📚✨ September is National Literacy Month! ✨📚
At Paintsville Independent Schools, we believe literacy is the foundation for lifelong learning and success. This month, let’s celebrate the power of reading, writing, and storytelling together!
Here are some fun ways our community can join in:
📖 Read Together – Set aside time each day to read with your child or share a favorite book as a family.
✍️ Write It Out – Encourage students to keep a journal, write letters to friends, or even create short stories.
🎤 Share Stories – Have grandparents, parents, or community members tell their favorite childhood stories.
📚 Visit the Library – Take a trip to the Johnson County Public Library or your school library to explore new books.
🤝 Swap Books – Organize a family or neighborhood book swap to share great reads.
Let’s work together to inspire a love of literacy in every student and celebrate the joy of learning all month long! 💙🐯
#NationalLiteracyMonth #PaintsvilleTigers #ReadWriteGrow
At Paintsville Independent Schools, we believe literacy is the foundation for lifelong learning and success. This month, let’s celebrate the power of reading, writing, and storytelling together!
Here are some fun ways our community can join in:
📖 Read Together – Set aside time each day to read with your child or share a favorite book as a family.
✍️ Write It Out – Encourage students to keep a journal, write letters to friends, or even create short stories.
🎤 Share Stories – Have grandparents, parents, or community members tell their favorite childhood stories.
📚 Visit the Library – Take a trip to the Johnson County Public Library or your school library to explore new books.
🤝 Swap Books – Organize a family or neighborhood book swap to share great reads.
Let’s work together to inspire a love of literacy in every student and celebrate the joy of learning all month long! 💙🐯
#NationalLiteracyMonth #PaintsvilleTigers #ReadWriteGrow
🚨 2025 Safe Schools Week 🚨
The “Focus on School Safety” campaign begins today and runs through Friday! 🏫✨
This year’s theme highlights the importance of staying vigilant and taking proactive steps to keep our schools safe, secure, and nurturing for every student.
👉 We encourage all students, staff, and parents to celebrate school safety by taking the Focus on School Safety Pledge today!
Take the pledge here: https://kycss.org/safe-schools-week/safety-week-pledge/
Together, we can build a stronger, safer learning environment for everyone. 💙🐯
#SafeSchoolsWeek #FocusOnSchoolSafety #PaintsvilleTigers
The “Focus on School Safety” campaign begins today and runs through Friday! 🏫✨
This year’s theme highlights the importance of staying vigilant and taking proactive steps to keep our schools safe, secure, and nurturing for every student.
👉 We encourage all students, staff, and parents to celebrate school safety by taking the Focus on School Safety Pledge today!
Take the pledge here: https://kycss.org/safe-schools-week/safety-week-pledge/
Together, we can build a stronger, safer learning environment for everyone. 💙🐯
#SafeSchoolsWeek #FocusOnSchoolSafety #PaintsvilleTigers
📢 Reminder for Parents
There will be an early release on Wednesday, October 1 due to vendor setup on the streets around our school buildings. Please plan accordingly—thank you for your cooperation! 💙🐯
There will be an early release on Wednesday, October 1 due to vendor setup on the streets around our school buildings. Please plan accordingly—thank you for your cooperation! 💙🐯
🌟 Congratulations to Paintsville Elementary’s own, Ms. Caitlin Salyer! 🌟
We are thrilled to announce that Ms. Salyer has been selected as a participant in the Connected Arts Network (CAN), a national professional learning initiative for arts educators. Through this program, she will collaborate with teachers from across the country, engage in innovative training, and bring back fresh ideas and strategies to strengthen arts education for our students here at Paintsville Elementary.
We are so proud of Ms. Salyer and can’t wait to see the creativity and opportunities she will continue to inspire in our classrooms! 🎨🎶💙🐅
We are thrilled to announce that Ms. Salyer has been selected as a participant in the Connected Arts Network (CAN), a national professional learning initiative for arts educators. Through this program, she will collaborate with teachers from across the country, engage in innovative training, and bring back fresh ideas and strategies to strengthen arts education for our students here at Paintsville Elementary.
