Press Release - Sweeping Education Reforms
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OFFICE OF GOVERNOR BILL RITTER, JR
FOR IMMEDIATE
RELEASE
THURSDAY, MAY 21,
2009
CONTACTS:
Holly Shrewsbury, 720.320.0097, holly.shrewsbury@state.co.us
Evan
Dreyer, 720.350.8370, evan.dreyer@state.co.us
GOV.
RITTER ENACTS SWEEPING EDUCATION REFORMS
New laws will increase
graduation rates, help secure federal education funding
Listen to Audio from the Event
Gov. Bill Ritter today signed into law a comprehensive package of
education-reform measures, including bills to help reduce the dropout rate,
allow students to simultaneously earn a high school diploma and a college
associate's degree, and give Colorado a better chance of landing federal "Race
to the Top" funds.
"In my first State of the State Address, I set out aggressive and bold
objectives for education, including cutting Colorado's dropout rate and
achievement gap in half over the next 10 years and doubling the number of
college degrees earned by Colorado residents," Gov. Ritter said.
"Today, we take not just a step but a giant leap toward meeting those goals
and objectives," Gov. Ritter said during a signing ceremony at Denver Public
Schools' Career Education Center in north Denver. He was joined by lawmakers,
Lt. Gov. Barbara O'Brien, State Treasurer Cary Kennedy, Colorado Education
Commissioner Dwight Jones and Denver Public Schools Superintendent Tom
Boasberg.
"Education reform is never easy or fast, but we are making great progress and
are leading the nation with our reform agenda," Gov. Ritter said. "Today we
recommit to the notion that the best way to lead Colorado forward through this
difficult economy is through wise, meaningful and student-centered education
reforms."
"I'm very proud of these measures and the many other improvements we have
made to Colorado's education system in the last two years," Lt. Gov. O'Brien
said. "With leadership from the P-20 Education Council, Commissioner Jones, the
legislature and Gov. Ritter, we have passed some of the most progressive reforms
in the nation. Our efforts demonstrate our commitment to quality
education."
"Individually, these are important pieces of legislation for public schools
in Colorado," Commissioner Jones said. "Taken together they will impact students
in different but extremely positive ways, and all will help prepare our students
for postsecondary and workforce readiness."
Gov. Ritter signed nine education bills today, including his signature
proposal for the 2009 legislative session, House Bill 1319, the Colorado ASCENT
Program (Accelerating Students through Concurrent EnrollmeNT).
HB 1319, sponsored by Reps. Michael Merrifield and Tom
Massey and Sens. Suzanne Williams and Rollie Heath, will be the nation's first
statewide concurrent-enrollment plan. It will give students a chance to earn a
college degree while finishing high school.
"This gives kids a reason to stay in school and accelerates their progress
toward degrees and the working world," Rep. Merrifield said. "It opens doors
that, to many students, especially low income students, have appeared to be
locked and barred."
Senate Bill 282, sponsored by Sens. Paula Sandoval and Nancy
Spence and Rep. Andy Kerr, merges the Denver Public Schools retirement system
into the state Public Employees' Retirement Association.
"The fourth time's the charm for this PERA merger bill, as both bride and
groom have been jilted at the altar over the past few years," Rep. Kerr said.
"This bill does not allow either PERA or DPS to back out of the merger this
time, and will allow teachers the flexibility to find the district, school and
community that can best use their particular talents."
"This legislation will tear down the wall between DPS and the rest of the
school districts in Colorado without cost to the state or PERA," Sen. Sandoval
said. "Colorado educators will be able to make career decisions to move between
any other school district in Colorado and Denver without losing pension years of
service. This merger has been long-anticipated by our state's
educators."
"After years of trying, this merger is a great accomplishment for PERA, DPS
and the State of Colorado," State Treasurer Kennedy said. "It will create
efficiencies in administration, close costly loopholes, and open doors for
teachers to move where their skills and talents are needed the most."
