By Gene Davis, DENVER DAILY NEWS

Black community leaders are staging a rally today to demand accountability for the death of a Denver jail inmate who died at the hands of five sheriff officers.

The non-violent march is starting today at 4:30 p.m. at 14th and Bannock St. and will end at the Justice Center. Community activist Alvertis Simmons is helping lead the march to show support for Marvin Booker, a black man who was choked, tased and pinned down by officers before dying at the Denver jail on July 9.

“What happened to Marvin Booker should not happen to anyone anytime anywhere no matter what race or color they are,” said Simmons. “That’s why we’re together as a community.”

When the march and rally ends at the Justice Center, Simmons plans on being escorted inside the center to issue a list of five demands. The demands are:

Ą Eliminate the type of chokehold that was used on Booker before his death. Officers have been told not to use the chokehold for the time being, though it’s possible local law enforcement agencies could bring the chokehold back in the future;

Ą The five deputies who handled Booker prior to his death must be suspended without pay. The deputies are currently on paid leave while the investigation into Booker’s death is being carried out;

Ą The coroner must specifically list the cause of death or Booker. Although the coroner ruled the death a homicide, which doesn’t necessarily imply wrongdoing, he listed several factors that could have contributed to the death, including the cocaine in his system and the officers sitting on him;

Ą Release the tape of the jail that shows the “killing” of Booker.

Simmons is also demanding that there is a grassroots effort to determine the next Denver manager of safety. Manager of Safety Ron Perea resigned last month after receiving intense pressure for not taking stricter discipline against officers accused of using excessive force. Mary Malatesta is the city’s interim manager of safety.

Rev. Patrick Demmer, who appeared along with Simmons at a press conference yesterday, said while he met Perea and thought he was a “fine man,” he wasn’t ready for the manager of safety job.

“As citizens, the manager of safety needs to cause the citizens to feel safe,” he said. “He works for us.”

Denver Sheriff Spokesman Frank Gale said the sheriff department would take a look at Simmons’ list of demands.

“Certainly we’re very interested in anything the community has to say about the operation of the facility and the agency,” he said. “We want to hear what anybody has to say about the operation of the facility and the agency.”

The investigation into the death of Booker is still ongoing. Gale could not comment on the details of the case due to the ongoing investigation.

According to multiple media outlets, Booker died of cardio respiratory arrest as Denver sheriff officers penned him down. Booker reportedly got into a scuffle with sheriff officers while he was trying to get his shoes. Sheriff officers reportedly shocked Booker Ń a 150-pound 56-year-old homeless man Ń choked him and held him down to the ground.

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Payday lenders will be required to give pro-rated refunds to customers who pay off their loans early, The Pueblo Chieftain reports.

Under enforcement rules adopted Tuesday by the Colorado Attorney General’s office, payday lenders cannot keep origination fees for their loans.

The rules relate to HB1351, which narrowly passed through the Legislature during its most recent session — by one vote in each chamber. It sets limits on the fees payday lenders may impose on customers.

In other coverage

The Durango Herald: Payday-loan critics won another victory Tuesday when the attorney general’s office adopted rules that require lenders to refund more fees when borrowers repay their loans early. A draft version of the rules caused a furor last month when critics alleged they were tilted in favor of the industry and that Attorney General John Suthers accepted more than $10,000 in campaign donations from payday-loan stores.

The Colorado Independent: After four hours of testimony and deliberation in the old Supreme Court chambers of the state Capitol, First Assistant Attorney General Laura Udis decided to reverse her proposed payday lending rules and effectively reinsert consumer protections which she said are more in line with the spirit of the law passed last legislative session. Payday lenders will now be forced to refund so-called origination or acquisition fees up to $75 when borrowers repay loans.

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By Peter Marcus, THE DENVER DAILY NEWS

Democratic incumbent U.S. Senate candidate Michael Bennet’s campaign said yesterday that opponent Ken Buck wants to do away with federal student loans.

