For Kentucky’s P-16 Council, Quiet Influence Proves Best

By Alyson Klein

Frankfort, Ky.

A pioneer in state-level education redesign, Kentucky was among the first in the nation to bring precollegiate and higher education to the same table through a P-16 council. But, after nearly a decade, the state still faces significant challenges in smoothing the transition for students moving between its K-12 and postsecondary systems.

Just 71.5 percent of Kentucky students complete high school in four years, according to the Editorial Projects in Education Research Center. And only 37 percent enroll directly in college, according to a report released in December 2007 by the Denver-based National Center for Higher Education Management Systems, at the behest of the Kentucky Chamber of Commerce.

The report, which examined all aspects of Kentucky’s higher education system, including preparation, suggested that the state accelerate its work on the transition from high school to college. And it questioned whether the state’s 9-year-old council—an informal, advisory panel—is the right vehicle...