We are so proud of Ms. Salyer and can’t wait to see the creativity and opportunities she will continue to inspire in our classrooms! 🎨🎶💙🐅
Paintsville Elementary is excited to receive a check from Food City for the School Bucks Challenge! We owe a big thank you to the Food City K-VA-T company for providing opportunities like this to support our students. 💙🐅
It’s time to register your Food City ValuCard for the 2025–26 School Bucks Challenge to support Paintsville Elementary or Paintsville High School.
Use the link below to link your ValuCard to either school and help them earn cash rewards! You can no longer link your card to schools in-store; it must be done online.
Link: https://www.foodcity.com/schoolbucks/
It’s time to register your Food City ValuCard for the 2025–26 School Bucks Challenge to support Paintsville Elementary or Paintsville High School.
Use the link below to link your ValuCard to either school and help them earn cash rewards! You can no longer link your card to schools in-store; it must be done online.
Link: https://www.foodcity.com/schoolbucks/
We are pleased to welcome Ms. Kasey Tackett as our Districtwide Gifted and Talented Coordinator and Teacher. In this role, she will support the growth and enrichment of our gifted learners across all grade levels, ensuring they are challenged and inspired to reach their fullest potential.
Paintsville Independent Schools is pleased to welcome Nanci Crum as our new district and activity account bookkeeper!
Mrs. Crum is a proud 1995 alumna of Paintsville High School and we are excited to have her back on our team!
Mrs. Crum is a proud 1995 alumna of Paintsville High School and we are excited to have her back on our team!
Check out the PES and PHS lunch menus for September!
Paintsville Elementary principal Kristy Frazier and district instructional supervisor Nicki Caudill are proud participants in the Kentucky Numeracy Academy for Leaders. Today, they explored how using precise and consistent mathematics language in grades K–5 helps set students up for long-term success! #TheMathPact
Parents of gifted students are invited to attend "Chat and Chew: Supporting Advanced Learners Together" sponsored by Kentucky Association of Gifted Education (KAGE). It is a FREE, casual, and virtual lunchtime series for parents of gifted and advanced learners to connect. See the flyer for details and RSVP here: https://giftedwku.wufoo.com/forms/kage-chat-and-chew
Senate Bill 120 requires all Kentucky school districts post, in both English and Spanish, in a prominent location beginning with the 2025-26 school year information regarding child labor laws, including limited or prohibited occupations for minors as well as permitted working days and hours.
Senate Bill 73 requires Ky school districts to provide the following notification to parents and caregivers:
Senate Bill (SB) 73, related to sexual extortion, was recently passed by the legislature and requires Ky school districts to provide the following information about sexual extortion to help ensure that parents/guardians have the resources they need to support their student(s) and protect them from being victimized (KRS 531.125).
Sexual extortion, also known as sextortion, occurs when someone threatens another person – through violence, harm to reputation, or distribution of explicit material – with the intent to coerce them into unwanted actions. These actions may include engaging in sexual conduct, providing explicit content, providing money or valuables, or complying with demands against the victims’ will. These situations can cause significant emotional distress and place victims in dangerous situations. Many victims feel forced to comply because they fear the repercussions.
Below is the exact language in SB 73/KRS 531.125, followed by resources provided to support you and your student.
Sexual Extortion is defined as:
A person is guilty of sexual extortion when he or she communicates, through any means, a threat to:
(a) Injure the property or reputation of another person or commit violence against another person with the intent to coerce that person to:
Engage in sexual conduct; or
Produce, provide, or distribute any matter depicting that person engaging in sexual conduct or in a state of nudity or semi nudity; or
(b) Distribute any matter depicting another person engaged in sexual conduct or in a state of nudity or semi nudity with the intent to coerce that person to:
Engage in sexual conduct;
Produce, provide, or distribute any matter depicting that person engaging in sexual conduct or in a state of nudity or semi nudity;
Provide the payment of money, property, services, or any other thing of value to the perpetrator; or
Do any act or refrain from doing any act against his or her will.
Schools are required to display posters with resources to help young people report and seek support if they believe they or someone they know are victims of sextortion. One of the most effective ways to protect youth is by encouraging open communication with trusted adults.