But Buck’s campaign says, “Usually incumbents run on the record, but Bennet is running away from his.”

The Buck campaign says the Weld County District Attorney does not want to do away with federal student loans, but does oppose a “government takeover of the student loan market.”

When referring to a “government takeover of student loans,” Republicans are referring to recent federal legislation that requires all student loans originated after July 1 to be done through the U.S. Department of Education’s direct loan program. For 45 years prior to the legislation, private banks and lenders received a federal subsidy for making government-guaranteed college loans. The Congressional Budget Office has estimated that the change will save taxpayers about $61 billion over 10 years because the government won’t have to pay a subsidy to banks anymore.

Bennet’s campaign said Buck has called for a plan that includes shifting federal student loans over to private loans. Switching to solely private loans would double interest rates and prevent many students from receiving a college education, said Bennet’s campaign.

“Michael believes every student deserves the opportunity to attend college regardless of financial circumstances,” Bennet campaign spokesman Trevor Kincaid said in a campaign e-mail. “Ken Buck’s extreme position would repeal student loans and the dream of a college degree for hopeful students all over Colorado who wouldn’t be able to attend college without financial aid.”

Bennet joined students yesterday on the Auraria Campus where he rallied for federal funding for higher education. As the former superintendent of Denver Public Schools, Bennet has made education a focus of his campaign and work in the U.S. Senate.

Bennet says private student loans are not guaranteed by the federal government and therefore are not regulated to protect students.

“By any measure, federal loans are a much better deal for students and families than private loans,” states a Bennet campaign e-mail. “Federal loans have low, fixed interest rates, while private loans often have variable interest rates that fluctuate wildly quarter-to-quarter, forcing students to engage in risky and unpredictable financing. The policy Ken Buck has suggested would force students to rely on private loans and extreme interest rates in order to pay tuition, leveraging their future and gambling with their hope of a better life.”

The average private student loan has a 12 percent interest rate, about twice that of the most expensive federal student loan, says the Bennet campaign.

But Buck’s campaign fired back, arguing that Bennet voted against lowering student loans from 6.8 percent to 5.3 percent as part of a motion to the Health Care and Education Affordability Reconciliation Act of 2010.

“This rubber stamp vote might have helped him in his caucus, but it hurt Colorado families,” said Buck campaign spokesman Owen Loftus.

Buck holds a narrow three-point lead over Bennet, according to the latest Rasmussen poll released yesterday.

The Bennet campaign says the U.S. Senator is focused on providing affordable higher education to students. They say federal direct loans offer more flexibility in setting up repayment plans and are more widely available to students of all financial backgrounds.

“The benefits and protections provided by federal loans are virtually non-existent for private loans, and financial experts and student financial aid counselors strongly advise students only to rely on these risky financial products as a last resort when all other sources of aid have been exhausted,” said the Bennet campaign in a policy e-mail. “And for those students unable to obtain private loans, the only recourse would likely be crushing credit card debt.”

