GRAYSON When Carter County’s previous superintendent announced his retirement this summer, Dr. Jennifer Fraley’s phone “kinda blew up,” she said.
“To know people of Carter County were asking me to come back, it makes you feel good, makes you feel humbled,” Fraley said.
With 33 years of education experience, Fraley decided to give it a try.
Carter County named Fraley the school district’s interim superintendent in July, replacing Dr. Paul Green. Fraley had been the district’s chief academic supervisor when Green was the superintendent.
The school board removed the interim tag Thursday. The board approved a near-four-year contract spanning from Sept. 26, 2025, through June 30, 2029. Fraley’s annual salary will be $150,000.
Board member Chris Perry made the motion to drop the interim title and offer Fraley the permanent position. Fellow members Patrick Ferry, Michael Sammons, Miranda Tussey and Brooke Holley agreed — voting unanimously for Fraley, who was one of four finalists.
Fraley said the last two-plus months gave her a taste of what’s to come, and “it’s been fun,” she said.
“In the interim period, there have been things we’ve identified that we really want to tackle and work on, but they really weren’t in the lane for an interim,” she said. “There are some big-ticket items we are going to work on — instructional priorities, leadership priorities, and I really believe that communication is one of the main things.”
Fraley stressed the importance of internal and external communication in order to be transparent for the community.
“We have so many good things going on in Carter County Schools,” Fraley said. “… People in Carter County are just special. They are kind, they love their children and they’re worried about their trajectories and where their kids are going.”
Fraley, a University of Louisville graduate, began her career at Campton Elementary in Wolfe County. She was a math teacher. She then taught math at Wolfe County Middle School.
Fraley spent nine years with the Kentucky Department of Education before logging experience in district administration. She went back to KDE and worked in a split role for Kentucky Valley Education Cooperative in Hazard.
She arrived in Carter County in 2021 — the same time as Green.
Last year, Fraley was appointed as the state director of math education.
She’s thrilled to be back in Carter County, she said.
“This work — especially in the state department — took me into a lot of different districts; I’ve probably been to 80%,” Fraley said. “Carter County is a special place because any time we have opportunities for parents and the community to get engaged … they do. They’re passionate, they have ideas.”
With a school consolidation in the works, Fraley acknowledges the challenge. She said she is leaning on Jamie Weddington, former superintendent at Lewis County, for guidance. The school board hired him in an advisory role.
“I’ve learned so much from him and learned how to navigation through this landscape of facilities and operations, because (before) I have mostly been focused on instruction,” Fraley said. “He’s been amazing.”
One of Fraley’s priorities is recognizing and elevating the district’s staff.
“My biggest push is trying to make sure I’m communicating with everyone; I’ve been to bus driver meetings, custodian meetings … all Carter County staff are all important to the education of our kids,” she said.
Fraley wants to hear concerns, challenges and ideas for improvement.
“In my mind, this is an opportunity to have a lasting impact on education in Carter County for our kids and to leave things better than I found it,” Fraley said. “That’s what I really want to do.”
(606) 326-2664 |