Update, 3/5: Better late than never, I guess. At least Ritter has finally named members to his "educator effectiveness" panel, for whatever that's worth. I don't mean to kick a man when he's down, especially when he's biked his way into the hospital with broken ribs. But it was quite the experience to open the virtual pages of the Denver Post this morning and read the lead editorial raking Governor Bill Ritter over the coals for his weak-kneed half-efforts at education reform:The governor's executive order was quite clear: Members of a panel who were to devise ways of linking teacher evaluations to student achievement were to meet on or before March 1. They have not. But don't blame panel members. Gov. Bill Ritter hasn't bothered … [Read more...]
When Will Colorado Be Ready for a New Labor Model Rooted in Freedom?
Is the United States ready for a new labor model, one more grounded in freedom of association and individual liberty? That's the central thrust of the Evergreen Freedom Foundation's new book -- Sweeping the Shop Floor -- for which I was honored to be a contributor. EFF labor policy analyst Rachel Culbertson joined me and my Independence Institute colleague Mike Krause for a conversation to whet your appetite for the book. Click the play button below (or follow this link) to listen to the 12-minute iVoices podcast: For more detail on the book's argument about how we can give workers more freedom in designing a labor model for the 21st Century and how it might work in Colorado public education and other government agencies, check … [Read more...]
Dr. David Benke: Hero
Update, 3/1: Jeffco Public Schools has posted a response letter from Dr. Benke. I think it about says it all. The story of the heroism of Deer Creek Middle School math teacher David Benke is a compelling one. A Jefferson County schoolteacher like many others who went to work yesterday, placed into an unexpected moment of high stress and great danger to those around him, he acted as we all would hope to act under similar circumstances. His initial action to stop the shooter at Deer Creek very well may have saved lives. By all accounts, he also is a man far less interested in his own instant fame than in the well-being of his students who were subjected to this violent attack. For all these reasons, it is fitting and proper to … [Read more...]
Lobbying Groups Want Taxpayers to Underwrite Their School Funding Lawsuit Against the State of Colorado
About four months ago the Colorado Supreme Court decided that judges have a role in deciding how the state's public schools are funded. In a Colorado Daily column I explained why this decision in the Lobato case was bad policy and a dangerous precedent. You also can listen to Professor Joshua Dunn bring his expertise to bear for an 8-minute iVoices podcast we recorded last October -- click the play button or follow this link: One of the big takeaways from Dunn's conversation is that most states realize the bad policy and bad consequences of adequacy lawsuits and are moving away from them. Colorado is out of sync for its courts to be sanctioning such action. So why am I bringing up the Lobato case today? It seems that the … [Read more...]
One Reason CO Loves CA: Letting Teachers Know Membership Options
It's Friday, a fun time for Colorado Republicans to zing Gov. Bill Ritter for declaring February 12 "Colorado Loves California Day." I get the humor of all the possibilities. It was last year about this time I made the same point. But I want to take a different tack, and point out one small reason to love California: Larry Sand and the California Teachers Empowerment Network (CTEN) -- which very recently was featured in Townhall magazine for its success in letting Golden State teachers know about their various membership options. Yes, Colorado loves California in this regard, because we too through the Independence Institute have the Independent Teachers website, which lets teachers in our own backyard know about their membership … [Read more...]
Dem Priorities Fiddling with Tax Credits: Undercut, Don’t Empower, Families
Todd Engdahl at Ed News Colorado reported Friday on two educational tax credit bills (HB 1295 and HB 1296) being introduced in the legislature, and closed with this comment:While the proposals could make for interesting debate, they’re expected to fail for three reasons: 1) Democrats control the legislature, 2) the education lobby, and 3) most lawmakers don’t want to fiddle with school finance or tax credits when the state budget is in the tank. [emphasis added] The first two reasons are rather straightforward. Of course, Democrats don't want to devolve power from the education establishment. And of course, the iron triangle of CEA, CASE and CASB would oppose the slightest effort to grant authentic private school choice to taxpaying … [Read more...]
On TV at 8:30 PM Tonight to Discuss Public School Financial Transparency
Tonight (Friday) at 8:30 PM on Denver's KBDI Channel 12, you can watch me make a guest appearance on Independent Thinking with host Jon Caldara. The topic? Jefferson County Public Schools' new, front-of-the-pack financial transparency website. For more -- including my podcast interview with fellow guest, Jeffco CFO Lorie Gillis, and my new paper on the topic of school financial transparency -- please visit Ed Is Watching. The lonely Friday crowd can make your popcorn in plenty of time for tonight's 8:30 showing. For everyone else, get your TiVos/recorders ready or watch the episode re-air on Monday, 1:30 PM, on KBDI. … [Read more...]
Colo. Senate GOP Unveils Alternative to Tax Hikes without Further K-12 Cuts
Within the past hour Colorado Senate Republicans have unveiled a sensible, taxpayer-friendly alternative to the Democrats' efforts to ram through the "dirty dozen" tax hikes. From the press release:Republicans in the Colorado Senate today unveiled a proposal to reduce government spending as an alternative to the Democrats’ plan to raise taxes on the businesses and citizens of Colorado. “Democrats keep saying that in order to balance the budget ‘everything is on the table,’” said Sen. Kevin Lundberg, R-Berthoud. “Republicans want to make sure that a reduction in government spending is on the table and thoroughly debated before we raise taxes.” The GOP proposal includes a 0.25 percent reduction in state payroll spending for the … [Read more...]
Colorado Legislators Advance Modest School Spending Transparency Bill
Last Thursday afternoon I testified before the House Education Committee at the State Capitol on House Bill 1036 and what effective public school financial transparency should look like. The best coverage came from the Colorado News Agency:HB 1036, called the Public School Financial Transparency Act, contains many of the same provisions as last year’s all-GOP effort by Rep. Amy Stephens, R-Colorado Springs, and Sen. Ted Harvey, R- Highlands Ranch. That bill died on a party-line vote in the same committee. Stephens, who also is a co-sponsor on the new bill, and Harvey have reintroduced their bill again this year as Senate Bill 91, which they say would provide an easier way for people to search for and use data in a more meaningful way while … [Read more...]
State-Level Education Tax Credits Merit Place Near Top of Pro-Liberty Agenda
While we're busy waging battle on the defensive fronts against Obama Care and cap-and-trade and card check, pro-liberty forces also would be wise in 2010 to continue looking for opportunities to go on offense. Writing at the Washington Examiner, Michael Barone makes at least one point that deserves the attention of activists, strategists and officials:[Tech entrepreneur Jim] Manzi, citing models in Sweden and the Netherlands, calls for "the creation of a real marketplace among ever more deregulated publicly financed schools -- a market in which funding follows students, and far broader discretion is permitted to those who actually teach and manage in our schools." Democrats are prevented by their teacher union paymasters from pursuing … [Read more...]
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