There’s nothing like a field trip to bring classroom concepts to life. Kentucky Field Trips take students across the state to historic sites, natural wonders, and high-tech facilities, covering the heritage of the state’s past and the technology of its future. Students will get close-up views of places like the Kentucky State Capitol, the Falls of the Ohio, a solar farm, and more. Support materials for the classroom include background material, vocabulary lists, and teacher-created activities to reinforce Social Studies and STEM concepts.
The Student Technology Leadership Program (STLP) empowers student learning and achievement through the use/creation of technology based solutions to school and community needs.
Students create projects, products or services to meet those needs and then demonstrate their process and learning via various STLP categories. Categories range from instructional, technical or community service based projects to digital content creation to technical services. The best projects, products and services are invited to compete at the STLP State Championship each spring.
The 2023 STLP State Championship award ceremonies were streamed and aired LIVE on KET KY on April 19.
2023 STLP State Championship Award Show
2023 STLP Digital Projects Awards
STLP on Kentucky Edition
KET Education was excited as always to participate in this exciting day. From greenscreen and photobooth opportunities to meet-and-greats with News Quiz host Kelsey Starks – who also hosted a special taping of News Quiz and the Digital Projects award ceremony – get a peek at some of the day’s events below.
The Student Technology Leadership Program (STLP) empowers student learning and achievement through the use/creation of technology based solutions to school and community needs.
Student create projects, products or services to meet those needs and then demonstrate their process and learning via various STLP categories. Categories range from instructional, technical or community service based projects to digital content creation (digital art, photography, design, programming, app development, robotics, etc.) to technical services (student help desk, network engineering, wireless deployments, etc.). The best projects, products and services are invited to compete at the STLP State Championship each spring.
The 2021 STLP@Home State Championship Awards were streamed LIVE on April 29, 2021.
The Student Technology Leadership Program (STLP) empowers student learning and achievement through the use/creation of technology based solutions to school and community needs.
Students create projects, products or services to meet those needs and then demonstrate their process and learning via various STLP categories. Categories range from instructional, technical or community service based projects to digital content creation to technical services. The best projects, products and services are invited to compete at the STLP State Championship each spring.
The 2022 STLP State Championship award ceremonies were streamed and aired LIVE on KET on April 20.
2022 STLP State Championship Award Show
2022 STLP State Championship: Digital Projects Award Show
KET Education was excited as always to participate in this exciting day. From greenscreen and photobooth opportunities to meet-and-greats with News Quiz host Kelsey Starks – who also hosted the afternoon award ceremony – get a peek at some of the day’s events below.
From the horse farm to the auction house to the racetrack, there are jobs for you in the thoroughbred business. You might find your niche in the daily care of horses, in farm management, or in sales. Maybe it’s the excitement of the racetrack that entices you. Whatever you’re looking for, Kentucky is the place for horse lovers. What’s it like to work with thoroughbreds? Watch this video to find out.
Interested? As you can see, Kentucky is the place to be for a career working with thoroughbreds. The commonwealth is home to 54,000 thoroughbreds, according to the most recent Kentucky Equine Survey. That’s 22 percent of the estimated 242,000 horses in the state. According to Bloodhorse.com, Kentucky annually leads all states and provinces in thoroughbred breeding. Kentucky-based stallions accounted for 55 percent of the mares reported bred in North America in 2019 and 60 percent of the live foals reported for 2020.
Wondering if you have what it takes? Learn more about the variety of careers in thoroughbred care, sales, and racing. Find out more about jobs in the thoroughbred industry, and jobs with horses in general, by visiting the job postings website of the Kentucky Horse Council.
Thoroughbred Care
It all begins on the horse farm. From the groom who takes care of the horses to the farm manager, everyone has a good work ethic and a passion for thoroughbreds.
Farm Operations Average Annual Salaries
Farm Manager: $60,000-$100,000.
Division Manager: $40,000-$60,000 (A division manager may be in charge of a unit of a large horse farm, such as the stallions, mares and foaling, or preparing young horses for sale. – Kentucky Equine Education Project)
Barn Foreman: $35,000-$40,000
Groom: $25,000-$35,000
Thoroughbred Sales
If you enjoy the excitement of auctions or the challenge of making a sale, this might be your dream job.
