House Committee on Education (03/04/2013)

Final
STAFF SUMMARY OF MEETING

HOUSE COMMITTEE ON EDUCATION

Date:	03/04/2013	ATTENDANCE

Time:	01:30 PM to 04:32 PM	Buckner	X
		Court	*
Place:	HCR 0112	Everett	X
		Fields	X
This Meeting was called to order by		Holbert	X
	Representative Hamner	Landgraf	X
		Murray	E
This Report was prepared by		Pettersen	X
	Kristen Johnson	Priola	X
		Wilson	X
		Young	X
		Peniston	X
		Hamner	X
		X = Present, E = Excused, A = Absent, * = Present after roll call

Bills Addressed:		Action Taken:
SB13-112 SB13-143 SB13-015 HB13-1172		Referred to the Committee of the Whole Referred to the Committee of the Whole Referred to the Committee of the Whole Witness Testimony and/or Committee Discussion Only

01:30 PM -- Senate Bill 13-112

Representative Hamner, Chair, called the meeting to order and welcomed the members and the audience to the meeting. Representative Gerou, prime sponsor, came to the table to present Senate Bill 13-112 which concerns placing a cap on the 2012-13 fiscal year transfers to the State Public School Fund from public school land moneys. The reengrossed bill caps the transfers to the State Public School Fund of royalty revenue earned on state school lands and interest earned on the Public School Fund at $27 million and $9 million, respectively. Representative Gerou responded to questions from the committee members.

Craig Harper, Joint Budget Committee Staff, joined Representative Gerou at the table to answer committee questions about the Building Excellent Schools Today (BEST) program, and the impact the bill may have on the program.

There were no witnesses signed up to testify on the bill.


BILL:	SB13-112
TIME:	01:39:11 PM
MOVED:	Holbert
MOTION:	Refer Senate Bill 13-112 to the Committee of the Whole. The motion passed on a vote of 12-0, with one member excused.
SECONDED:	Court
		VOTE
	Buckner	Yes
	Court	Yes
	Everett	Yes
	Fields	Yes
	Holbert	Yes
	Landgraf	Yes
	Murray	Excused
	Pettersen	Yes
	Priola	Yes
	Wilson	Yes
	Young	Yes
	Peniston	Yes
	Hamner	Yes

Final YES: 12 NO: 0 EXC: 1 ABS: 0 FINAL ACTION: PASS

01:40 PM -- Senate Bill 13-143

Representative Peniston, prime sponsor, presented Senate Bill 13-143 which concerns the Institute Charter School Assistance Fund. The reengrossed bill changes the way in which money is transferred to the Institute Charter School Assistance Fund, increases the discretion of the Charter School Institute (CSI) when allocating grant money from the assistance fund, and changes the conditions for refunding excess money retained by the CSI to institute charter schools.

The following person testified:

01:42 PM -- Ethan Hemming, Executive Director of the Charter School Institute, testified in support of the bill. He stated that the bill will provide more flexibility and allow money to be available to institute charter schools in crisis situations.


BILL:	SB13-143
TIME:	01:43:47 PM
MOVED:	Peniston
MOTION:	Refer Senate Bill 13-143 to the Committee of the Whole. The motion passed on a vote of 11-0, with two members excused.
SECONDED:	Court
		VOTE
	Buckner	Yes
	Court	Yes
	Everett	Yes
	Fields	Excused
	Holbert	Yes
	Landgraf	Yes
	Murray	Excused
	Pettersen	Yes
	Priola	Yes
	Wilson	Yes
	Young	Yes
	Peniston	Yes
	Hamner	Yes

Final YES: 11 NO: 0 EXC: 2 ABS: 0 FINAL ACTION: PASS

01:45 PM -- Senate Bill 13-015

Representative Peniston began chairing the committee. Representative Hamner, prime sponsor, presented Senate Bill 13-015 which concerns electronic participation of school board members in school district board of education meetings. The reengrossed bill gives local school boards and Boards of Cooperative Educational Services (BOCES) the ability to adopt a policy for the electronic participation of members at board meetings. The boards may adopt a policy authorizing members to attend and participate in regular, special, and executive session meetings electronically. At the first special meeting of a newly elected local school district board of education or BOCES board, members are required to sign an affidavit stating that they are aware of and will comply with confidentiality requirements and restrictions applicable to executive sessions.

