When will students go back to school?

After Wednesday's Jefferson County bus disaster.

If we see something, we say something.

The state urges Kentuckians to stay vigilant about safety in schools.

Others.

There's definitely a healing process here and together and work together in peace.

How Staying connected is helping veterans.

Production of Kentucky Edition is made possible in part by the KET Endowment for Kentucky Productions, the Leonard Press, Endowment for Public Affairs and the KET Millennium Fund.

Good evening.

Welcome to Kentucky Edition on this Friday, August 11th.

I'm Laura Rogers, filling in for Renee Show.

Thank you for joining us.

Students in Jefferson County are not likely to return to school before the middle of next week on the first day of school.

On Wednesday, transportation problems caused bus delays.

Some students didn't get home until almost 10 p.m..

Superintendent Marty Polio canceled the school yesterday and today so the school system could work on some of the bussing problems.

He says it's unlikely school will resume Monday.

We do know that families want to know about next week.

I believe looking at it and the things that we need to implement with our bus drivers, it could be the middle of next week.

But that's what we are shooting for right now.

We will have a final decision on that in the next 24 hours to get the parents plenty of opportunity to do that.

But we want to make sure that we do.

Without a doubt is when we come back.

Yes, there are still going to be challenges that are going to be delays.

We're working in the same system, but it's going to be much more efficient and our communication will be much better with families and schools.

And so we want to make sure we get that right before we put the kids back on the school bus again.

Superintendent Polio says a decision about next week's schedule should come by tomorrow.

He also addressed calls by some Jefferson County Republicans in the General Assembly for the district to be split into smaller districts.

Deconsolidation, if that's the right word.

And I think about the challenges that will come with that.

And so I've talked about the difference in this city demographically and socioeconomically and with the how we would split up a city so that districts would not be 100% destitute by property assessments or, you know, and I guess or very, very low property assessment and very, very high property assessment would be an enormous challenge, number one.

Number two, peeling apart how the district comes apart.

So first and foremost, if you said we got to do it in two years, every student at Emmanuel has to go somewhere else in their own district.

Every student in mail has to go somewhere else in their own district.

We have so many students who are crossing their what would be their resides or their district line.

Like, how would you possibly peel that apart?

A reporter asked polio if he planned to resign over this.

He said he will continue in the job as long as he wants to do it and as long as the Board of Education wants him.

We have a response tonight from the Kentucky state representative at the center of the latest controversy over Senate Bill 150.

The bill passed earlier this year dealing with transgender youth.

In his commercials, Governor Andy Beshear said gender reassignment surgery isn't taking place in Kentucky.

UK health care sent Representative James Tipton a letter in March saying the Transform Health Clinic had performed some non genital gender reassignment surgery in the past.

The governor questioned why the letter is just now being made public when it was sent in March.

Representative Tipton's office tells KCET, quote, Not until the governor made very false, very public claims did the chairman feel it was necessary to make the letter public.

Daniel Cameron, the Republican candidate for governor, says Governor Beshear lied when he said no surgeries had taken place.

Governor Beshear says Cameron is dragging the governor's race into the gutter with his obsession over transgender children.

As school resumes and districts throughout Kentucky.

Most districts have adopted policies to comply with Senate Bill 150.

Chris Hartmann of the Fairness Campaign says his organization will do all it can to support transgender students.

Yesterday, our Rene Shaw asked Hartmann specifically about the state's largest school district.

What about Jefferson County specifically, since they seem to have created curvy ice?

Yeah, Jefferson County certainly got as creative as any school district did.

They've created a possibility that relies heavily on a diagnosis of gender dysphoria, and I want to highlight that That does still put this out of reach for so many trans kids who may not have a diagnosis of gender dysphoria or who may not have supportive parents who can take them to a doctor to get a diagnosis of gender dysphoria.

But they can use a diagnosis of gender dysphoria with their parents and their school administrators to create a Section 504 plan that creates accommodations for them with an individual education plan, individualized education plan.

And it can allow in that plan for pronouns and names to be respected and for students to use the bathroom that matches their gender identity.

Kentucky schools have more school resource officers than ever before.

