Category Archives: Independence Institute

One of Colorado’s biggest online mysteries has been solved. The many readers of the Schools for Tomorrow education blog are sleeping better tonight. Okay, maybe that’s a bit of an exaggeration. What am I talking about? On Friday, 9News interviewed the Education Policy Center‘s Ben DeGrow about his perspective on the state record $454 million school bond proposal Denver voters face this year. In the process, his hardly-surprising online identity was revealed: An online blogger named “Uncle Charley” has written several entries for Education News Colorado trying to get readers to think about the need before they act. One blog is entitled, “More Tough Questions on DPS Bond,” which talks in part about the individual items that would be funded by this bond issue and series of property tax hikes have agreed to in Denver over the past two decades. “Uncle Charley” is actually the pseudonym for Ben DeGrow, with the Independence Institute, a non-partisan conservative political think tank. DeGrow says spending $13 million dollars on athletic fields and other monies for failing and half-filled schools is not wise. [link added] Ben said that (hardly unexpected) the quotes in the piece don’t do his argument justice. But that’s okay. He […]

In the spirit of the day, I looked for something scary in education to tell you about. But instead of that, I wanted to let you know about an exciting new national group that has formed: This week a committed group of parents from around the United States officially launched the National Coalition for Public School Options (NCPSO) to support and defend public school options in their states and throughout the country. The group was officially launched during the North American Council for Online Learning (NACOL) Virtual School Symposium. “As parents, we want the best possible education for our children,” said Lori Cooney NCPSO president and parent of online public school students in Colorado. “Our founding board believes parents everywhere should have more public school options available to them, and we will help give those parents a voice in their state capitals and in our nation’s capital.” Cooney joined two other parents to help form the organization: Briana LeClaire from Idaho and Christine Beard from Ohio, both fellow parents whose children are enrolled in online public schools. The Coalition supports the creation of public school options, including charter schools, online schools, magnet schools, open enrollment policies and other innovative education […]

My friends at the Education Policy Center usually want me to talk about, well, education. But can I be forgiven if I take a break just for today? This is your official reminder from Eddie to make a bid on the famous Amendment 49 sock puppets. The bidding is already too rich for my piggy bank, but maybe someone out there will think of me on their Christmas list. On second thought, I’d much rather have a new bike. You can keep the sock puppets for yourselves. But don’t forget to keep bidding for a good cause. If you don’t know what I’m talking about, here’s the video that started it all:

Like other public schools, charter schools can fail, too. The advantage is it’s generally easier to shut charters down or to reconstitute them in a way that better ensures success. The Denver Post has a story today about giving just such a second chance: An embattled Denver charter school has a new name and a new agreement with Denver Public Schools after a vote by the school board Thursday. The former Challenges, Choices and Images charter school for kindergartners through 12th-graders is now Amandla Academy — named after the Zulu word for strength. The school voluntarily terminated its charter contract with the district, effectively severing the district and the current school leaders from any financial liabilities incurred by CCI. “This was all legal stuff to get the new school to go forward without being encumbered,” said Russell Caldwell, senior vice president at the brokerage firm D.A. Davidson. “The good news is DPS financially and legally acted very prudently to allow the new charter to have conditions in which it will grow and flourish.” The agreement turns the K-12 school of 600 students into a contract school through June 30, and Amandla officials plan to submit an application to become a […]

I get excited to see the ball move forward even a little bit on the issue of school district transparency. Whether it’s the district’s checkbook or its union bargaining sessions, this kind of information should be easily accessible to parents and other taxpayers through the Internet. Our friends in Pennsylvania, the Commonwealth Foundation, have launched the latest noteworthy effort (H/T SPN Blog): As part of a year-long campaign to provide greater transparency in school district labor negotiations, the Commonwealth Foundation has unveiled a new website and blog, SchoolBoardTransparency.org. SchoolBoardTransparency.org will offer insight and advice in the labor negotiations process for school boards and citizens. The site will provide regular posts on issues, news, and best practices in school district labor negotiations, and allows users to comment and create posts on a moderated blog. The project will also include a “how-to” manual for school board members looking to provide greater transparency during union negotiations and a resource for media covering public school labor negotiations. The guides will provide the important questions to ask and explain the key issues typically involved in labor negotiation contracts. Besides its regular blog-style updates, School Board Transparency also provides more effective school districts with praise and […]