Parents and guardians play a key role in keeping their student(s)safe by discussing healthy relationships and by respecting boundaries. Together, we can help ensure these children understand that sexual extortion is NEVER their fault, and that there is always someone out there to help them navigate these situations if they find that they have fallen victim to these predators.
Offenders often manipulate, groom, or trick young people into sharing images and scare them into submission. To support families, the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children (NCMEC) provides resources to help parents talk with their student(s) about these risks and take steps to remove harmful images from the internet.
What Parents Should Know About Sextortion: https://www.missingkids.org/content/dam/netsmartz/downloadable/tipsheets/sextortion-what-parents-should-know.pdf
Even if an explicit image or video has been shared, there are ways to have it removed. Parents and guardians can help young people by using NCMEC’s Take It Down tool and reporting the content to the platform or app where it was posted. For more information, visit these resources:
Take It Down – Remove Explicit Images: https://takeitdown.ncmec.org/
Our district is committed to helping you keep your students safe from sexual extortion. Please do not hesitate to contact school or district staff with any questions or concerns related to this critical issue.
Senate Bill (SB) 73, related to sexual extortion, was recently passed by the legislature and requires Ky school districts to provide the following information about sexual extortion to help ensure that parents/guardians have the resources they need to support their student(s) and protect them from being victimized (KRS 531.125).
Sexual extortion, also known as sextortion, occurs when someone threatens another person – through violence, harm to reputation, or distribution of explicit material – with the intent to coerce them into unwanted actions. These actions may include engaging in sexual conduct, providing explicit content, providing money or valuables, or complying with demands against the victims’ will. These situations can cause significant emotional distress and place victims in dangerous situations. Many victims feel forced to comply because they fear the repercussions.
Below is the exact language in SB 73/KRS 531.125, followed by resources provided to support you and your student.
Sexual Extortion is defined as:
A person is guilty of sexual extortion when he or she communicates, through any means, a threat to:
(a) Injure the property or reputation of another person or commit violence against another person with the intent to coerce that person to:
Engage in sexual conduct; or
Produce, provide, or distribute any matter depicting that person engaging in sexual conduct or in a state of nudity or semi nudity; or
(b) Distribute any matter depicting another person engaged in sexual conduct or in a state of nudity or semi nudity with the intent to coerce that person to:
Engage in sexual conduct;
Produce, provide, or distribute any matter depicting that person engaging in sexual conduct or in a state of nudity or semi nudity;
Provide the payment of money, property, services, or any other thing of value to the perpetrator; or
Do any act or refrain from doing any act against his or her will.
Schools are required to display posters with resources to help young people report and seek support if they believe they or someone they know are victims of sextortion. One of the most effective ways to protect youth is by encouraging open communication with trusted adults.
Parents and guardians play a key role in keeping their student(s)safe by discussing healthy relationships and by respecting boundaries. Together, we can help ensure these children understand that sexual extortion is NEVER their fault, and that there is always someone out there to help them navigate these situations if they find that they have fallen victim to these predators.
Offenders often manipulate, groom, or trick young people into sharing images and scare them into submission. To support families, the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children (NCMEC) provides resources to help parents talk with their student(s) about these risks and take steps to remove harmful images from the internet.
What Parents Should Know About Sextortion: https://www.missingkids.org/content/dam/netsmartz/downloadable/tipsheets/sextortion-what-parents-should-know.pdf
Even if an explicit image or video has been shared, there are ways to have it removed. Parents and guardians can help young people by using NCMEC’s Take It Down tool and reporting the content to the platform or app where it was posted. For more information, visit these resources:
Take It Down – Remove Explicit Images: https://takeitdown.ncmec.org/
Our district is committed to helping you keep your students safe from sexual extortion. Please do not hesitate to contact school or district staff with any questions or concerns related to this critical issue.
📢 Important Update for Parents & Students
In accordance with Senate Bill 19, Kentucky schools will now begin each school day with a moment of silence or reflection lasting 1 to 2 minutes. During this quiet time:
Students must remain seated and silent.
They may choose to reflect, pray, meditate, or simply prepare mentally for the day.