New numbers from the state show Kentucky schools have 685 full time SRO is a 66% increase since the passage of the School Safety and Resiliency Act in 2019.

The state's school security marshal, Ben Wilcox, says Kentucky is doing a good job, but we can do more.

Kentucky is a leader in school safety.

I travel the country, are talking about what we do here in the state and there's a lot of states out there that are chasing us and asking us what we're doing and how we're doing it.

It's very important to me to get that out, that we are a leader in school safety.

But going back on that is that we have had many tragedies around our state just recently.

We've had tragedies in our state, and we have to stay resilient on the compliance and also school safety.

And that includes making sure that if we see something, we say something.

We have a stop line here in the state of Kentucky, a stop tip line here in the state of Kentucky run by our homeland security.

And that's for folks.

If you see something out there that you think is dangerous in your school, if you see a kid that needs help, you use that tip line and you get that help to them.

And we will help do that.

And the stop tip line is 8663936659.

Every five years, lawmakers in Washington must pass a new federal farm bill.

It is a complex package of legislation that, among many other things, helps get food to your table.

We spoke with a Kentucky farmer and the Community Farm Alliance about how this legislation affects everyone.

FARMER Not Phyllis Jepson is a seventh generation farmer and sensing county.

Today.

He farms the same land his ancestors did back in the early 1800s.

I grew up from the time I was old enough to walk following my dad and my grandfather.

It is a large scale operation growing commodities, including corn, soybeans and dark tobacco.

The American family farm is on the decline.

Only 2% of the people in our nation today are farmers.

So we're a very small segment of the population, the small segment that feeds the country and much of the world.

Food production is not only an issue when you go to the grocery store, it's a national security issue, a nation that can't feed itself, can't stand on its own.

That's why legislation like the farm bill is so important ensuring we have an abundant and affordable food supply.

You should care about the farm bill if you eat, because whether or not you are using food assistance programs like SNAP or ABC or go into your local farmer's market or buying your groceries from Kroger, those farms still are included in the commodity programs.

Crop insurance, Jepson says.

For him, the crop insurance title is the most important, as farming is a risky business dependent on good weather conditions to produce a successful harvest.

It helps us secure financing from our own money to put out a crop.

It makes the banker feel better that we've got this backstop and we've got this safety net.

If we have a terrible drought or if we have terrible flooding.

The farm bill also offers conservation incentives to protect soil, water and wildlife habitat.

Farmers as a whole in our area and our region and our state are very conservation minded.

A lot of the cultural programs that we've been able to integrate new technology on our farm let us get a feel for new technology in the field that can help us to be better stewards of the land.

The majority of Farm Bill spending is on nutrition, including the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, or SNAP and other efforts to tackle food insecurity.

These SNAP incentive programs like Kentucky double dollars, it helps the producer, the farmer, sell their produce to those who are food insecure and those who need it.

And that stimulates our local economy.

Also beneficial to growers, the credit title of the bill covering federal loan programs they may need to support operations.

Access to capital for every farm can be a problem, but for a young farmer, someone trying to get started just brand new into farming.

Access to capital is a real problem.

We have to have programs to bridge one generation to the next so that we can keep family farmers on the land.

Jepson diversified his crops to include watermelon and pumpkins.

He says produce is not covered by the farm bill, and he would like to see it given more attention.

I believe I heard Coral say recently there are over 300 crops, different crops grown in our state.

This farm bill does not encompass all of those crops.

There is a miscellaneous title that addresses agricultural labor safety.

Jefferson, who employs dozens of H-2A workers during harvest season, says it will take comprehensive immigration reform to address farm labor concerns.

And that's a real issue in agriculture, finding skilled and unskilled workers that can fill the positions that we have to to grow and harvest these crops.

If we run out of ag labor in this country, if we don't have comprehensive immigration reform, then there is that possibility that you could go to the grocery store one day and there could be things that won't be there because we couldn't grow them due to the lack of labor.

He says meeting and overcoming the challenges of farming make it all the more rewarding.

Most farmers would tell you that they take a lot of pride in what we do and how it affects our neighbors and how it affects other people across the globe.