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By Peter Marcus, THE DENVER DAILY NEWS
Democratic gubernatorial candidate John Hickenlooper yesterday unveiled his plan for state education reform, promising to replace CSAP testing in his first term if elected.
Standing with his running mate, CSU Pueblo president Joe Garcia, at Arapahoe Community College, Hickenlooper called for a more “modern, useful and timely” student assessment test.
“It’s the 21st century,” said Hickenlooper. “It shouldn’t take months to get test results. We should be able to get results quickly when we test our young people in order to empower our teachers and administrators to adapt.”
Hickenlooper’s education plan also includes:
— Expanding broadband access to integrate mobile learning with classroom-based instruction;
— Supporting public-private efforts to create online courses to supplement core programs;
— Building an online course content library at a secondary level to be shared by districts and schools; and
— Focusing on the importance of planning for postsecondary education.
The Denver mayor also highlighted priorities for the Colorado Commission on Higher Education, including:
— Enhancing public-private relationships in higher-ed;
— Increasing flexibility across the state’s higher-ed systems;
— Encouraging public-private collaboration and concurrent enrollment;
— Developing new funds through private sector and federal partnerships; and
— Collaborating with career and technical education, trades apprenticeships and the Colorado Department of Labor and Employment.
“It’s important that we collaborate with all the educational stakeholders — teachers, parents, students and business — to continue to create an improved, 21st-century education system,” said Hickenlooper. “I want to be a leader in making sure we provide the best education system for students.”
Republican opponent Dan Maes’ campaign said yesterday that it is important to maintain CSAP testing because the state needs a tool to measure student progress. Campaign spokesman Nate Strauch said the CSAP will only continue to “evolve.”
Maes himself said in a statement e-mailed to the Denver Daily News that Mayor Hickenlooper is offering “great talking points with no substance.” He then switched his attention to education funding and union involvement.
“Coloradans have heard enough sound bites and we’re sick of politicians whose only solution is to throw more tax dollars at the problem,” said Maes. “We need a governor who will stand up to the teachers’ union and demand that our least effective teachers be removed from the classroom.”
“We need a governor who will work to level the playing field among public, private, charter and home schools to increase competition,” continued Maes. “As governor, I’ll stop banking on the federal government’s handouts, and instead increase the transparency of K-12 budgeting at the state level, so we can see exactly which dollars are being used effectively.”
Strauch suggested that Hickenlooper’s announcement yesterday was an attempt to “pander to the teachers’ union.”
Hickenlooper holds an eight-point lead over Maes thanks to a divide within the Colorado Republican Party over conservative Tom Tancredo’s third-party run on the American Constitution Party ticket.
LaShanda Jones, the parent of a first- and third-grader at Vista PEAK P-8 Exploratory School in Aurora, said she believes Hickenlooper is making education a priority.
“I want to know that our leaders are focused on providing a world-class education to the students in this state,” she said. “That’s why I’m so appreciative that John Hickenlooper has made education a priority for his campaign.”

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By Todd Engdahl, EDUCATION NEWS COLORADO

Education funding will remain tight, Democrat John Hickenlooper warned today as he unveiled his plans for education if he’s elected governor.

“We’re not going to throw money at the problem,” the Denver mayor said during a news conference at Arapahoe Community College in Littleton with running mate Joe Garcia, president of Colorado State University-Pueblo. “There is no appetite” among the public for new taxes, Hickenlooper said.

Still, the pair presented a seven-page education policy brief that ranges from testing to teacher improvement to better coordination of the higher education system.

In several places the brief promises to continue and complete education initiatives started by Gov. Bill Ritter and the legislature in the last three years. As befits a campaign document, the brief covers a lot of ground but doesn’t offer detailed specifics.

Despite supporting education reform work that has been done to date, Hickenlooper expressed a note of frustration when he noted there’s “so little to show for it.”

Criticizing the CSAP tests, whose demise was called for in 2008 legislation but which probably won’t be replaced until 2014, Hickenlooper said, “We will do everything we can to give it [the changeover] greater urgency.”

He also called for greater use of online education, more public-private partnerships in education and better coordination and integration of higher education in particular and the whole system in general.

“We have to continue blurring those lines.”

Asked if Garcia would play the same role in education as Lt. Gov. Barbara O’Brien has played for Ritter, Hickenlooper said, “It’s premature to think about specific roles,” but quickly added, “I’d be a fool not to give him tremendous responsibility and authority.”

Garcia also has been president of Pikes Peak Community College and active in some Ritter-era education reforms, including serving as co-chair of the governor’s P-20 Education Coordinating Council.

“Education is going to be at the core of everything we do,” Hickenlooper said, noting that education consumes more than half the state’s general fund budget.

“I want to be a leader in making sure we provide the best education system for students. The fiscal situation of the state makes it harder to do so, but it is important for our kids and our economy to make sure that Colorado is leading the way in education,” Hickenlooper said.