No guidance or direction will be provided by school staff regarding how to use this time.
We appreciate your support as we implement this new policy, designed to provide a calm and respectful start to each school day.
The specific legislative guidance is shown here:
In accordance with Senate Bill 19, Kentucky schools will now begin each school day with a moment of silence or reflection lasting 1 to 2 minutes. During this quiet time:
Students must remain seated and silent.
They may choose to reflect, pray, meditate, or simply prepare mentally for the day.
No guidance or direction will be provided by school staff regarding how to use this time.
We appreciate your support as we implement this new policy, designed to provide a calm and respectful start to each school day.
The specific legislative guidance is shown here:
Welcome back!
Paintsville Independent Schools kicked off the 2025-26 school year with a special opening day ceremony for all faculty and staff! After enjoying breakfast together, Superintendent Auxier honored our team by recognizing their years of service and presenting service pins. A great start to a new school year!
Please reach out to Clara Lauffer using her contact information below if you're interested in these in-school therapy services for your child.
Grades 6-12 PISD English teachers have spent the day learning how to use their brand new Savvas myPerspectives high quality instructional resources. They are ready to hit the ground running with their students on Monday!
📚🐾 Over the past three days, PHS’s own Mr. Rory Bialecki (and his cat, Marmalade) have been hard at work attending the American Battlefield Trust’s Virtual Teacher Institute!
From exploring cutting-edge tech like Virtual and Augmented Reality in the classroom to diving into powerful stories of history—like Clara Barton’s Missing Soldiers Office and Special Operations during the Civil War—Mr. Bialecki engaged with some of the best minds in the field. The experience even included a keynote by bestselling author Jeff Shaara!
We’re proud of our teachers who go above and beyond to bring history to life for our students. Way to go, Mr. Bialecki! 🏛️📖💻 #PHSproud #LifelongLearner #AmericanBattlefieldTrust #HistoryMatters
From exploring cutting-edge tech like Virtual and Augmented Reality in the classroom to diving into powerful stories of history—like Clara Barton’s Missing Soldiers Office and Special Operations during the Civil War—Mr. Bialecki engaged with some of the best minds in the field. The experience even included a keynote by bestselling author Jeff Shaara!
We’re proud of our teachers who go above and beyond to bring history to life for our students. Way to go, Mr. Bialecki! 🏛️📖💻 #PHSproud #LifelongLearner #AmericanBattlefieldTrust #HistoryMatters
We are thrilled to announce that Mrs. Amanda Baker, our talented Math Interventionist at Paintsville High School, has been selected to contribute to a statewide project with the Kentucky Center for Mathematics (KCM)! 🧮📝
Mrs. Baker will be writing geometry, fractions, and statistics progression content for the KCM’s “Numeracy Counts” manual — a key resource designed to support educators across the Commonwealth in building students’ foundational math understanding. Her contributions will help shape how teachers across Kentucky support mathematical thinking from concept development to mastery!
This incredible honor reflects Mrs. Baker’s deep content knowledge, passion for student success, and leadership in math education. We are so proud to have her representing Paintsville at the state level and making a lasting impact on math instruction beyond our walls.
Way to go, Mrs. Baker! 💙🐯
#PaintsvilleProud #TigerTeachers #MathLeadership #KentuckyCenterforMathematics #NumeracyCounts #EducationMatters
Paintsville Elementary’s amazing math coach, Mrs. Jessica Davis, recently participated in Cognitive Coaching® Skill Building training through Thinking Collaborative! 👏
During this powerful professional learning experience, Mrs. Davis deepened her understanding of how to support teachers’ thinking through intentional conversation. She gained strategies for:
✨ Listening with empathy
✨ Asking mediative questions
✨ Supporting reflective practice
✨ Building trust and fostering professional autonomy
These new skills will help her empower teachers as they grow their instructional practices, ultimately benefiting every student in the classroom. We are so proud of Mrs. Davis’s commitment to continuous improvement and leadership! 💙🐯
#PaintsvilleProud #TigerTeachers #CognitiveCoaching #ProfessionalLearning #MathLeadership