The following persons testified on the bill:

01:47 PM -- Katie Fleming, representing Colorado Common Cause, testified on the bill. Ms. Fleming stated that Colorado Common Cause is neutral on the bill, and she provided background on the organization. She stated that government works best when there is participation by the public and that the reform discussed in the bill has the potential to increase public participation. She discussed the use of technology and how it impacts the democratic process.

01:53 PM -- Dr. Jane Urschel, representing the Colorado Association of School Boards (CASB), testified in support of the bill. Dr. Urschel stated that most laws are passed because of people who want to do good, and because of people who want to do well. She stated that the bill allows local school boards to create a procedure to allow for electronic attendance at executive sessions of the board, and requires members to sign an affidavit stating that they will uphold the confidentiality of the sessions. She stated that the idea for the bill came from CASB's delegate assembly. She stated that meetings are stronger with all member voices, even if members are not able to be physically present. She provided a handout to the committee from Telluride School Board Director, Cheryl Miller (Attachment A). Dr. Urschel stated that she spoke with a school board member from Eagle, Colorado who expressed some concern over members not being physically present at executive session meetings, but that he also acknowledged that the public interest is not fully represented if not all member voices are present.

13HseEd0304AttachA.pdf

01:57 PM -- Tom Balchak, President of the Poudre School District and representing CASB, testified in support of the bill. Mr. Balchak stated that the bill enhances opportunities for school board members to fully participate in school board meetings and executive session meetings. He stated that the bill may also increase the applicant pool of those who are interested in serving on school boards. He provided an example of a time he attended a board meeting electronically. He stated that board members do their due diligence in attending board meetings, but when members are out of town, they will still be able to attend and participate, and that full participation is very important when the board wants to send a clear message to the community on pressing issues. He stated that the bill promotes good boardsmanship and that technology has added to the democratic process in a positive way.

02:03 PM -- Matt Snyder, Executive Director of the Southeastern BOCES and President of the Colorado BOCES Association, testified in support of the bill. Mr. Snyder stated that the Southeastern BOCES has twelve members that live far away from each other and that members appreciate the ability to meet via 21st century technology when possible. He added that the bill will allow greater flexibility for board members.

Mr. Balchak, Mr. Snyder, and Dr. Urschel responded to questions from the committee about validating the identity of board members who participate electronically, and how school districts might craft their policies concerning electronic participation.

02:16 PM -- Walt Cooper, representing the Colorado Association of School Executives (CASE), testified in support of the bill. Mr. Cooper stated that the bill is in direct response to local school board member requests.

Representative Hamner provided closing comments to the bill.


BILL:	SB13-015
TIME:	02:19:52 PM
MOVED:	Hamner
MOTION:	Refer Senate Bill 13-015 to the Committee of the Whole. The motion passed on a vote of 12-0, with one member excused.
SECONDED:	Court
		VOTE
	Buckner	Yes
	Court	Yes
	Everett	Yes
	Fields	Yes
	Holbert	Yes
	Landgraf	Yes
	Murray	Excused
	Pettersen	Yes
	Priola	Yes
	Wilson	Yes
	Young	Yes
	Peniston	Yes
	Hamner	Yes

Final YES: 12 NO: 0 EXC: 1 ABS: 0 FINAL ACTION: PASS

02:21 PM -- House Bill 13-1172

Representative Priola, prime sponsor, presented House Bill 13-1172 which concerns creating accountability measures to increase parent involvement in Colorado's K-12 public schools. The introduced bill proposes to replace the terms used for accreditation categories of public schools with letter grades A through F, and rename the corresponding improvement plan required for each accreditation category. The bill also allows the parents of students in a public school that has been designated as low-performing for two consecutive years to petition the State Board of Education (SBE) to require the local board of education to take corrective action sooner than the five years that is provided in current statute. If parents submit a valid petition, the SBE must consider the request at its next regular public meeting, and may choose to reject or accept the petition request, or may choose to reconsider the petition request the following school year. If the SBE accepts the petition, the SBE may either:

• direct the state review panel to evaluate the school's performance and make recommendations for • restructuring; direct the local school board to replace the management of the school;
• allow the school to be reorganized as either a charter school or an innovation school; or
• close the school.

If the school is chartered by the state Charter School Institute (CSI), the SBE will direct the CSI to take the corrective action.

Representative Priola distributed a packet to the committee members (Attachment B) and responded to questions from the committee about the use of an A through F rating scale.

