LEXINGTON, Ky. — The state Cabinet for Health and Family Services announced plans to expand its Family Resource and Youth Services Centers network with 19 new centers at schools across Kentucky, marking another step in the state's decades-long initiative to remove barriers to student learning.

Governor Andy Beshear announced the expansion of the Division of Family Resource and Youth Services Centers (FRYSC) Network, which provides administrative support, technical assistance and training to local school-based centers. Schools selected for the program must have at least 20% of their students qualifying for free or reduced-cost meals.

The FRYSC program, part of the nation's largest school-based family support initiative, aims to enhance students' academic success by addressing non-academic barriers to learning. Centers provide referrals to health and social services, career exploration and development, summer and part-time job opportunities for high school students, substance use education and counseling, and family crisis and mental health counseling.

Applications for the new schools were reviewed, scored and ranked by a panel of reviewers from the Cabinet for Health and Family Services, the Kentucky Department of Education, local school districts and various community agencies and partners, including Save the Children, the Berea Center for Excellence in Learning Through Service, Serve Kentucky, The Prichard Committee and the University of Kentucky Cooperative Extension.

The existing network includes more than 850 Family Resource and Youth Services Centers serving approximately 1,200 schools statewide, addressing needs such as kindergarten readiness, successful transitions to school and adult life, parent engagement and student achievement.