Category Archives: Education Politics

There’s been plenty of debate — here in Colorado, more than in most states — about the U.S. Department of Education’s Race to the Top (RTT) $5 billion grant funding program. On the surface it sounds really good, promoting some commonsense and effective reforms that in many cases should have been enacted years ago. To some extent, it may actually yield positive results. But now that 40 states have participated in the first round of applications (and Colorado opted for the safe “consensus” approach), we soon will find out whether the faith in RTT is justified. As the editors of the Wall Street Journal note, the first big test will be to see how selective the grant process actually is (H/T Frederick Hess): It’s been reported that Mr. Duncan may reward as many as a dozen states in the first round. A state like California in that scenario could receive between $350 million and $700 million. That may seem like a lot of money, until you consider that California’s K-12 education budget shortfall next year is expected to be between $5 billion and $10 billion.

Yesterday the state of Colorado turned in its Race to the Top grant funding application to the U.S. Department of Education. Missing the opportunity to do something bold, Colorado instead opted for “consensus” and “collaboration” — as reported by Jeremy Meyer in the Denver Post. Some of my older friends in the Education Policy Center are less surprised by this development than I am. Still, whether it jeopardizes our chances to win some of the federal cash or not, this approach is disappointing. One of the greatest statesmen (or women) who ever lived, Margaret Thatcher, famously once said: “Consensus is the negation of leadership.” An opportunity for greater leadership was missed. We may still win some money because very few other states opted to be bold either — and in comparison we could look pretty good. But that doesn’t cut it for me.

So American Federation of Teachers president Randi Weingarten, leader of one of the national teachers unions, gives a big speech this week on how her group is interested in reforming the tenure system and is willing to accept student performance as part of meaningful teacher evaluations. New York Times columnist Bob Herbert gives Weingarten a fair hearing (H/T Eduwonk) but concludes: If the union chooses not to follow through on these proposals, its credibility will take a punishing and well-deserved hit. Otherwise, skepticism seems to be the word of the day….

Every year the Education Intelligence Agency’s Mike Antonucci undertakes the daunting work of going through the National Education Association’s federal financial disclosure report (hosted online by the U.S. Department of Labor). In his latest exclusive analysis, Antonucci found the NEA’s contributions to advocacy groups and charities reached $26 million in 2008-09 — nearly double from the previous year’s total. To almost no one’s surprise, the NEA’s disclosed giving includes plenty of money for liberal causes and some education-related initiatives. But the biggest chunks of money went to politically active committees to fight state-level issues. Out of the $26 million, the NEA sent more than $5 million right into our Colorado backyard — including the single largest recipient on the list:

Two days from now Colorado’s state legislature starts the 2010 session. And with a recession cutting into tax revenues, many lawmakers will show up without the enthusiasm to create new programs or boost spending on existing programs. As legislative sessions go, this one has a particularly strange character about it. Tough and unpleasant decisions will have to be made. But what about K-12 schools? As Todd Engdahl explains in a thorough preview for Ed News Colorado, at least a few lawmakers (Engdahl quoted many more from the majority Democratic Party) are not looking forward to education reform debates when budget cuts are on the table: Some wish that were the case. “I’m hoping there isn’t too much [education legislation], quite frankly,” said Rep. Karen Middleton, D-Aurora and a member of House Ed.

So with this new year of 2010, I’m really thinking all futuristic. Yesterday it was brain skills testing. But what about technological changes that promise to transform our education system? That’s what Harvard professor Clayton Christensen writes about in his 2009 book Disrupting Class: How Disruptive Innovation Will Change the Way the World Learns. If you can’t afford the time or the money for the book, then you’ll at least want to check out this audio/video presentation on the topic by Dr. Scott McLeod (H/T Mike Antonucci).

Christmas is right around the corner (I can hardly wait). And while it’s very easy for me to be obsessed with expanding my own Lego collection, it’s also very important to remember to give those who are in need. I like basketball a lot, and the Denver Nuggets are my pro team. That’s why I was totally stoked to see Chris “Birdman” Andersen playing Santa Claus to raise money for the Alliance for Choice in Education (ACE). As explained on our School Choice for Kids website: Families living in Colorado that are eligible for free or reduced lunch may apply for an ACE scholarship. The scholarship provides as much as 50 percent of a school’s tuition, with maximum payments of $2,000 per year for grades K-8 and $3,000 per year for grades 9-12. ACE commits to paying for four years of tuition. ACE provides more than 775 scholarships annually and has more than 150 partner schools. For more information see the ACE Web site. Now, in the eyes of teachers unions, the fact that ACE supports school choice somehow makes them “Too Extreme for Colorado”. But would they dare go after the “Birdman” and call him “anti-public education”? Would they […]

Remember the poor kids in our nation’s capital who benefit from the D.C. Opportunity Scholarship Program? Last night D.C. Parents for School Choice Executive Director Virginia Walden Ford sent out an email alerting supporters about a new troubling development from Capitol Hill: Just an hour ago, the U.S. House of Representatives passed the omnibus bill that kills the D.C. Opportunity Scholarship Program (OSP). This is devastating news, and it means that if this bill makes it through the U.S. Senate and is signed into law by President Obama, the OSP will slowly die, with no new students permitted to access great schools through this groundbreaking program. When we began the fight to save this program more than a year ago, we pledged that we would fight hard and fight long and fight to the finish. We said we wouldn’t give up–regardless of the odds. Tonight is no exception. The House passed the voucher-killing omnibus by a tiny margin. The Senate must still act. So, we have not yet been defeated in our effort. To get the full picture, check out a new Weekly Standard piece by Sheryl Blunt aptly titled “The Teachers’ Unions that Stole Christmas”:

Okay, this is hard for me to admit because you’ll probably make fun of me. Here goes: I’m afraid of witches. Yeah, they really creep me out, especially that cackling old hag on the Wizard of Oz. But I learned about something this week that frightened me about as much, and that was an attempted “witch-hunt” audit proposal by four state legislators against Colorado’s public charter schools. (Check out our GoBash blog for all the details, including a copy of the proposal and an important podcast discussion.) Democratic state senator Lois Tochtrop was correct to describe the proposal as a “witch-hunt.” I’m glad she and the four Republicans on the Legislative Audit Committee shot down the bad idea and spared the tens of thousands of Colorado charter school students and their families from an attack on their public school choice. So, okay already, can these state legislators stop trying to frighten little 5-year-old kids like me?

State Treasurer Cary Kennedy seems like a nice lady, and I think it must be hard being a politician in such an office — especially during the tough budget times faced by state government and the difficult decisions that requires. But does the current budget reality mean Treasurer Kennedy can have it both ways? As the Denver Post has reported, Governor Bill Ritter is asking K-12 schools to give up $260 million in expected funding between the current budget year and 2010-11 — despite Amendment 23’s constitutional requirement to guarantee annual increases in the core of state K-12 education funding. As my Education Policy Center friend Ben DeGrow has noted, the potential showdown between union-backed Ritter and the Colorado Education Association over the proposed cuts could make for “interesting times.” For Treasurer Kennedy, who devised Amendment 23 but now in office stands by fellow Democrat Bill Ritter, the scenario presents an especially challenging dilemma. Ed News Colorado’s coverage of Kennedy’s Friday speech to the Colorado Association of School Boards at the luxury Broadmoor hotel (a good use of taxpayer funds itself?) really captures the challenge she faces: