JCPS students are out of school all week, but district business is not taking fall break.

Parents have three things to watch. Fall break runs Monday through Friday. The Jefferson County Board of Education meets in a special session Monday at 5 p.m. Eastern to consider the district’s working budget, property tax rates and turnaround team members for 25 schools. The JCPS Calendar Committee meets Wednesday to begin developing the 2027 to 28 and 2028 to 29 school calendars.

For parents following JCPS finances, Monday is the date that matters most. The September 22 Board action record says members voted to receive the Working Budget Update. Order 2026 141 records that action. Monday’s special agenda now asks the Board to approve the Working Budget for Fiscal Year 2026 to 27, after which JCPS says it will be submitted to the Kentucky Board of Education for approval.

JCPS Board and District Administration

Special Board meeting Monday: budget, tax rates and turnaround teams

The Jefferson County Board of Education will hold a special meeting Monday, September 28 at 5 p.m. Eastern at the VanHoose Education Center, 3332 Newburg Road. The public meeting location is Stewart Auditorium.

Board members may participate in person or by video. Members of the public may attend in person or watch the livestream. JCPS says Board meetings are streamed and archived on the Jefferson County Board of Education YouTube channel.

Monday special meeting agenda and materials

JCBE meeting livestream and recordings

The posted special meeting agenda does not contain a public comment item or speaker signup procedure. Parents should not assume the speaking rules used at a regular Board meeting apply Monday.

1. JCPS could formally approve its 2026 to 27 working budget

The Board reviewed the working budget September 22, but the official action was to receive the update, not approve the budget itself.

Order 2026 141 says the Board approved a motion to “receive the Working Budget Update for Fiscal Year 2026 to 27.” Monday’s special agenda contains a separate recommendation to approve the working budget.

JCPS lists about $1.679 billion in revenue without fund balance and about $1.811 billion in expenses without contingency, leaving a difference of approximately $132.3 million.

The district identifies about $80.8 million in nonrecurring expenses, including roughly $29.4 million in prior year obligations, $17.4 million in school and operations carryover and $34 million in one time employee stipends. After those expenses are removed, JCPS calculates an adjusted deficit of approximately $51.5 million.

That does not mean the Board is voting Monday on another $51.5 million in cuts. The figure is JCPS’s calculation of the remaining difference after identified nonrecurring expenses are removed from the broader budget picture.

There is also a follow up from last week. The September 22 agenda included the district’s $100 million Revenue Anticipation Notes, a form of short term borrowing used to finance current expenses. The Board documents identify Truist Commercial Equity as the lender and a fixed interest rate of 3.24 percent.

2. The Board will vote on JCPS property tax rates

JCPS is recommending a General Fund tax rate of 70.3 cents per $100 of assessed value on real property and 70.3 cents on personal property for fiscal year 2026 to 27.

Last year’s rates were 71.7 cents on real property and 73.5 cents on personal property.

According to Monday’s posted tax rate item, the proposed rates are expected to generate approximately $833.1 million in gross revenue. Of that, about $66.4 million would go to the Building Fund, leaving approximately $766.8 million for the General Fund.

The same Board item says the previous year’s General Fund levy produced about $756.5 million.

The tax rate itself is lower, but that does not mean every property owner’s bill will necessarily be lower. The amount a homeowner pays also depends on the property’s assessed value.

3. Turnaround team members for 25 schools return to the Board

Monday’s agenda asks the Board to approve the people conducting turnaround work at 25 Comprehensive Support and Improvement schools, commonly called CSI schools. The district says the broader turnaround plans include interventions responding to school audit findings, the people involved in the work and resources for improvement.

The schools are Atkinson Academy, Blake Elementary, Byck Elementary, Cane Run Elementary, Cochran Elementary, Conway Middle, Crums Lane Elementary, Doss High, Fairdale High, Greenwood Elementary, Hartstern Elementary, Hudson Middle, Indian Trail Elementary, Johnson Traditional Middle, Kerrick Elementary, Knight Middle, Marion C. Moore School, Olmsted Academy South, Rangeland Elementary, Rutherford Elementary, Semple Elementary, Shacklette Elementary, Shelby Academy, The Academy @ Shawnee and Trunnell Elementary.