An auctioneer earns an average yearly salary of $45,000-$70,000. An announcer earns $35,000-$50,000, and a bid-spotter, who helps the auctioneer see potential buyers to keep the sale moving forward, $30,000-$45,000. A large auction may have several bid-spotters.
In some careers, people work on commission, meaning they are paid a percentage of the total sale. The consignor arranges for the horse to be sold at auction. The bloodstock agent is hired to buy and sell horses for breeding and racing, A pinhooker buys yearling horses at auction or privately, oversees their breaking and training, and re-sells them as race-ready 2-year-olds in training.
Thoroughbred Racing
Kentucky has five thoroughbred racetracks: Keeneland in Lexington, Churchill Downs in Louisville, Turfway Park in Florence, Ellis Park in Henderson, and Kentucky Downs in Franklin.
The backside is where you’ll find the hands-on work: the hot walker who takes horses out for a walk after a workout, the groom who keeps the horses looking nice, and the trainers who get them ready to race. All these jobs require licensing by the Kentucky Horse Racing Commission.
On the frontside are the people who keep the racetrack running year-round, from the track superintendent who keeps the track safe for horses to the stewards who officiate the races. Many of the frontside positions require accreditation from the Racing Officials Accreditation Program (ROAP).
Getting Started in the Thoroughbred Industry
Some people grow up learning to ride horses and take care of them through 4-H programs, FFA, or Pony Club. And some lucky few grow up on a working horse farm. But where can you go from there?
Internship
If you’re interested in management and have finished the first three years of college, the Kentucky Equine Management Internship may be for you. The program lasts 22 to 24 weeks over spring and fall. Interns work full-time at commercial thoroughbred farms, learning all about daily operations. A full-time work week is 48 hours per week with one day off. Students meet at least one evening a week for a lecture, demonstration or field trip. Students learn about horse breeding in the spring and thoroughbred sales in the fall.
You love horses but you’re short on experience. Where can you go to learn the ropes of the horse business? A new horse care apprenticeship program began in 2020 at Bluegrass Community and Technical College. While on the job, apprentices will learn or improve their skills in horse handling, feeding and nutrition, proper grooming and exercise, identification of disease or illness, basic health care and medical treatments, and facility care and maintenance. Once you finish the 2,000-hour apprenticeship, you earn an industry certification from the U.S. Department of Labor.
To learn more, contact either Laurie Mays (lmays@kychamber.com) or Gary Robinson (gary.robinson@kctcs.edu).
Seasonal work
A racetrack could not get by without its seasonal workers—the clerks, judges, clockers, and starters needed for a race meet. All these frontside seasonal workers are licensed as racing officials. Auction houses also need seasonal workers to show and take care of horses through the sale.
Kentucky is world renowned for its thoroughbreds, and as you might expect, many of the universities in the state offer equine studies.
University of Kentucky, Lexington: Bachelor’s degree in equine science and management. Master’s and doctoral degrees in veterinary science with a general emphasis on the horse.
Midway University: Located on a 200-acre horse farm in Woodford County. Bachelor’s degree in equine studies (concentrations in equine management, equine rehabilitation, and science); MBA with an equine studies concentration.
Asbury University, Wilmore: The only university in the country with a student-conducted police horse training program. Bachelor’s degree in equine studies, with concentrations in management, training, science, or equine-assisted activities (facilitated mental health). Bachelor’s degree in equine science (pre-veterinary medicine track).
University of Louisville, Louisville: Undergraduate degree in equine business through its business college;. Online horse racing industry business certificate, for those who already have a bachelor’s degree.
Bluegrass Community and Technical College, Lexington: The only community college in the country offering a racehorse riding certificate. The North American Racing Academy at BCTC was founded in 2006 by Hall of Fame jockey Chris McCarron. Two-year associate degree in equine studies; and certificates in equine industry workforce, exercise rider, and veterinary assistant.
Georgetown College: Equine Scholars Program allows students to apply the skills from any major to the equine industry. The college’s equestrian team is open to anyone, experienced or not.
Designed to inspire creative and engaging student learning, Activate! Shorts for Digital Learning pairs a variety of rich resources from PBS LearningMedia with common digital tools to amp up student engagement and learning across content areas in a quick, easy to digest video format. The ever-growing series is available on KET Education’s YouTube page.
