{"data":{"id":"us-ky/krs-158.200","jurisdiction":"us-ky","citation":"KRS 158.200","heading":"Moral instruction -- Conditions -- Quarterly reports.","body":"(1) The boards of education of local school districts may provide an opportunity for\npupils to attend moral instruction in their jurisdiction, in the manner provided in this\nsection.\n(2) (a) Local boards of education shall allow pupils to be excused for up to one (1)\nhour on no more than one (1) day each week, which shall include time\nattributed to travel to and from, to attend a district -approved request for a\nmoral instruction offering upon receiving the consent of the pupil's parent or\nguardian.\n(b) Moral instruction provided under this section shall not take place on school\nproperty.\n(c) Pupil participation in moral instruction shall be voluntary and free from\ncoercion by school personnel.\n(d) Moral instruction shall be given without expense to any local boa rd of\neducation above de minimis administrative expenses incurred in carrying out\nthis section.\n(3) An individual, organization, entity, or any combination thereof seeking to provide a\nmoral instruction offering for pupils shall submit a written, signed re quest to the\nlocal board of education of a school district regarding the proposed moral\ninstruction offering. The request shall include:\n(a) Contact information for the primary individual who will be providing the\nmoral instruction, as well as all other in dividuals who may be transporting\npupils or providing moral instruction to students through the offering;\n(b) A statement acknowledging and agreeing to be bound by the requirements\nplaced upon moral instruction offerings under this section;\n(c) The address or a description of the location where the moral instruction will\nbe provided;\n(d) A transportation plan to ensure the safety of pupils while traveling to and\nfrom moral instruction within the allotted time period;\n(e) A statement acknowledging and agreeing to inform the parent or guardian of a\nparticipating pupil that the school district and its employees and agents shall\nnot incur any liability as a result of any injury sustained by the pupil related to\nparticipation in the moral instruction offering;\n(f) A statement acknowledging and agreeing to indemnify and hold harmless the\nschool district and its employees and agents against any claims relating to the\nmoral instruction offering or transportation to or from the offering; and\n(g) Proof of in surance coverage to be carried by the provider that shall include\nadequate insurance for liability, property loss, and personal injury of students\nrelated to the moral instruction offering or transportation to or from the\noffering.\n(4) (a) Upon receipt of a request under subsection (3) of this section, the local board\nof education may make arrangements with the person seeking to provide the\nmoral instruction offering as the local board deems necessary.\n(b) Upon approval by the local board of a request under  this section, the\nsuperintendent of the school district shall require each individual identified in\nthe request to submit to a national and state criminal history background\ncheck by the Department of Kentucky State Police and the Federal Bureau of\nInvestigation and have a clear CA/N check, provided by the individual,\nconsistent with the provisions of KRS 160.380(7). The individuals, or the\norganization or entity through which the moral instruction offering will be\nprovided, shall be responsible for all co sts associated with obtaining the\ncriminal history and CA/N checks under this paragraph.\n(c) As a condition of the agreement between the local board and a provider, the\nlocal board shall require that any individual identified in the request under\nsubsection (3) of this section be barred from providing transportation or\nparticipating in moral instruction offerings under this section upon receipt by\nthe school district of a report documenting a record of:\n1. Child abuse or neglect;\n2. A sex crime or criminal offense against a victim who is a minor, as\ndefined in KRS 17.500; or\n3. A violent crime as defined in KRS 17.165;\nby the individual. The prohibition shall continue until the local board receives\nan updated record for that individual that does not contain  a disqualifying\nitem.\n(5) A pupil who attends a moral instruction offering at the time specified and for the\nperiod fixed shall be:\n(a) Credited with the time of attendance as if he or she had been in actual\nattendance in school, and the time shall be inc luded as part of the actual\nschool work required in KRS 158.060. A pupil shall not be penalized for any\nschool work missed during the specified time; and\n(b) Included in calculating the average daily attendance for the Support Education\nExcellence in Kentu cky program as if the pupil was in actual attendance in\nschool.\n(6) A pupil who does not participate in a moral instruction offering shall remain in\nschool during the time when the instruction is being given, and shall take noncredit\nenrichment courses or participate in educational activities not required in the\nregular curriculum, and that time shall be included as part of the actual school work\nrequired in KRS 158.060. Students of different grade levels may be placed into\ncombined classrooms in accordance  with maximum class size allotments as\ndescribed in KRS 157.360. These courses or activities shall be supervised by\ncertified school personnel and may include but are not limited to study hall,\ncomputer instruction, music, art, library, physical education, and tutorial assistance.\n(7) A school district shall not discriminate against a pupil for his or her participation or\nnonparticipation in a moral instruction offering.\n(8) (a) Each local board of education shall submit the following information\nquarterly to the Kentucky Department of Education:\n1. The name of each applicant that submitted a request to provide a moral\ninstruction offering;\n2. The date of the application;\n3. The local board's approval or denial of the application; and\n4. If the request was denied, the reason for the denial.\n(b) The Kentucky Department of Education shall compile the quarterly reports\nrequired by this subsection and submit a combined report to the Legislative\nResearch Commission no later than December 1 of each year for referra l to\nthe appropriate Interim Joint Committee on Education.","path":["KRS Chapter 158"],"source_url":"https://apps.legislature.ky.gov/law/statutes/statute.aspx?id=56821","current_through":"Includes enactments through the 2026 Regular Session","vintage":"09/05/2026","retrieved_at":"2026-09-05T20:51:04Z","sha256":"3e425cd5e799aac3f6a44fec3f4e85a90d7d88304bc12138d77fc0f2802aaa25","source_id":"us-ky","stale":false,"prev":"us-ky/krs-158.197","next":"us-ky/krs-158.210"},"notice":"GroundRules: Original legal text. Not legal advice."}