Monday’s vote is about approving the people assigned to conduct the turnaround work at those schools, not a new public approval of each school’s full turnaround plan.

At the September 22 meeting, the Board first removed the turnaround plans from the main consent calendar. Order 2026 144 then amended the pending motion so the Board would consider the list of turnaround team members instead of approving the full turnaround plans. The posted action record does not show a later final vote on that amended item before the meeting adjourned.

Monday’s special agenda places approval of those team members back before the Board.

Calendar Committee meets Wednesday

The JCPS Calendar Committee meets Wednesday, September 30 at 4:30 p.m. Eastern at the VanHoose Education Center, 3332 Newburg Road.

The purpose is to develop proposed calendars for the 2027 to 28 and 2028 to 29 school years for eventual consideration by the Jefferson County Board of Education. The committee is advisory and cannot take action that binds the full Board.

The meeting will be conducted by video conference, with VanHoose serving as the public location where members can be seen and heard. The current notice does not list a public livestream or speaker signup process. It directs questions or comments to Melvin.brown@jefferson.kyschools.us.

What Parents Should Watch This Week

The bus stop lighting money cleared its Metro Council vote

Louisville Metro Council approved a change Thursday allowing $100,000 previously allocated for the JCPS bus stop lighting study to be used for installation of lighting improvements identified through the completed review.

The numbers show how much work remains.

JCPS assessed about 7,000 bus stops and found 1,736 without lighting. Of those, 715 are within 150 feet of an existing streetlight, and LG&E confirmed those nearby lights are working. That left 1,021 stops for additional review.

About 10 percent of those remaining stops are inside smaller cities where Louisville Metro does not have authority to install the lights. LG&E is reviewing approximately 900 remaining locations to identify the nearest utility pole, what type of lighting could be installed and what it would cost.

So the Metro Council vote does not mean a family should expect its stop to receive a new light immediately. The next useful information will be which stops are selected and when installations begin.

Families using JCPS transportation can also save JCPS Insider’s guide explaining the difference between Bus Teller and My Ride K 12.

JCPS Bus Tracker and Bus Stop Finder

Important JCPS Dates and Deadlines

Fall break runs Monday through Friday

JCPS students are out Monday, September 28 through Friday, October 2 for fall break. Students are scheduled to return Monday, October 5.

Families looking for something free during the break have an option Monday afternoon.

The Louisville Free Public Library is holding Puppets in the Park from 2 to 3 p.m. Monday, September 28 at Festival Plaza in Waterfront Park, 231 E. Witherspoon Street.

The program includes an outdoor puppet storytime and a visit from the library bookmobile. Children can choose a free book afterward. The library says the puppet show is best suited for children ages 3 to 8 and is weather permitting.

Coming Up Next

Students return to class Monday, October 5 following fall break.

JCPS school choice applications do not open until November, so those dates can wait for a later Week Ahead when families need to act.

Family Weekend

St. James Court Art Show: The 70th annual show runs Friday, October 2 through Sunday, October 4 in Historic Old Louisville. Hours are 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Friday and Saturday and 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Sunday. Admission is free, the event is held rain or shine and more than 600 artists are scheduled to participate.

National Jug Band Jubilee: Saturday, October 3 from noon to 9 p.m. at the Brown Forman Amphitheater, 1301 River Road. The free festival includes music, workshops, children’s activities and vendors.

Boo at the Zoo: Saturday, October 3 is part of the Louisville Zoo’s opening Boo at the Zoo weekend. Entry runs from 5 to 9 p.m., with guests leaving by 10 p.m. Trick or treating is for children 11 and younger. The Zoo currently lists advance admission at $8.50 for members and $14.25 for nonmembers, with children 2 and younger free. Tickets are required in advance.

JCPS Insider’s updated Louisville fall festival guide has additional October options for families planning beyond this weekend.

Louisville Fall Festivals 2026 guide

Did We Miss Something?

JCPS Insider wants to hear about public meetings, parent forums, deadlines, major school events, school choice events, district notices, significant School Based Decision Making Council activity and other confirmed information Jefferson County families should know.

JCPS Insider is an independent parent resource and is not affiliated with Jefferson County Public Schools.