Ludlow’s Mike Borchers has been appointed to a four-year term on the Kentucky Board of Education.
Gov. Andy Beshear’s appointment of the retired Ludlow Independent Schools superintendent to the 15-member board was announced on Wednesday. The Kentucky Senate must confirm the appointment before it is final, with a confirmation vote expected during the 2025 legislative session that begins in January.
Borchers will serve a four-year term through 2028 if confirmed.
The beloved Ludlow teacher, coach and school administrator spent his entire 29-year education career at Ludlow Independent before retiring after 13 years as superintendent in June. Just before his retirement, U.S. News & World Report ranked Ludlow High School as the third-best public high school in NKY behind Highlands and Beechwood and the 18th-best public high school statewide for 2024.
As a public school superintendent who grew up in the Catholic school system before attending Northern Kentucky University, Borchers told LINK nky in May that his river city district delivers the education children need to succeed.
“I think we can compete with anybody,” Borchers told LINK. “I would open our doors to any kid and they would get just as good an education as any school system – whether public or private – in our region.”
Ludlow Independent Schools had a 100% high school graduation rate for the 2023-24 school year, with 79% of those graduating with college credit, Borchers told the Ludlow Board of Education in June. Other district highlights included a 100% teacher retention rate in 2024, excluding retirements, and renovations to sports facilities, administration building and playground.
Borchers’ retirement was marked with the announcement that Ludlow will rename its football field Mike Borchers Field in his honor. He has been succeeded as superintendent by Dr. Jason Steffen, formerly the district’s director of teaching and learning.
Pending his confirmation, Borchers will succeed retired Henry County educator JoAnn Adams as representative for Supreme Court District 6 on the state board of education. Adams’ term expired in April.
Also serving on the Kentucky Board of Education from Northern Kentucky are Boone County superintendent Randy Poe of Union and former Boone County Board of Education chair Julie Pile of Florence. Both Pile and Poe are at-large members. Their terms will expire in April 2026.
The 15-member Kentucky Board of Education includes 11 voting members, seven of which are appointed to represent each of the state’s seven Supreme Court districts and four appointed to represent the state at large. Each voting member serves a four-year term. The four non-voting members include the president of the Council on Postsecondary Education, secretary of the Education and Labor Cabinet, a high school student and an active elementary or secondary school teacher.
Borchers was one of three new members appointed to the board this week. The other two new members, pending Senate confirmation, are Elizabethtown Community and Technical College President Dr. Juston Pate and Stanford attorney Paul Long. Pate was appointed to represent Supreme Court District 2 and Long was appointed to represent Supreme Court District 3.
Four members were also reappointed to the board, including board chair Sharon Porter Robinson of Louisville, vice chair Lu S. Young of Nicholasville, former Kentucky Teacher of the Year Holly Bloodworth of Murray and retired educator Steve Trimble of Van Lear.
The board appointments follow the selection and confirmation of former Lawrence County Schools superintendent Dr. Robbie Fletcher as Kentucky’s new commissioner of education earlier this year. Fletcher began his role on July 1.
The state board of education selected Fletcher as its choice for commissioner back in March. Board chair Sharon Porter Robinson said Fletcher demonstrated the leadership qualities desired by the board in a March 21 state education department press release.
“On behalf of the Kentucky Board of Education, I congratulate our newly selected commissioner of education,” Robinson said. “After thoughtful consideration of the feedback collected from numerous Kentucky stakeholders and the priorities of the (board), we sought a leader who embodies the qualities of an ambassador and statesperson, an expert instructional leader, a strong organizational leader and a visionary innovator. We are confident that Dr. Fletcher meets these requirements and are excited about the future of education in the Commonwealth under his leadership.”