Home » Kentucky Education Professional Standards Board names executive director

Kentucky Education Professional Standards Board names executive director

Has more than 20 years of education experience

FRANKFORT, Ky. (Oct. 13, 2015) — The Kentucky Education Professional Standards Board (EPSB) today announced the selection of Jimmy Adams as the EPSB executive director.  Adams has served as the EPSB acting executive director during the search process. Since 2013, Adams has helped guide the work of many initiatives of the EPSB serving as EPSB deputy executive director.

Jimmy Adams
Jimmy Adams

“It is a tremendous honor to be selected by the EPSB to serve as the executive director,” Adams said. “This board is made up of a wonderful group of individuals dedicated to the welfare and wellbeing of the children of this great commonwealth. I’m humbled to be able to work with them in the coming years and excited about what the future holds for education in Kentucky. The EPSB has an outstanding staff who work diligently to ensure that each student in the Commonwealth has the opportunity to be taught by a highly effective teacher and that our schools and districts are run by quality, dedicated principals and leaders.”

Adams, of Lexington, has worked in Kentucky education for more than 20 years. His previous experience spans all levels of education and includes work in Fayette, Woodford, and Jessamine counties as a classroom teacher and technology resource teacher. He also has extensive district-level leadership experience, having served as assistant principal, principal, director of technology, director of secondary schools and assistant superintendent.

Adams received his undergraduate and master’s degrees from the University of Kentucky and did additional postgraduate work at Eastern Kentucky University. A family of educators, Jimmy and his wife, Sally are the parents of two children, Emma, a junior at Lafayette High School  and Ellie, a 7th grade student at the School for Creative and Performing Arts (SCAPA) in Fayette County.

As executive director of the EPSB, Adams will oversee the daily operations of the agency, which was established as part of the 1990 Kentucky Education Reform Act to oversee the education profession. The board is charged with establishing standards of performance both for preparation programs and practitioners; accrediting educator preparation programs at colleges, universities, local school districts, and with private contractors; selecting assessments for teachers and administrators; overseeing internship programs for new teachers and new principals; operating the Continuing Education Option for rank change program; overseeing the alternative routes to certification; and issuing, renewing, investigating, suspending and revoking Kentucky certificates for professional school personnel.