The current Farm bill is set to expire at the end of next month.

The first draft of the 2023 bill is expected when Congress returns in September.

Time now for an end to review of some major political news this week in Kentucky with a dynamic duo, literally.

We have with us Abby Piper and Jared Smith of Piper Smith Government Relations Boutique, the firm that also operates in Louisville and Lexington.

And we're so glad to have both of them with us today.

So let's start off right with some news about the governor's race.

A poll that came out is a Democratic affiliated poll, Public Policy Polling, that found that Governor Andy Beshear has an eight point lead over Republican challenger Daniel Cameron.

I'll go to you first, Jared.

What do you make of this?

People are going to say it's a Democratic leaning pollster.

So, you know, so what it is.

But people is very highly ranked.

And, you know, I think the governor would like to be eight points ahead, three points behind in any poll.

So it's a very good place and a strong place.

Do I think he's up eight?

Probably not.

But I do believe he's up and he's up by around probably the five mark.

And so this was there are 10% undecided, we should say, Abby.

It was a poll of 737 Kentucky voters.

I wonder if that's likely voters or registered voters or.

You know, that's really important to know exactly like who's being polled here, right?

That's right.

And, you know, I don't take a whole lot of stock in polls, especially this early, to be honest with you, regardless of who performs the polls.

I also think there is a kind of a small sample size when you think about the population of Kentucky.

So I wouldn't put too too much stock in that either.

I will say that Beshear had a good performance at PNC Forum last week.

I don't know how much that really weighs in to that.

And his campaign has got the right talking points right now.

But Daniel Cameron's ground game is strong.

And I think that there's a lot a lot of runway left to go on this.

We've got three months left.

So.

Well, and the poll also dissects, you know, President Trump's favorability and others favorables.

But it does say that governor has a 56% approval rating compared to Cameron's 42%.

And we do know, Jared, in previous polls that, you know, that seems to track a little bit, right?

I mean, Morning Consult had a poll, too, that showed that Bashir had an edge over Cameron when it comes to this.

So can you make anything out of popularity numbers as well?

I, I try to be careful with that because there's a delta between what the popularity is and what your vote shares in the poll.

And so the question is, if you can possibly get those closer or get the votes there up to the popularity, that would be that.

That's what I look at.

Yeah.

Okay.

Good advice.

We'll all keep that in mind going forward because we still have three months to go.

Right.

So Abby kind of alluded to this about who's courting what constituencies, and we've reported on this all week.

Now they both Cameron and Beshear seem to be courting the blue.

We know that several weeks ago, Republican challenger Daniel Cameron came out with his public safety plan.

The governor did so this week in his pitching for raises and kind of putting out a budget plan before he even gets reelected.

So, Jared, I have to ask you about this.

Is this kind of unprecedented to promise pay raises and other public safety measures that would be appropriations before you even get reelected, let alone have to make your address before the General Assembly?

Well, I think with what happened last budget cycle where the House introduced a budget before the governor did, is I think this is the governor getting them back and it's campaign season.

You know, pay raises to law enforcement officers always look good.

So, Abby, is this a smart move to do this?

I mean, you know, Cameron did come out with his plan and so now Beshear and he's been touting the law enforcement agencies and officials that have gotten behind him and local officials.

This is just part of that strategy.

Would you say?

Yeah.

And, you know, the first thing for Kentuckians to know is that Bashir does not have the authority to promise pay raises for state police or police generally, that the authority that lies with the legislature.

And I will say that the Republican led legislature provided for pay raises for state police in the last budget, a recent legislative committee, and the interim police state police showed up and said we've had a much better time recruiting because of those raises.

Thank you so much for that.

The really the credit, honestly, for this one goes with the Republican Party for providing for those issues to really have the authority to make that promise.

But in terms of campaigns, you know, people don't really know that.

And I circling back just briefly to the polls, we talked about a 42% approval rating for Attorney General Cameron.

You have to remember that a lot of the regular population doesn't know what the attorney general even does.

So that's another thing to consider when you think about the full picture here.

Yeah, interesting.

Good points on that.

