Helen W. Mountjoy

Helen W. Mountjoy’s passion and commitment to education and workforce development in Kentucky are evident through her long career of public service.

Immediately prior to her appointment as Education and Workforce Development Cabinet Secretary, Mountjoy was vice-president of the Greater Owensboro Economic Development Corporation, where she worked primarily in the areas of workforce development and education.

Mountjoy is no stranger to the Kentucky Education and Workforce Development Cabinet, having served on the Kentucky Board of Education for 15 years (1991-2006) and as chair of the board from 1998 to 2004. Under her leadership, the board established a new statewide assessment system and student performance standards. The board also rewrote the commonwealth’s special education regulations, instituted a single, statewide standardized student and district management system, and increased public outreach and engagement regarding state education decisions.

She served on the Daviess County School Board and was founding chair of the Daviess County Education Foundation. In addition, she served as a member of The Prichard Committee for Academic Excellence.

Secretary Mountjoy also has served on the Kentucky Chamber of Commerce's Postsecondary Education Task Force, the Partnership for Successful Schools Board of Directors and the Kentucky Legislature’s Taskforce on Teacher Quality.

Other past positions include that of program specialist for the Hager Educational Foundation; director of alumni and public relations at Brescia University; and executive director of the Owensboro-Daviess County Labor-Management Committee, all located in Owensboro.

In addition to serving as secretary, Mountjoy is a member of the Kentucky Girls STEM Collaborative Champions Board, and a member of the Board of Directors of the Kentucky YMCA.

Among many awards Mountjoy has received are a Leadership in Education Award from the Kentucky Association of School Administrators, the Distinguished Service Award from the National Association of State Boards of Education, an honorary doctorate from Kentucky Wesleyan College and an honorary degree from Brescia University. In addition, she was the inaugural recipient of the The Prichard Committee Award of Excellence.

A native of Chattanooga, Secretary Mountjoy graduated from Vanderbilt University with a double major in history and English and has done post-baccalaureate work at the University of Cincinnati and at Kentucky Wesleyan College. She has been married for 38 years to Owensboro attorney Jesse Mountjoy. They have three sons and one grandson.