Kentuckians have until Nov. 5 to vote in the 2024 general election. This is the view approaching the Sugar Maple Square polling site in Bowling Green, May 21, 2024. (Kentucky Lantern photo by Austin Anthony)
To help voters better understand Amendment 2, which would allow Kentucky’s legislature to steer public dollars into nonpublic schools, LINK nky and Educate NKY will host a Community Conversation next week.
The event is scheduled for 6 p.m. Oct. 14 at the Erlanger branch of the Kenton County Public Library. RSVP for a free ticket to the in-person event here, or watch live on the Link nky Facebook page.
Jorge Elorza, top left; Lauren Hodge, top right; Brigitte Blom, bottom left; Jim Waters, bottom right. (Photos provided)
Evan Millward, who was previously an anchor and reporter with WCPO-TV in Cincinnati, will be moderating the event.
Speakers will be:
Brigitte Blom, president and CEO of the Prichard Committee for Academic Excellence, a public school advocacy group that has come out publicly against Amendment 2. Before coming to the Prichard Committee, Blom was director of public policy for United Way of Greater Cincinnati with a focus on early childhood policy. Blom has worked in policy, research, and advocacy on issues related to education, poverty, and state taxes and budgets – including work for universities in Ohio and Kentucky and for the Federal Reserve Bank of Cleveland.
Jim Waters, president of the Bluegrass Institute for Public Policy Solutions, which is advocating for the passage of Amendment 2. Waters has been with the free-market public policy think tank since 2003.
Jorge Elorza, CEO of Democrats for Education Reform. In his two terms as mayor of Providence, Rhode Island, Elorza worked to engage the state department of education to turn around the city’s school system. Democrats for Education Reform was created in 2007 to address education inequality in public schools across the country. Neither Elorza or Democrats for Education reform have taken a public stance on Amendment 2.
Lauren Hodge, the director of foundational education at yes. every kid. foundation., whose mission is to promote education that empowers families, helps implement bottom-up solutions, and advances education freedoms across the country, according to its website. Hodge previously worked at EdChoice as a state director and on the Legal Defense in Education team. She also litigated for several years in the public sector in Indiana in both criminal and civil courts. Hodge and yes. every kid. foundation. have not taken a stance on Amendment 2.