KY Staff Development Council and KY-NAME (National Association for Multicultural Education) and was a charter member of the KY Education Equity Task Force. She also trains parents and educators around the state as a KASC (KY Association for School Councils) consultant and is the founder of the non-profit ForMomsofBoys.com, an educational and inspirational resource for parents.
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