In addition to campaign workers, reporters and curious students, Hickenlooper’s audience include a group of Colorado Education Association officials, including executive director Tony Salazar, and representatives of the business-based reform group Colorado Succeeds, including President Tim Taylor and board chair Zack Neumeyer. Sen. Mike Johnston, D-Denver and author of the new educator effectiveness law, and Van Schoales of Education Reform Now also were in the audience.

The CEA-affiliated Public Education Committee gave Hickenlooper’s campaign $5,300 in the reporting period ending July 6.

Hickenlooper’s opponents haven’t yet offered major statements on education.

Republican Don Maes has five paragraphs about the subject on his website, saying, “Reform is an ongoing process and the school leadership must recognize the need for constant improvement. … More competition between schools and transparency in educational funding and results will produce more productive teachers, better students and administrations.”

Maes testified against adoption of the Common Core Standards at a recent State Board of Education meeting.

Renegade Republican Tom Tancredo, now flying the flag of the fringe American Constitution Party, doesn’t mention education on his website. Tancredo was a middle school civics teacher when elected to the legislature in 1976, and he later became regional representative of the U.S. Department of Education under the Reagan and first Bush administrations. Tancredo significantly downsized that office and then went on to be president of the Independence Institute and a congressman.

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By Gene Davis, DENVER DAILY NEWS
It’s ‘game on, baby’ for a controversial ballot initiative that could exempt Colorado from major portions of federal health reform signed into law by President Barack Obama in March.
The Colorado Secretary of State announced yesterday that ‘The Right to Health Care Choice’ citizens’ initiative had enough valid signatures to get on the November ballot. The initiative, which is the brainchild of Jon Caldara’s Independence Institute, a Golden-based libertarian think tank, will ask voters to exempt Colorado from parts of the recent health care reform, including a provision requiring citizens and business owners to buy health insurance or pay a penalty.
“After many legal challenges, the people of Colorado will finally get an opportunity to decide whether health care choice is a right,” said a statement from Caldara, who is also the chairman of the Health Care Choice for Colorado Issue Committee.
Critics of the measure refute Caldara’s claim that federal health care reform forces people into specific plans.
Kjersten Forseth, interim executive director of ProgressNow Colorado, said earlier this month that Americans still have a choice over what plans they choose and what doctors they see. She said Caldara’s ballot initiative would tear apart the reform effort, impacting how seniors pay for prescription drugs, how children receive care, how students receive insurance, and how people with pre-existing medical conditions find insurance, to name a few concerns.
“It’s important for people to understand how absolutely detrimental it would be for us to repeal health care reform,” said Forseth. “There’s just some really important parts of health care reform that we can’t afford to lose, and that we’ve been looking so forward to.”
An opposition campaign to the initiative, Colorado Deserves Better, was announced earlier this month. The campaign includes a coalition of physicians, hospitals, consumer advocates and religious organizations. They say Caldara’s initiative would isolate Colorado from health care costs savings by shrinking the risk pool.
“In this economy, higher health care prices mean trouble for Colorado,” Edie Sonn, spokesman for the Colorado Medical Society, said in a statement. “Caldara’s amendment does exactly that: cost us money.”
But Caldara said the initiative opponents have it wrong. He believes the majority of Coloradans agree that people shouldn’t be ‘forced’ into buying health care; Caldara submitted more than 130,000 signatures to the Secretary of State’s office earlier this month to get the measure on the ballot.
“We’re going to make Colorado a sanctuary state for quality health care,” Caldara said. “How they can argue that Coloradans should not have choice in their health care, in that somehow it’s good to force people into health care plans they do not want, is mystifying to me.”
Caldara had a tough road getting the measure onto the ballot. As part of his effort, Caldara fought a new state law prohibiting citizens from paying circulators by the signature. Circulators must be paid mostly by the hour.
Critics say the law has resulted in quotes jumping in price by the equivalent of about $2 per signature. Caldara and marijuana advocate Mason Tvert sued the state over the law, arguing that the new law has driven up the cost of collecting signatures so high that it has become almost impossible to run a citizen initiative.
A U.S. District Court judge in June issued an injunction against the law, allowing Caldara to move forward with his initiative. And with a press release issued yesterday, Caldara seemed to be in a fighting mood against the opponents and lawsuits that tried to stop the initiative from moving forward.
“To all the interest groups that have worked so hard to keep us off the ballot, I’ve got three words for you: game on, baby,” he said in a statement.