So as we wrap up here, we want to talk about Jefferson County Public Schools and the bus debacle.

You can come up with a clever little slug or slogan, as we would call it, for this.

It's unfortunate.

So on Wednesday was the first day of school in Jefferson County, and we were watching the social media feeds even of reporters whose kids were dropped off 10th or 2/10 of a mile from their home as late as eight, nine, almost 10:00 at night.

Abbey Piper, you used to be a spokesperson for Jefferson County Public Schools.

I know you're glad you're probably not in that role right now.

We have to feel for the people who are having to deal with this, including the superintendent, Marty Polio, who did own up to it in a video message and apologized and said, we're going to get this right over the weekend.

Well, it was a crisis.

I will say that first and foremost, it's inexcusable to have elementary school students in an elementary school five plus hours after dismissal.

No.

Is showing up.

And the real flaw here was the communication.

Parents didn't know.

I heard one story of a person who had their child is at the Phenix School Discovery.

No messaging.

They called the school like the district told them to what?

The fire at 5:00 that the school messenger rolls over to the eight, seven, seven line.

So no one's answering the phone.

He got on a bus and went to the school to tell them his child never made it home.

This is a horrible situation.

Huge safety concerns, communication debacle of dramatic proportions.

And I will just say that there are significant concerns on my end for compliance with federal law and state law, but particularly federal law as it relates to individuals with disabilities.

And I think that it's definitely a good move to pause and figure out how to get this right, because it's not an error that can occur again.

You know, Jared, there are people who are calling for Marty polio, his resignation.

And in light of the fact that he just got a significant hefty raise as well.

I mean, you know, how do you manage this and what are the what is the potential fallout politically from this?

And we're already hearing members of the Republican Jefferson County delegation talk about splitting up the school district there in Jefferson County.

We can expect more of that kind of talk, can't we?

We can.

And I have serious concerns about splitting up the school district.

I want to make sure it's equitable.

It's not just, you know, downtown in the West End as one does.

And the East end is is another big school districts have this problem for districts, and especially since they switched all the bus routes.

So it's unfortunate that that happened.

But like what I haven't said, the part that's excusable.

There's no communication afterwards, no food given to the kids that are stuck in the schools.

You know, and if I had just gotten a big raise, I'd probably just put it all in a pizza.

So every school in my district.

Yeah, well, something to watch for.

We hope for a better week next week when they go back on Monday.

Thank you so much, Abby Piper, Jared Smith, for being with us.

You have a great weekend with no delays.

All right.

Thank you.

Thank you.

And I.

The Department for Veterans Affairs says 19 American veterans commit suicide each day.

An organization in northeastern Kentucky is working to change that.

Warrior Ridge is a nonprofit dedicated to reconnecting vets that served together overseas.

Its founders believe that connection is key to supporting soldiers once they return home.

I mean, as a veteran, you feel so honored to be able to serve your country.

I mean, it's the best thing I've ever done.

But at the same time, when you come home, it's just such an adjustment.

And it's kind of like when you get out of the military, you're just out.

There is no transition process.

There's nothing.

You just turn your uniform and turn your gear in and you're you're done.

You go home.

So I moved into my grandparents farm and it's a cab and it's in the middle of nowhere.

I started inviting my buddies up.

You know, my team, I went down pretty hard and my brothers are there for me.

So I started inviting them up to the farm, and I saw how beneficial it was for me.

So then I just started inviting other veterans, and then it was just so beneficial.

I was like, Man, this is what these guys need.

The first deployments I was in the invasion 2003 from 2003, and then I win 2005, 2006 to Iraq and then 2008 2009 in Iraq and then Afghanistan.

2013 2014.

You build a brotherhood.

You build a a unity between one another.

So when you when you find out, you get to be with these guys for a few days, it's it's like you haven't seen a close relative, like a close brother in so long.

You can't wait to come up here.

What happens is we nominate one veteran that we know is struggling.

By doing that, we bring their team back together.

They show up on a Thursday.

That's a travel day.

That's when the reconnection actually happens.

That's when they see each other for the first time since I mean, years.

We get them here and then Friday.