Topics include:
Sorting and Graphing with Stop Motion Animation
Art Design and Travel Ads with Canva
Using Evidence to Support a Claim with Google Jamboard
Capturing Angles in Art and Life with Basic Photography
Analyzing Literary Tone with Adobe Spark and Google Jamboard
Social Emotional Learning with Book Creator
Deciphering News vs Opinion with Infographics
You can find even more great ideas for combining the content within PBS LearningMedia and popular, interactive digital tools with the PBS LearningMedia + Digital Tools PDF, curated by our KET Education Consultants.
Social Studies Shorts is a new series from KET that explores social studies and civics topics, from here in Kentucky to the nation and the world. Early episodes cover topics like the Kentucky’s legislature and governor, notable Kentucky women, presidential inaugurations, the U.S. Supreme Court and more.
Each episode is accompanied by activity suggestions from Kentucky educators, discussion and writing prompts, vocabulary terms and a short printable quiz.
In a typical year, hundreds of Kentucky students make the trek to Frankfort to visit the Kentucky State Capitol. Students can now take a virtual trip there, thanks to new video tours from KET.
Built in 1910, the Capitol houses the General Assembly, Kentucky Supreme Court and the governor’s office. Students will get a closeup look at the Rotunda, the State Reception Room, the legislative chambers, the First Ladies in Miniature doll collection and more.
Welcome to CAMP TV – a day camp experience in your living room! An enthusiastic head counselor, played by Zachary Noah Piser, guides “campers” as they learn through play. Content partners include the New York Public Library, the New Victory Theater, Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts, Bedtime Math, Wildlife Conservation Society, the Memphis Zoo, and more.
The series is designed for kids ages 5-10 and blends day camp and learning into one hour of playful fun.
CAMP TV will premiere June 7 on KET and air Monday through Friday at 2/1 pm.
You can watch episodes from Summer 2020 online now! Weekly episode guides with a list of the materials you need for the hands-on activities, and a host of related enrichment activities that will help extend and deepen the learning in each episode are also available at the series website.
Are you looking for ways to supplement at-home learning? Check out Let’s Learn, a one-hour program for children ages 3-8 that features science, math, reading, social studies, and the arts—as well as virtual field trips.
Tune in Monday through Friday beginning Monday, January 4 at 2/1 pm on KET. You can view the full broadcast schedule here.
The series aims to provide our young learners with knowledge and skills to learn and succeed during these challenging times. Contributors create engaging, authentic, and interactive lessons that are accessible to students from their homes. Segments can serve as introduction, reinforcement, or enrichment to material depending on students’ needs.
The Foundation of Every Episode: Language and Literacy
Literacy is vital for success in all content areas because it is the foundation of learning. Literacy builds students’ ability to listen, speak, read, write, observe, and think, giving them the skills to make meaning of the world around them, and communicate effectively in daily interactions.
The Building Blocks: Let’s Learn’s Segments
The material in each segment is age appropriate, connected to content standards, and uses research- and evidence-based instructional approaches. Most segments suggest ways students can extend their learning at home with family-friendly activities.
Let’s have fun with words! These segments target aspects of phonological/phonemic awareness–the ability to identify and manipulate words, syllables, and sounds. They also focus on teaching children to recognize the shapes and names of letters and know the sounds the letters represent.
Let’s read and write! These segments focus on building foundational reading skills by reinforcing the understanding that language is made up of sounds, that those sounds are represented by letters or groups of letters, and that as we learn how to blend sounds together to read words, we do so as accurately and smoothly as possible.
Let’s share a story! The storytime segments build a love of reading, develop background knowledge, and target comprehension and vocabulary. Students are exposed to high quality, age-appropriate books that represent a diverse range of topics, genres, people, and experiences.
Let’s have fun with numbers! These segments expand students’ knowledge of number sense and mathematic relationships. Educators incorporate everyday objects and situations to grow problem solving skills and conceptual awareness.
Let’s find out about the world around us! These segments allow students to explore community, culture, and society. The skills and knowledge learned allows students to understand and investigate important issues in the world around them.
Let’s discover science! These science segments tap into the instinctively curious nature of our young learners, allowing for observations, explorations, and discovery.
Let’s move, create, pretend, or make music! These segments bring the arts to students’ homes, inspiring them to use their imaginations, be creative, and learn about various art forms.
Let’s be mindful! These segments focus on social emotional learning. Educators and social workers lead children through mindfulness exercises to help regulate emotions, increase focus, and develop awareness of feelings.