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Colorado’s failed bid for $175 million in federal Race to the Top funding was hampered by concern about the state’s flat achievement data and fear that union opposition would prevent the spread of reform, Education News Colorado reports.

Evaluators also docked points for what they describe as the state’s vague plans to ensure effective teachers and principals are in the neediest schools.

U.S. Education Secretary Arne Duncan on Tuesday announced winners of the federal grant competition, awarding nearly $3.4 billion to nine states and the District of Columbia. Colorado placed 17th out of 19 applicants for Round 2 of the Race to the Top; the state also was a finalist, but not a winner, in Round 1 of the contest earlier this year.

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By Peter Marcus, DENVER DAILY NEWS

Local pot advocates believe it is “ridiculous” that Facebook has blocked a marijuana legalization campaign from displaying the image of a pot leaf in ads on the social-networking site. Facebook has censored the Just Say Now campaign from using pot images in its advertising. The campaign aims to draw support for legalization efforts in several states, including a ballot initiative scheduled for 2012 in Colorado.

Facebook censored the ads on Aug. 16 without explanation. When later asked by reporters, Facebook said the pot leaf violated Facebook’s policy against advertising smoking products.

Pot advocates, however, say Facebook needs to get its priorities straight. They believe marijuana is a less dangerous substance than products such as alcohol and tobacco.

“Facebook prides itself on being ahead of the times, but when it comes to marijuana, they’re behind the times,” said local marijuana advocate Mason Tvert, executive director of Safer Alternative for Enjoyable Recreation (SAFER). “They certainly would have no problems with images of alcohol. So, it’s unfortunate they’re unwilling to show an image of a safer substance.”

Tvert led two successful legalization campaigns in Denver, legalizing the simple possession of marijuana for adults in the city. He attempted a statewide initiative in 2006, but the initiative failed.

Colorado pot advocates are gearing up for a legalization ballot initiative in 2012. They expect to receive the support of the Just Say Now campaign.

Wayward Bill Chengelis, chairman of the U.S. Marijuana Party of Colorado, said it is reasonable to believe that following the 2012 elections, Colorado will have legalized marijuana, and it won’t be solely regulated to medicinal use.

“It’s not far fetched as it sounds,” said Chengelis. “In 2006 we voted to legalize adult use and lost at 43 percent. However, the demographics changed, are changing, and you could be part of the change.”

At last weekend’s Cannabis Festiva festival at Dick’s Sporting Goods Park, Chengelis proposed the Cannabis Habitation Colorado movement. He is asking all “cannabis lovers” to relocate to Colorado.

“We want to turn colorful Colorado into cannabis culture Colorado,” said Chengelis, who says he has received 50 commitments from out-of-state cannabis lovers.

“We can control one geographic area in America,” added Chengelis. “Cannabis Habitation Colorado. We will have legal pot in Colorado by the year 2012.”

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By Todd Engdahl, EDUCATION NEWS COLORADO

Colorado has lost its second bid for $175 million in Race to the Top funds.

According to The Associated Press, U.S. Department of Education spokesman Justin Hamilton said this morning the winners are Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Massachusetts, Maryland, New York, North Carolina, Rhode Island and Washington, D.C.