We provide, obviously, all the meals and we hang out at the creek in the summertime and take them kayaking.

And the bonfire happens every evening.

Being together out in nature, disconnected from these cell phones and being together and sitting by that bonfire over there talking.

I mean, we got out of vehicles on that Thursday and we didn't stop talking until Monday afternoon at 12:00.

We want them to stay in contact.

Our only job here is to reconnect these guys and figure out a way where they stay in contact because they have each other's backs.

We know that they proved that in the worst times.

So all we've got to do is keep them in contact.

That's it.

And it's so easy.

They leave here.

They are in constant contact.

Every day.

They have a big group thread going right now.

And just about every morning, somebody.

Hey, good morning, brothers.

This and that, you know, And they're there.

A couple of them have told me, hey, it was hard going home and readjusting, going back to work, going to normal life.

But they still have something to look forward to.

Couple days after they left here and one of the guys texted me and he said, Hey, man.

363 days in a wake up until we're back at where you Rich?

Well, there's there's most definitely a healing process here.

Get them back together, man.

Keep them in constant contact.

That way, they'll have the support system they need for the rest of their lives.

And we're going to put a dent in this suicide rate.

You watch and see.

Warrior Ridge has 40 retreats each year.

Little Women.

The Beach Boys end in August.

Taste of October Fest.

Toby Gibbs has it all.

And now we're look at what's up around the Commonwealth.

Already underway tonight is the days of the October fest.

Enjoy a taste of Germany and Maysville, a historic downtown with live traditional music, dancing and, of course, German beer.

It runs until 10 p.m. tonight and then picks up again tomorrow at 11 a.m.

The 37th annual Bluegrass in the Park Folklife Festival has started in Henderson this weekend.

You can enjoy live music, great vendors and folk life demonstrations like butter making and quilting.

This festival is packed with interesting activities.

So head to Henderson and check it all out.

If you're dying for spooky season to start, Lawrenceburg has got you covered.

Happening tonight at 8 p.m. is the downtown Ghost Walk where you can hear historical and paranormal tales and even see some supernatural evidence.

If you can't make it tonight, don't worry.

There are several ghost walks per month leading up to Halloween.

Check out this possum event, The Dog Days of Summer Festival in Auburn.

It kicks off tonight with a5k glow race and runs all day tomorrow.

There'll be crafts, concessions, bingo, raffles, carnival games and more.

No bones about it.

This festival is sure to be a blast.

If you're looking to jazz up your weekend.

The Paramount Arts Center in Ashland has the perfect night for you.

Tomorrow is the Jazz Alley event featuring the New Orleans stars.

It's a supergroup made up of world renowned and accomplished jazz artists, ready to blow you away with their amazing sound.

You can buy tickets online.

Doors open at 7 p.m. starting 8 a.m. tomorrow.

And Mt.

Sterling is the small town America Festival.

There's nothing like the charm and community of a small town, and Mt.

Sterling is celebrating theirs in a big way.

They'll be shopping, food vendors, a talent show, a5k and way more.

Check out their beautiful downtown and have a blast in this Kentucky small town.

This is the last weekend to check out Spotlight Playhouse's Little Women.

Come see this enduring classic novel adapted for the stage and explore the childhood journeys of four sisters set during the American Civil War.

There are shows tonight and tomorrow at 8 p.m.

The Beach Boys are coming to Beaver Dam tomorrow night at 730.

You can hear these American icons sing their chart topping classics at the outdoor amphitheater.

The Beach Boys know how to put on a show.

They perform more concerts than any other rock band in history.

So be sure to get down to the dam.

And that's what's happening around the Commonwealth.

I'm Toby Gibbs.

All right.

Thank you, Toby.

It is one of the most common forms of cancer and the leading cause of cancer mortality.

People who are going through treatment for advanced stage lung cancer have high needs that we don't do a good job addressing this Kentuckian is working towards changing that, and she's being nationally recognized for it.

That's Monday on Kentucky Edition.

We hope that you will join us again Monday night at 630 Eastern, 530 Central for Kentucky Edition, where we inform, Connect and Inspire.

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Have a great weekend.