U.S. Education Secretary Arne Duncan to visit Louisville

U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan will travel Thursday to Louisville, Ky., where he will appear at events focused on promoting excellence in education, expanding job growth and investing in the economy. A media availability is scheduled.

Secretary Duncan will highlight how the American Jobs Act will benefit public schools in Kentucky and provide critical resources during tough budget times. Under the Act, Kentucky would receive $390 million for modernization efforts to rebuild crumbling buildings and classes. The funding would support 5,100 jobs in Kentucky. The state would also get $406 million -- enough to prevent an estimated 6,100 teacher layoffs for one school year.

In Louisville, U.S. Rep. John Yarmuth, D-Ky., will join Duncan in conducting a roundtable discussion at The Academy @ Shawnee with state and local education officials. They will discuss the potential benefits of the American Jobs Act and the Education Department's Investing in Innovation (i3) Fund, School Improvement Grants, and TRIO programs. Also attending will be U.S. Deputy Assistant Secretary Jason Snyder, who will join Duncan to hear about the turnaround efforts of Kentucky using School Improvement Grants.

In the afternoon, Secretary Duncan will address the Association for Middle Level Education's annual conference, speaking about the importance of education reform in the middle grades. Duncan will conclude the day at the Kentucky Improving Productivity in Schools and Districts Conference, sponsored by the Kentucky Department of Education. There, he will discuss the U.S. Education Department’s education reform agenda. Kentucky Commissioner of Education Terry Holliday will also attend. The conference is a professional growth opportunity for school district administrators and other education partners interested in improving the management and operation of their schools and districts.

Duncan's trip to Louisville follows events Wednesday evening in the Cincinnati area. There, he is scheduled to participate in a Parent Town Hall co-hosted by Parenting magazine's Mom Congress, an initiative to celebrate and connect parents who have made a difference in the fight for better schools.