Colorado’s application proposed a detailed program for using the money to implement major but unfunded education reforms, including the Colorado Achievement Plan for Kids and the new educator effectiveness law.

Lack of federal funding is likely to extend the implementation timetable for those programs further into the future, given that the tight state budget situation will make it difficult to find extra funds for the projects outlined in the R2T application.

State officials were scheduled to meet with reporters later this morning.

The 18 states and the District of Columbia designated as finalists in July included Arizona, California, the District of Columbia, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Illinois, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island and South Carolina. Thirty-six states applied for round two.

Total requests came to $6.2 billion.

Finalists met in person with reviewers two weeks ago. Education Commissioner Dwight Jones said reviewer questions focused on Colorado’s ability to actually implement the reforms it’s proposing (see story).

Delaware and Tennessee were the only two round one winners; the other 14 finalists in that round made the cut in round two.

There were different tiers of possible award amounts based on state populations. Colorado asked for $377 million in the first round, during which tier limitations did not apply.
Details of Colorado’s application

The state’s 193-page application for $175 million pitched Colorado’s history of education reform measures, including the new educator effectiveness law that links student achievement with teacher evaluations.

The bulk of the funds would have been used for implementing new content standards and tests at the district level, creation of new educator evaluation systems, encouraging effective principals and teachers to work in low-performing schools and providing turnaround help for the state’s most struggling schools.

About $90 million of the $175 million would have gone directly to participating districts, as the program requires at least half the funds go to local education agencies.

The department signed memoranda of understanding (formal agreements to participate) with 114 districts and other education agencies, 64 percent of the 180 in the state. Those districts include 89.9 percent of the state’s students, 84 percent of schools and 91 percent of poor students. For the first round application, the state had agreements with districts including about 95 percent of the state’s students. The only two notable non-participants in round two are the Pueblo County and St. Vrain districts.

The Colorado Education Association participated in round one but boycotted round two because of concerns about the educator effectiveness law, SB 10-191, which it opposed. The Colorado unit of the American Federation of Teachers, which represents primarily the Douglas County Schools, signed on to round two.

In broad terms, the state’s application focused on these goals, as required by the federal government:

* Increase student learning through teacher mastery and delivery of common standards and assessments.
* Use, learn, and leverage high quality data to drive increased student performance.
* Ensure all students have access to effective teachers and principals.
* Turn around persistently lowest-achieving schools.

A state also is required to demonstrate how it will build a statewide system of accountability and support to accomplish and sustain those goals.

Colorado’s application promised, by 2014, to increase:

* College enrollment from 62.9 to 70 percent
* College retention from 66.3 to 75 percent
* 4th grade National Assessment of Education Progress math proficiency from 45 to 55 percent
* Higher school graduation rate from 74.6 percent to 90 percent
* 4th grade NAEP reading proficiency from 40 to 60 percent
* 8th grade math NAEP proficiency from 40 to 60 percent
* 8th grade reading NAEP proficiency from 32 to 52 percent
* Overall CSAP math proficiency from 54.5 to 85 percent
* Overall CSAP reading proficiency from 68.3 to 85 percent
* Reduce the achievement gap among all subgroups from 30 to 10 percent
* Those goals raised skepticism in some quarters, but state education leaders argue that Colorado has the infrastructure for reform in place but needs the funds to implement those programs.

Here’s a breakdown of how the state proposed to spend the $175 million:

* $13.6 million – Statewide implementation and administrative costs, primarily at the state Department of Education.
* $13 million – Funding the Content Collaboratives and Regional Support Teams to roll out new content standards and assessments to school districts, creation of an instructional improvement system on the department’s SchoolView website and extra support for small and rural districts.
* $5.8 million – Subsidies and incentives for districts to create and share curricula, for purchase of formative and interim tests and for state review of available interim tests.
* $15.2 million – Build out and support of an expanded SchoolView system, including teacher, principal and administrator portals; expansion of Colorado Growth Model data; and incentives for effective educators to provide instructional materials to others.
* $8 million – Money for state personnel and outside consultants to help districts develop and implement new educator evaluations systems and to identify measures of educator effectiveness, especially in currently untested grades and subjects.
* $5.1 million – Funding for the State Council for Educator Effectiveness and for districts to implement evaluation systems.
* $4.1 million – Development of effective teachers and principals with a focus on low-performing schools, including residency programs, increased numbers of national board certified teachers and hiring of Teach for America members.
* $4.3 million – Expansion of the department’s School Leadership Academy, including a Turnaround Leaders Academy.
* $3.2 million – Expansion of the number of students who take Advanced Placement classes and of the number of under-represented students who take college-prep classes.
* $884,000 – Funding for the department’s existing dropout prevention and student re-engagement program.
* $11 million – Creation of a school Turnaround and Intervention Unit within CDE to help districts conduct successful turnarounds of low-performing schools.

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By Todd Engdahl, EDUCATION NEWS COLORADO
Race to the Top reviewers Tuesday pressed Colorado’s delegation for details on how the state can successfully implement its ambitious education reform plans.
Education Commissioner Dwight Jones, interviewed by Education News Colorado after the delegation’s 90-minute meeting with reviewers, said, “I felt good about the session overall. … It seemed like the review panel liked Colorado’s plan and felt it was very ambitious.
“They liked the ambition but had quite a few questions about how you implement it in a local-control state,” Jones added.
Colorado, 17 other states and the District of Columbia were named round-two R2T finalists on July 27, and delegations representing each finalist met with reviewers in Washington this week.
Jones, Lt. Gov. Barbara O’Brien, Aurora Superintendent John Barry and Colorado Department of Education executives Nina Lopez and Diana Sirko represented Colorado.
In response to the implementation question, Jones said, “We really kind of stuck to how we outlined it in our plan,” emphasizing the regional support teams, content collaboratives and other structures that Colorado has proposed to implement new standards and tests, improve teacher performance and help struggling schools if the state wins R2T funds.
The bulk of the funds, if Colorado wins a grant, would be used for implementing new content standards and tests at the district level, creation of new educator evaluation systems, encouraging effective principals and teachers to work in low-performing schools and providing turnaround help for the state’s most struggling schools. About half the funds would go to participating school districts.
Colorado was an unsuccessful finalist for round one of R2T last spring and went through a similar interview process. Jones said he felt the first reviewer panel didn’t understand the strategies as well as the second panel did.
Jones also said the second five-member panel “spent a lot of time talking about SchoolView,” the state’s Web data portal. Colorado’s application proposes to rely heavily on SchoolView as a communications tool with districts and teachers.
The panel seemed impressed by the state’s new educator effectiveness law (Senate Bill 10-191), and Jones said O’Brien talked at length about that and other recent reform legislation during Colorado’s presentation. (The delegation had 30 minutes to make its case, followed by an hour of questions from reviewers.)
Jones said the presentation was similar to the pitch CDE leaders made to school districts around the state earlier this summer as they tried to sign up local participants in the state plan.
The reviewers seemed comfortable with the percentage of students represented by participating districts (about 90 percent) but also asked “how this would go with the unions,” Jones said.
The Colorado Education Association supported the state’s first application but boycotted the second because of SB 10-191. The Colorado unit of the American Federation of Teachers supports the second application. Jones said the panel told reviewers CEA has promised to support implementation if Colorado receives a grant.
Asked how the panel felt after the session, Jones aid, “I think the feeling was very cautiously optimistic, [but] it’s anybody’s guess as to what ultimately happens. Praising his team, Jones said, “I really felt like Colorado was well represented at the table.”
Colorado has requested $175 million in R2T funds. About $3.4 billion is available, but the 19 applications total more than $6.2 billion. All finalists scored above 400 on a 500-point scale. Scores may be adjusted up or down following the interviews. Winners are expected to be announced in early September.

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