In 2020, the Prichard Committee for Academic Excellence (Committee) urged all Kentuckians to join the work of creating a Big Bold Future for our Commonwealth, starting with a set of indicators of Kentucky’s standing in early childhood, K-12 learning, postsecondary education, and quality of life. The Committee has just released an update on that data and Kentucky’s progress, and the new evidence is a call to action for all of us. There is some good news on Kentucky’s rankings for graduation rates and voter participation, but most rankings have been flat or declining over the last ten years. As we will hear in this presentation, there’s troubling news on some indicators, including healthy birthweight, reading and math scores, median income, and life expectancy.
The Committee now calls on our whole state to respond to this hard news with fresh energy and determination. As people who love Kentucky, the Committee’s goal is to join with us and get to work on building deeper insights, deeper engagement, and deeper investment, both at the state level and in each of our local communities. We are invited to explore the evidence in this presentation and the report and join them in renewed efforts to make education Kentucky’s pathway to a larger life and a Big Bold Future for all of us.
Fellow Rotarian Brigitte Blom serves as President & CEO of the Committee, bringing over twenty years of leadership in education, public service, and policy. She is dedicated to improving the quality of life for Kentuckians through enhanced education outcomes and opportunities.
Before joining the Committee, Brigitte was director of public policy for United Way of Greater Cincinnati, focusing on early childhood policy. She spent a decade as an elected member of the Pendleton County Board of Education and served as vice-chair of the Kentucky Board of Education from 2008–2014. Her extensive background includes work in policy, research, and advocacy on education, poverty, and state budgets, with roles at universities in Ohio and Kentucky and the Federal Reserve Bank of Cleveland.
Brigitte holds degrees in economics and international studies, along with a master’s in public policy from the University of Kentucky. She was honored with an honorary doctorate from the University of Pikeville and the Karem Award for Excellence in Education Policy in 2022. Recognized as one of 50 Notable Women in Kentucky Politics in 2019, she also led the Prichard Committee to earn the Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Award in 2018.