Last night I told you about the inspiring testimony of citizens in support of financial transparency for Colorado schools. Today, it was the legislators' turn to do the damage. And damage they did:Senator Bob Bacon introduced an amendment that establishes a “voluntary pilot program†for transparency. It passed and is now on its way to the full floor of the Senate. Senator [Ted] Harvey asked to open up the bill for additional testimony since it had been altered dramatically. Bacon, chair of the committee, said no. Senator Harvey also tried to kill his own bill. Harvey did say he would bring the bill back next year. Bacon, a former educator, used words like “cruel†and “fear†to describe how school districts may respond to … [Read more...]
Coloradans, You Can Make a Difference for School Financial Transparency
Update, 1/29: More coverage on Colorado Spending Transparency and Ed News Colorado, as well as a kind link from the Open Records blog. This morning the Colorado Senate Education Committee got a bit of a surprise, it might seem, with a slew of concerned citizens coming forward to testify in support of Senate Bill 57 (PDF) (sponsored by state senator Ted Harvey) - which would bring something akin to full-fledged financial transparency to Colorado public schools. It's unusual to see more than 15 average citizens come forward to testify for a piece of legislation - and rarer yet, to have many of them do so quite eloquently. Most were from the metro Denver area, a couple hailed from Weld County, and one of them drove three hours over the … [Read more...]
Financial Transparency Makes Public Education a More “Public” Enterprise
The Colorado state legislature has been a place of little significant action lately. But one bill first scheduled to be heard in committee this week is Senate Bill 57 (PDF), which would open up the spending of school districts and other local education agencies in an online searchable database. Read about the advantages of this sort of policy change in my new Independence Institute op-ed:Colorado has a tremendous opportunity to lead the way in making public education a more truly public enterprise. School officials should place detailed and useful spending information where citizens can access it freely: the Internet. Such a simple and highly cost-effective approach promotes public accountability and transparency. Public schools … [Read more...]
“Consider Yourself” Ready to Refute Inflated Colorado Child Poverty Claim
Oftentimes big, misleading headlines can circumnavigate the globe many times over before the much more nuanced truth gets a chance to catch up. Well, here's a terrific case in point that figures to pop up in Colorado policy debates. Last June the Colorado Children's Campaign released its annual Kids Count report. Latching on to that report, newspapers from the Denver Post to the New York Times climbed on board the claim that Colorado leads the nation with a 73 percent rise in child poverty from 2000 to 2006. In case you were confused, and wondered why you weren't seeing scenes like this one in and around our great state, the Independence Institute's Linda Gorman cleared up the picture a bit for you in last Friday's Denver Daily … [Read more...]
The Detroit Lions Are Doing Something Good for the Cause of Education
Say what you will, the 0-16 Detroit Lions at least are doing something to alleviate complaints that too many top-flight college athletes are jumping ship early and skipping out on finishing their degrees. From today's Detroit Free Press:There has been speculation that the fear of becoming a Lion was one of the variables Heisman Trophy-winning quarterback Sam Bradford considered when he opted to remain at Oklahoma. It was also a consideration for Texas quarterback Colt McCoy, who'll return to the Longhorns.... The deadline for declaring for the draft came Thursday. There were surprises along with Sanchez. Mississippi junior defensive end Greg Hardy, who had 8 1/2 sacks and 9 1/2 tackles for loss last season, opted to remain at Ole Miss. … [Read more...]
Congrats to D’Evelyn JH/HS
Via the Rocky Mountain News, Jefferson County's own D'Evelyn Junior High-High School received another well-earned recognition yesterday as Business Week and GreatSchools.Net teamed up to name D'Evelyn the top-performing school in Colorado:D'Evelyn is a Jeffco public school started by a group of parents in 1994. It accepts students from across the district starting in grade seven and runs through grade 12. It emphasizes structured academics and strict discipline. The school's test scores are among the best in Colorado, and the remediation rates of its graduates attending state colleges and universities are among the lowest. D'Evelyn - named for the late Independence Institute co-founder David D'Evelyn - is a school with which I have … [Read more...]
With Bob Schaffer at Helm, State Board on Right Education Reform Path
Congrats to Bob Schaffer, new chairman of the Colorado State Board of Education (H/T Complete Colorado). Schaffer himself has graciously (and ironically) quipped on more than one occasion since his difficult defeat in last November's U.S. Senate campaign, that perhaps he ought to be flattered that so many Coloradans saw fit to keep him serving on the State Board. The State Board is a volunteer position, and is significantly limited in its policy making powers. However, with Schaffer at the helm we can be confident the Board will be a force for good in education reform. Also, along with the Attorney General's office, the State Board of Education remains the last bastion of Republican strength in Colorado. For the most part, things can … [Read more...]
Less than Independent Michael Bennet Invites Fresh, Articulate GOP Opponent
In his Rocky Mountain News column today, Vince Carroll points out that Bill Ritter's new U.S. Senate designate Michael Bennet hasn't shown much in the way of original, independent thought thus far:I've listened to Bennet speak about education issues often enough to appreciate his intelligence and what I sense is an independent mind. And I really didn't expect to see evidence of the latter in these early days. But if he's going to make a case across Colorado for his election in 2010, he'll have to prove he's his own man. And what better way to achieve this than for him to trample on a few of his own party's shibboleths? Once he's been safely sworn in, of course. Looking ahead, Colorado Republicans in 2010 need to rally around a fresh, … [Read more...]
Republican Leaders Respond to Bill Ritter’s State of the State Speech
From Colorado Senate News … [Read more...]
Bill Ritter Publicly Endorses Posting State Check Register Online
Update: Colorado Spending Transparency has a similar response about the devil being in the details. Read the post to get a sense of just what some of those details might be. Face The State's report was correct: During his State of the State speech, just a moment ago, Gov. Bill Ritter announced he would back the Republican plan to post the state government's check register online. It's good to see transparency go forward as a non-partisan effort. The governor's announcement foresees a landmark moment for Colorado government, one that promises to empower the citizens of the state. The city of Fort Collins has set the standard for transparency. With the state moving forward, too, now it would be good to see other local governments - … [Read more...]
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