Category Archives: Independence Institute

I’ve been doing a really good job cutting back on using “It’s For the Kids” in my blog logic, right? Well, that doesn’t stop certain groups from wanting to undermine Colorado voters’ rights to decide on taxes by insisting it’s “for the children.” Hats off to Colorado Springs News 5 reporter Andy Koen for seeking out a different point of view on the “Great Futures Colorado” proposal to enable the legislature to raise taxes — as long as the revenues fund the education system (preschool through college). One of my Education Policy Center friends got on camera with Koen to explain the problem: But Ben DeGrow of the conservative think tank the Independence Institute says this proposal skirts the intent of the Tax Payers Bill of Rights (TABOR) which requires voter approval for all tax increases. “The fact that they’re trying to take away the voters right to decide on tax increases at the local level in education is a matter of great concern,” DeGrow said.

Back before Christmastime, I told you about the promising work going on in the once-troubled Cole Arts and Science Academy in Denver, thanks to its newfound liberating status as an Innovation School. Well … freedom and autonomy lend themselves not only to innovation but also toward groundbreaking partnerships not nearly as likely to take place in the traditional public K-12 school system. Determined to place their mostly poor students on a track of college success, Cole parents and leaders recently have reached out to the Denver School of Science and Technology (DSST) charter school as a potential partner.

Yesterday my Education Policy Center friend Ben DeGrow appeared on a National Public Radio station in the Carbondale / Aspen area to talk about some of the pressing education issues facing our state. Follow this link to listen to his interview with Matthew Katz of KDNK. For more on the topics Ben references in his interview, check out these past posts of mine: National Council on Teacher Quality Affirms Me on Race to the Top “Sweet 16” Too Many Finalists, Race to the Top Winners Get “One Shining Moment”? How to Push Ben DeGrow’s Buttons in Making Arguments about School Funding iVoices: Superintendent Mike Miles on Real Teacher Performance Pay in Harrison Ben tells me that he was selected for the interview because the KDNK reporter was intrigued by my writings here. I asked Ben for a cut of the money he got for doing the interview, or I might have to resort to kicking his shins or something like that. I’m not sure I should believe him, but Ben said he didn’t make a cent for doing the interview. Oh well, at least KDNK gave a shout-out to Ed Is Watching — even if they let Ben pretend and […]

Education employees have their powerful lobbying interests representing them — to a lesser extent school board officials do, as well. So isn’t it about time we kids pay our dues and band together for a good education? That’s why I’m so excited about the brand new organization called the American Federation for Children. Okay, well, it’s not exactly like that. It’s not like some union that I can join or that will automatically take hundreds of dollars in dues money each year. In fact, it’s not really a membership organization at all. From yesterday’s press release announcing the new group:

Ed News Colorado reports from yesterday’s State Board meeting about the state of school buildings: Colorado schools have $17.8 billion in maintenance and renovation needs over the next eight years, according to a statewide schools facilities study released Wednesday. The study, required as part of the 2008 Building Excellent Schools Today law, was the first-ever comprehensive structural review of 8,419 buildings, from large classroom buildings to sheds. The $17.8 billion estimate covers only what the study calls Tier I buildings – basically those used for instruction. The study found those buildings need $9.4 billion of deferred maintenance work between now and 2013. An additional $13.9 billion is needed for energy and educational suitability projects. A final $3.9 billion in work is estimated to be necessary from 2014-18.

I’m pretty partial (OK, I’m very partial) to the School Choice for Kids website (or Opcion Escolar Para Ninos, en espanol) as an invaluable source of information for parents in Colorado who want to exercise their educational options. But it’s not the only source out there. Denver’s Piton Foundation and 9 News have teamed up to create the Colorado School Choice / Escuela Para Mis Hijos site. The site provides some different information than is available on SCFK — with special emphases on schools’ academic growth ratings and student demographics. Click the play button below (or follow this link) to listen to my Education Policy Center friend Pam Benigno discuss the newer site with Van Schoales of the Piton Foundation on an informative 18-minute iVoices podcast:

I pause from my regularly scheduled juvenile opining to acknowledge the passing of someone who gave many years of service to the state of Colorado — including many on behalf of public education. He and I wouldn’t have agreed on every issue, but there’s no doubt he was independent in thought, well-informed in his views, and passionate in his work. I’m talking about former Arvada state senator Al Meiklejohn, who died Monday at age 86 and will be put to final rest today. As reported in this week’s Denver Post obituary, Meiklejohn served six years on the Jefferson County Board of Education and “constantly pushed for public-school reform and better salaries for teachers.” For his service he has a Jeffco elementary school named after him. You know Senator Meiklejohn was a man of influence and stature when in the week of his death he has received such high praise from two very different sides of the education spectrum.

The Denver Post followed up its Sunday story on local school district expenditures with an editorial today that says “Shine the light on school spending”: A bill now advancing in the General Assembly would require school districts to make budget information available online, including discretionary spending. House Bill 1036 argues that districts ought to take advantage of technology to allow for greater transparency. We question whether a mandate is needed, but agree with the intent and urge districts to use the technology on their own. As my Education Policy Center friend Ben DeGrow noted in his recent report “What Should School District Financial Transparency Look Like?” (PDF), HB 1036 is a small step forward but a relatively weak mandate.

I know this sounds a little weird, but I think I’m experiencing a bad case of deja vu. The topics of three posts I wrote last week all re-emerged this Friday morning: On Monday the 15th I noted that the school spending transparency debate had returned to the State Capitol. While Senate Bill 91 here was killed, I see that our neighbors to the Southwest – Arizona – are giving serious consideration to a bill that would bring detailed spending transparency to public school agencies and all other governments. On Wednesday the 17th I highlighted our new podcast with Harrison superintendent Mike Miles about his district’s groundbreaking performance-based teacher pay program. Today the National Council on Teacher Quality (NCTQ) posted their interview with Miles about the very same topic in its weekly Teacher Quality Bulletin. Last but not least, on Thursday the 18th I brought your attention to Rick Hess’s new blog and promised to cut back on using the “It’s For the Kid” line. This morning the Education Intelligence Agency’s Mike Antonucci observes that it didn’t take very long for NEA to help make Hess’s argument for him. Here’s hoping the month of March brings something new. Have a […]

The same day that I promised to stay away from using the “it’s for the kids” line to make an argument, the Denver Post published an online column by University of Northern Colorado education professor Spencer Weiler doing just that: …Colorado is only as strong as the quality of education children throughout the state receive each day. And the quality of education is directly correlated with the funding the state ensures for its public schools. Money matters when it comes to educating children. It is with that backdrop that I wish to comment on the state’s failure to adequately fund public schools and the current fiscal crisis. When Colorado passed Amendment 23 in 2000 the state was $696 below the national average in per-pupil funding. We are now over $1,400 below the national average in per-pupil spending and the gap will continue to grow as a result of the current recession…. Let me explain…. No, let me sum up. According to Dr. Weiler, we must take away reasonable controls on the growth of government and the right of citizens to vote on tax increases because Colorado schools aren’t funded as much as in many other states. In other words, it’s […]