Several months ago my friends at the Independence Institute hosted a showing of the brand new exciting education documentary Flunked: The Movie. An Independent Thinking episode with the movie’s producer Steve Maggi and our own Pam Benigno was aired that brought attention to public education reform success stories. Well, it appears the movie and its producer are really making the rounds from state to state. Blogger Bob Weeks followed up on the Kansas debut of Flunked by interviewing Steve Maggi. It’s a great read if you’re intrigued by the movie or looking for more information on ideas for reforming our public schools. And for many more resources on ideas for education reform, especially ideas specific to Colorado, remember to bookmark the Education Policy Center on your browser.

Last week, I introduced you to two candidates for Colorado’s State Board of Education from the 3rd Congressional District – Democrat Jill Brake and Republican Marcia Neal – but had to close with an important question about them: I know I can sound like a broken record at times, but wouldn’t it be good to know where Ms. Brake and Ms. Neal stand on school choice (e.g., charter schools, online schools, open enrollment)? What about expanding local innovation? The students and parents of Colorado – especially those trapped in failing schools – deserve to know. So my friends in the Education Policy Center went back and did a little research, and followed up with emails to each of the candidates to give them a fair chance to explain themselves on where they stand on school choice and local innovation.

Today’s Rocky Mountain News explains Colorado education leaders’ attempt to put greater emphasis on the arts in the state’s new standards and assessments: [Commissioner of Education Dwight] Jones and [Lieutenant Governor Barbara] O’Brien addressed a news conference called to highlight a report showing that many Colorado students are not exposed to the arts, which include music, theater and dance, as well as the visual arts. The report, prepared for the Colorado Department of Education and the Colorado Council on the Arts, shows that art is offered at 93 percent of elementary schools, 86 percent of middle schools and 83 percent of high schools. But 29,000 students attend schools that do not offer art, the study found. Statewide, 53 percent of high school students don’t take art, which is not mandatory even at schools where it is offered. The study found that 75 percent of principals say the arts are being squeezed by the need to focus on reading, writing and math. One of the findings of the new report says that arts education “associates with higher scores” on CSAP tests. But as my smart friends at the Education Policy Center point out, the fact that the two items are associated […]

I know there must be a lot of you out there who heard about the Education Policy Center‘s recent interesting event with Joe Williams from Democrats for Education Reform, but weren’t able to attend or listen online. Or maybe you did hear it, and you want to see more. In either case, you’re in luck. A special episode of Independent Thinking hosted by Jon Caldara is airing this Friday, October 3, at 7:30 PM (please note the scheduling change) and next Tuesday, October 7, at 5:00 PM, locally in the Denver area on KBDI Channel 12. Guests Joe Williams and our own Pam Benigno will discuss the movement to reform education in the Democratic Party and how it might play out here in Colorado. As I pointed out earlier, Colorado is the site of the first state chapter of Democrats for Education Reform, headed by retiring state senator Ron Tupa. Be sure to tune in either this Friday or next Tuesday to Independent Thinking!

Colorado’s largest school district is one of many asking voters this year for more operating tax revenue and for bond debt to fund school construction. An article in Sunday’s Denver Post quoted one of my Education Policy Center friends with concerns about Jefferson County’s proposals (designated 3A and 3B): “They are asking taxpayers to build in a district with declining enrollment,” said Ben DeGrow, a policy analyst at the conservative Independence Institute think tank. Referendum C, a five-year timeout from TABOR revenue restrictions passed in 2005, and a 2007 law that allowed local property taxes to grow should be providing “a lot more revenue” for Jefferson County and other school districts, DeGrow said. Referendum C provided more than $300 million to K-12 education in 2006-07. No one doubts that Jeffco and other school districts need a certain amount of money to provide educational services. So it’s not a simple matter of voting Yes “for the kids” (like me) and voting No “against the kids.” If funding were attached directly to the student, and the parents could decide where to send their children, there would be a stronger case for that simplified line of thinking. However, that’s not how the system […]