"For nearly a decade, DPSRS, PERA and DPS have sought to come together to
provide a stronger retirement system for all educators and allow teachers,
principals and hourly workers to further their careers in any district in the
State of Colorado," DPS Superintendent Boasberg. "Today, with the Governor's
signature, we have realized this vision and made Colorado an even better place
to work for our country's best teachers."
SB 160, sponsored by Sen. Evie Hudak and Rep. Nancy Todd,
creates common requirements for the state's two alternative teacher preparation
programs.
"I am proud to help open up opportunities for teachers to enter the
profession from an unconventional path," Rep. Todd said. "The skills and
real-life experiences that can be brought into our classrooms will make learning
more relevant as we ready students for life in the 21st century."
SB 90, sponsored by Sen. Hudak and Reps. Debbie Benefield
and Merrifield, will help parents get involved in their kids' education.
SB 123, sponsored by Sen. Williams and Rep. Todd, creates
the Healthy Choices Dropout Prevention Pilot Program, which will increase the
number of children who graduate.
"This program will provide students an out-of-school experience and teach
them to develop a balance in their lives," Rep. Todd said. "The focus on
academic commitment and physical and emotional health will provide one more
support to at-risk adolescents during this challenging time in their
lives."
Several bills will help Colorado secure a portion of the $5 billion in
competitive "Race to the Top" grants being made available to states through the
American Recovery and Reinvestment Act:
SB 163, sponsored by Sen. Hudak and Rep. Karen Middleton,
modernizes and aligns reporting on school accountability systems to help
students throughout Colorado. Schools will now have better support and oversight
for their improvement efforts.
"Because of my background as an educator for over 20 years, much of my time
is spent fighting for good public education in Colorado," Sen. Hudak said.
"Whether it's making sure parents can be involved in their children's education
or supporting appropriate accountability for public schools and public school
teachers, we must keep education our No. 1 priority in this state, even in
difficult economic times."
"We know that taking a snapshot of a child's progress just doesn't tell us
that much about how a kid is doing," Rep. Middleton said. "This new
accreditation process aligns all of Colorado's schools with the state's growth,
and the state's new, more descriptive longitudinal data collection efforts. So
we'll know more about how our schools are actually doing."
HB 1065, sponsored by Rep. Benefield and Sen. Spence, uses
information about educators' training and experience to evaluate teacher
performance, the effectiveness of teacher training programs and the distribution
of high-performing teachers in different kinds of schools.
"This legislation will help ensure that every child, regardless of their
race, where they live, or what their socioeconomic background is, has access to
a high-quality teacher," Rep. Benefield said.
HB 1243, sponsored by Reps. Middleton and Massey and Sen.
Bob Bacon, creates an Office of Dropout Prevention and Student Re-engagement to
ensure students graduate high school.
"This bill will help give high school students an extra push to finish their
secondary schooling, and make sure they get the right skills, so that when they
do take the next step, whatever that step may be, they're ready," Rep. Middleton
said.
SB 256, the School Finance Act, was sponsored by Sens. Chris
Romer and Bacon and Reps. Jack Pommer and Christine Scanlan.
"The legislation rethinks how we fund our schools," Rep. Scanlan said. "It
incentivizes performance, rewarding low-income schools that boost student
performance while investing in schools that are struggling with an achievement
gap. It allows districts to spend more on the programs that work best in their
areas. And it provides a framework for all Colorado students to go to college or
get the necessary vocational training so that they can compete and succeed for
high-paying, 21st century jobs."
"We've all seen it. Kids I went to high school with were dropping out, too,
and it seems that trend hasn't changed," Sen. Romer said. "We hope the School
Finance Act this year will start to change that. This bill will make sure our
school funding is equal, fair and transparent so that our schools -- and
students -- can be successful. We simply cannot allow any more students to be
left behind."
Click
here for a list of 2009 legislative action by Gov. Ritter.
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