A NEW SCHOOL YEAR, SAFER JOURNEYS AHEAD
(BENTON, Ky.) – “A new school year always brings a mix of excitement and uncertainty. Younger students may be entering a classroom for the first time. Seniors are beginning their final year and considering what comes next. Parents are adjusting schedules, teachers are preparing lessons and school buses are returning to roads across western Kentucky.
For students, this year is another opportunity to discover not only what you know, but also what you care about and how you want to serve.
Public service shaped much of my own life. Before joining the legislature, I served in law enforcement. That experience taught me the value of preparation, discipline and looking out for others. Those lessons apply whether you hope to become a police officer, firefighter, teacher, nurse or another kind of public servant.
Kentucky will also need young people ready to enter rapidly changing fields.
Advances in technology and energy production, including the renewed potential of nuclear energy, will require skilled workers, engineers, technicians and researchers. These careers may look different from the jobs available to previous generations, but they share a familiar foundation: education, hard work and the willingness to keep learning.
Whatever path you choose, do not underestimate the importance of what you are learning today. A challenging class may introduce you to a future career. A teacher may recognize a strength you have not yet seen in yourself. A school activity may teach you how to lead, work with others or recover when something does not go as planned.
As students consider the road ahead, the rest of us have a responsibility to make the road to school safer.
House Bill 7, which became law this year, strengthened Kentucky’s school bus safety requirements. Drivers approaching a school or church bus with its signal lights flashing and stop arm extended must stop from both directions unless the roadway is separated by an elevated barrier or unpaved median. A painted line or center turning lane does not create an exception.
The law also allows school districts to install stop-arm cameras and strengthens enforcement against motorists who illegally pass a stopped bus. These tools can increase accountability, but no camera or penalty can replace an attentive driver. I encourage drivers on morning or afternoon commutes to slow down, put away distractions and give buses the space they need.
To our students, remain curious and open to the possibilities ahead. To our educators, bus drivers, school employees and families, thank you for helping young people find their way.
Let’s make this a year of learning, service and safe journeys throughout western Kentucky.”
