Christine Scanlan

Scanlan: Education Reform: Doing More with Less

by State Rep. Christine Scanlan,
These are difficult times for Colorado families, and for our state. While we all understand the need to reduce our spending and balance the budget, we must make sure we are sharply focused on the issues that matter most as we prepare for the 2010 legislative session. For many of us, what matters most is education.

As I go door to door this summer, every parent I've talked to wants an effective environment for their child to learn, to create and to receive help. It is clear that a quality education is pivotal in determining a child's future. Reforming our public schools must remain our top priority as Colorado rebuilds its labor force and its economy for the 21st century.

The key element to rebuilding Colorado's economy lies with our schools. Sadly, some are under-performing. Our state's graduation rate is about 74 percent — although Summit County's is considerably higher. And too many students continue on without the skills needed to compete in a global economy. In 2008, only about 70 percent of Colorado's 3rd through 10th graders were proficient in reading — and only half are proficient in math.

It's clear to me that our public schools need more and better tools to help our children succeed.

In just the few years that I have been in the Colorado Legislature, we have made some huge strides in education reform. We especially made education a priority during the 2009 session.

• We enacted a significant change that will allow high school students to be enrolled in both high school and community college, earning college credit, if they develop a plan of what they want to do and how they will get there;

• We streamlined systems to increase accountability and improve tracking to show how individual students, not just schools, improve, over time.

• Rather than punishing struggling schools, we changed accountability systems to help provide schools needing a turnaround extra resources and guidance;

• I sponsored the School Finance Act, which rewards low-income schools that boost student performance and allows districts to spend more on programs that work best in their areas;

• We are improving teacher quality by identifying the most effective teachers;

• We increased the amount of unpaid leave working parents are allowed in order to be more involved with their kids' education;

• We established a plan of action for dropout prevention and student reengagement;

• And we expanded the school lunch program for low-income kids.

While we made significant progress, there is still much work to be done.

President Obama recently established a $4.35 billion fund available from the U.S. Department of Education for preschool through post-secondary education reform. This is important for Colorado schools.

The program is called Race to the Top, and states interested in receiving a portion of the money must compete against each other to submit innovative proposals that establish assessment standards, improve teacher effectiveness, and provide intense support for low-performing schools. The reforms we enacted in the past have us well-positioned to win this Race.

Lieutenant Governor Barbara O'Brien has created several public committees working on Race to the Top; we welcome your involvement. Your input is vital to our success, so please attend a committee meeting or submit your ideas in writing. You can find out more at http://www.colorado.gov/ or contact me directly.

I'm proud that I was asked to be a part of the team that will draft and submit the final proposal, so I will put your good ideas to good use.

I hope your children have a wonderful school year!

State Rep. Christine Scanlan represents Summit County in House District 56.