Gov. Ritter Announces Education Reforms

GOV. RITTER ANNOUNCES EDUCATION REFORMS

Gov. Bill Ritter today announced an ambitious package of education reforms that will enhance student learning, help parents and teachers make better use of data, increase accountability and allow more children to succeed in a 21st century economy.

'Education is the key to opportunity,' Gov. Ritter said during the opening session of the Colorado Statewide Dropout Summit. 'It opens doors and leads to a better future. While we are a nation of innovators, we also are a country at risk of falling behind other countries. Public education helped me get where I am today, and I want an even better education for my children, for your children and for every generation that comes after us.

'Today, I stand here with a challenge to you all: Think big, dream big, raise your expectations, and raise the expectations we place on our children. They will rise to the occasion.'

Gov. Ritter outlined his education reform package on the same day the Colorado Department of Education released its annual School Accountability Reports. The reports show that just 11.8 percent of Colorado's 1,971 regular and alternative schools rated 'excellent' in 2006-07, compared with 8.3 percent five years ago.

'We can and should continue to debate whether the SAR is the best measurement tool available to us,' Gov. Ritter said. 'Regardless, I am not satisfied. Nobody can say we are doing the best job possible when it comes to preparing our kids for a 21st century workforce. If there's one area where we can not fail, it's how we educate our children. Principals are working harder, parents are working harder, and you all are today because you are working harder. But the cold hard truth is that we need to do things differently in order to do them better.'

During Gov. Ritter's first State of the State Speech in January, he outlined bold education goals for Colorado, including cutting the high school dropout rate and achievement gap in half over 10 years, and doubling the number of college diplomas and certificates awarded to Colorado students over the same time period.

The reforms outlined today will move Colorado forward in achieving those goals, Gov. Ritter said. Proposals call for:

* Data and Accountability: Creating a meaningful data and accountability system that captures information about each student from the time they enter school to the time they enter the workforce. Colorado would become only the second state in the country, in addition to Florida, to align data from the beginning of a child's education to the end.

* Colorado Counselor Corps: Creating the Colorado Counselor Corps of 70 new counselors to work in middle and high schools. These counselors would work directly with students so they stay in school and are fully prepared for college. Schools or districts would apply for the funds through the Department of Education. Currently, Colorado's ratio of students to counselors is 544 to 1 - one of the worst rates in the country.

* Statewide 'Post-Secondary Preparation' Mission: Requesting that the State Board of Education create a statewide guidance policy that will establish 'post-secondary preparation' as the main purpose of Colorado's K-12 education system.

* Dropout Rules and K-3 Curriculum, Instruction and Assessment : Requesting the Board to scrutinize the effectiveness of current dropout rules and regulations, and abandon those that are ineffective, and also examine and recommend best practices for kindergarten through third-grade curriculum, instruction and assessments.

* Colorado Preschool Program: Eliminating the current waiting list for the Colorado Preschool Program, allowing the state to provide quality pre-school to 3,000 additional eligible children.

* Full-Day Kindergarten: Allowing 22,000 additional children to attend full-day kindergarten - if their school districts and their parents choose to participate. This will be phased in slowly, over six years, as resources are available.

The reforms are based on the work of Gov. Ritter's P-20 Education Coordinating Council, which is co-chaired by Lt. Gov. Barbara O'Brien; Bruce Benson, CEO of Benson Mineral Group; and Joe Garcia, President of Colorado State University at Pueblo.

Three of the proposals would be included in the 2008 School Finance Act, with dollars coming from the State Education Fund:

Full-Day Kindergarten: $25 million in Year 1, slowly increasing to $100 million over six years.

Colorado Preschool Program : $10.5 million.

Colorado Counselor Corps: $5 million.

Gov. Ritter will propose a K-12 reserve trigger to maintain the long-term health of the State Education Fund, ensuring that the Fund remains a rainy day fund for K-12 education as it was always intended to be.

"Colorado's greatest asset is our children," Gov. Ritter said. "We know that children who start behind, stay behind. These reforms will give more children an opportunity to achieve their full potential in a 21st century, globally competitive economy. Enacting these programs will speak volumes about our commitment to Colorado's children, because this is not just about today. It' s not even about tomorrow. It's about future generations to come and the kind of Colorado we want them to inherit."

"Learning and development are like climbing a ladder," Lt. Gov. O'Brien said. "One starts at the bottom rung, then climbs to the next, and then to the next. Shaky - or non-existent - rungs make it hard to successfully reach the next levels. These proposals will begin to strengthen some of the rungs on the education ladder."

'"As a long-time participant in education policy and a co-chair of the P-20 Council, I am enthusiastic about and personally gratified by Gov. Ritter's decision to support so many of the P-20 Council's recommendations,' Bruce Benson said. 'They represent critical steps in our collective pursuit of a world-class system of education. It is an honor to serve the people of Colorado alongside of so many talented individuals. I look forward to continuing to improve our education system in 2008."

"We in higher education support Gov. Ritter's approach," said Ray Baker, chairman of the Colorado Commission on Higher Education. 'It's important that all Coloradans not think that one or two targeted policies will change outcomes across systems. Comprehensive strategies and wise investments, like those proposed by Gov. Ritter, are what we need."

"We have studied the importance of exposing children at the earliest ages to quality early childhood experiences and we are unanimously persuaded that early intervention can play a critical role in the future success of our children,' said Gail Klapper, who heads the Colorado Forum, a consortium of business and civic leaders from around Colorado. "We are delighted that Gov. Ritter is advocating such a quality early-childhood and full-day kindergarten experience for Colorado children."

"Providing full-day kindergarten and quality preschool, as well as improved counseling and mentoring for high schoolers, will improve the education and lives of thousands of Colorado children,' said Lisa Weil, policy director for Great Education Colorado. 'Gov. Ritter and the P-20 Council deserve our thanks for placing the spotlight where it belongs, on our kids and their future."

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