13HseEd0304AttachB.pdf

The following persons testified:

02:43 PM -- Dr. Elliott Asp, representing Cherry Creek School District, testified in opposition to the bill. Dr. Asp explained that the school district does not support the bill because the parent trigger provisions in the bill are not in line with what the district views as a proper amount of time for school improvement. He stated that changing the labels under the state accreditation system to a letter scale will lead to public confusion and lack of knowledge, and will have unintended consequences. He stated that the school district has worked very hard to make the accreditation category information available to school district staff, parents, and educators, and expressed concern about having to start the process all over again. He stated that the district does not want to oversimplify the accreditation rates and asked the bill sponsor to leave well enough alone. Dr. Asp responded to questions from the committee members concerning parents' use of the current accreditation category system to select a school, and the appropriate amount of time to allow schools to improve their performance.

03:06 PM -- Vinny Badolato, representing the Colorado League of Charter Schools, testified in support of the bill. Mr. Badolato stated that parents are not willing to wait for five years for a school to turn around, but want change immediately. He stated that five years at a failing school may not be good for children.

03:10 PM -- Dr. Jane Urschel, representing the Colorado Association of School Boards (CASB), testified in opposition to the bill. She stated that CASB strongly supports the concept of parents serving as change agents, but that Colorado is a local control state and that successful turnaround of schools requires balance of state and local control. She stated that students are very aware of the rating given to their school. She stated that SchoolView is an excellent tool for looking at Colorado K-12 school performance.

03:22 PM -- Walt Cooper, representing the Colorado Association of School Executives (CASE), testified in opposition to the bill. Mr. Cooper stated that the bill undermines elements of Senate Bill 09-163, which transformed the way the state thinks about educational accountability. He stated that working in schools and implementing key reforms presents challenges and creates unnecessary uncertainty in the state, and that Colorado has a strong tradition of local school boards which include significant parental involvement. He stated that the bill pushes up the clock on a law that hasn't worked through its first cycle. He stated that using an A through F system is not clear and does not communicate adequate information about school performance.

03:26 PM

The committee took a brief recess.

03:32 PM

The committee came back to order.

03:32 PM -- Julie Whitacre, representing the Colorado Education Association (CEA), testified in opposition to the bill. She discussed the petition and how its validity would be confirmed and how timely notification would be made, and questioned the procedure for gathering signatures. She stated that parents need to be involved in education, but that policy needs to address proper communication that encourages parents and teachers to work together.

03:36 PM -- Sally Augden, representing the League of Women Voters, testified in opposition to the bill. Ms. Augden stated that effective reform of schools takes three to five years and that it takes oversight from local school boards.

03:40 PM -- Bill Jaeger, representing Stand for Children Colorado, testified on the bill. He stated that Stand for Children Colorado is neutral on the bill, and stated that the organization's focus is on identifying the most promising strategies to get kids through school and to college. He discussed the merits of the bill, stating there is an urgent need to provide parents with clear information on meeting students' needs, and that the bill provides an avenue for parent advocacy. He discussed what is happening in other states in regards to early review of school performance and stated that it is unclear that the practice will result in improvements for students. He stated that using letter grades to categorize schools will increase transparency, but oversimplies how schools are meeting diverse student needs. He referred the committee to a report completed by the Buechner Institute of Governance at the University of Colorado Denver, which focuses on parental use of the current accreditation rating system in choosing a school for their children. Mr. Jaeger responded to questions from the committee.

03:52 PM -- Scott LeBand, President of Colorado Succeeds, testified on the bill. He stated that Colorado Succeeds is neutral on the bill, but that they support the use of an A through F rating system. He stated that such a system is easy for parents to understand and that information is power. He stated that the current school labeling system is virtually incomprehensible to parents. He discussed the work of Colorado Succeeds and the rating system being employed on the ColoradoSchoolGrades.com website. Discussion between the witness and the committee ensued.

04:15 PM -- Pauline Olvera, representing herself, testified in support of the bill. Ms. Olvera stated that she is in favor of the bill because it makes the performance of schools easily available to parents. She stated that the current rating system is full of jargon and that it is difficult for parents to be fully involved when they do not understand the data available to them. Ms. Olvera responded to questions from the committee members.

04:32 PM

Representative Hamner stated that House Bill 13-1172 will be laid over until Wednesday, March 6, at upon adjournment, and will be on the table for action only. The committee adjourned.