Date: 01/25/2006
Final
Rural Schools Caucus
COMMITTEE ON JOINT EDUCATION
| Votes: View--> | Action Taken: |
| <none> | <none> |
07:39 AM
The meeting was called to order by the co-chair, Senator Windels. She welcomed representatives of the Rural Schools Caucus and to other legislators who may join the committee for the presentation.
07:40 AM
Paula Stephenson, Rural Schools Caucus, began her discussion by reviewing the way that a rural school district may be defined. Ms. Stephenson distributed a hand-out (Attachment A). She said that while there is no one definition, state law has used this term to mean a school district with 3,000 or fewer students. Using this definition, 140 Colorado school districts may be considered rural school districts. 115 school district belong to the rural schools caucus. Morgan County School District is the largest of the districts, with Kim, Plainview, and Silverton the smallest.
07:43 AM
Ms. Stephenson discussed the different groups of districts within the caucus. The first group comprises those with declining enrollment. She indicated that there are 91 member districts with declining enrollment, resulting in employee reductions, pay freezes, cuts in curriculum, a decrease in teacher training, and elimination of programs. She said that retaining high quality teachers is also a major problem in rural communities. Requirements for "highly qualified" teachers have an impact too, according to Ms. Stephenson. She noted that districts have tried to address this issue in several ways, including "growing" their own teachers, hiring teachers from rural areas in neighboring states, utilizing loan forgiveness programs, and requesting emergency authorizations for teachers who are licensed.
07:49 AM
Ms. Stephenson discussed expectations, and said that the primary expectation within rural school districts is to provide a well-rounded education with access to many learning opportunities focused on the individual student's needs. Ms. Stephenson raised concerns of rural schools pertaining to new pre-collegiate curriculum requirements set forth the Colorado Commission on Higher Education (CCHE). Ms. Stephenson spent time reviewing the problems faced by rural school districts in this regard. She said that she understood the need to stress key competencies, but said that school districts also wish to retain local control based on community values.
07:54 AM
Dr. Stephen Bohrer, Superintendent of Schools for the Holyoke School District, described the demographics and declining enrollment in his school district. He distributed copies of his comments (Attachment B). He discussed the cuts that have been required by his school district. Dr. Bohrer also reviewed the types of activities and courses in which his students participate, that are beyond or that vary from the requirements set forth by CCHE. He specified his objection to a required fourth year of math and two years of the same foreign language beginning with the class of 2010. He said that certain students may have different needs and interests the school district wishes to address. He objected to a one-size-fits-all approach.
08:02 AM
Dr. Bohrer responded to questions regarding pre-collegiate requirements for the class of 2010. Dr. Bohrer and committee members discussed the research being conducted by the Fund for Colorado's Future.
08:05 AM
Floyd Beard, Executive Director, East Central Board of Cooperative Services (BOCES), discussed enrollment issues in school districts within his BOCES. Limon School District was used as an example of a school district in this situation. The revenue impact incurred by these school districts was described by Mr. Beard. He said that transportation offerings were having to be cut as well. By way of contrast, Mr. Beard said that Strasburg schools were experiencing tremendous growth. He noted that the school district has passed a mill levy override and a bond issue. He said that the declining enrollment may be marked starting at Deer Trail School District.
08:11 AM
Mr. Beard continued his presentation by discussing the challenges of attracting strong teachers. He said that teacher candidates largely wish to go to Front Range school districts. He said that the school districts regularly go to career fairs to try to find interested teacher candidates. Retention of teachers continues to be a major issue for the districts as well. In regard to requirements for "No Child Left Behind" and "highly qualified" teachers, he said that finding a certified art teacher is a specific example of the problem. He stated that some of his districts may be unable to retain good teachers because the teachers are not certified and may no longer seek emergency authorizations. Committee members asked questions about meeting certification requirements and retaining existing programs. Senator Williams urged the school districts to seek waivers.
08:19 AM
In response to a question from Representative McKinley, Ms. Stephenson described other teacher shortage problems in areas such as foreign language and music. Representative Benefield asked Mr. Beard about physical education programs and the possibility of requiring an endorsement through new legislation this year.
08:24 AM
Senator Windels asked Mr. Beard and Ms. Stephenson about the utilization of on-line supplemental courses. Ms. Beard said that 17 districts in his BOCES are implementing a new high tech distance learning system called V-Net in order to increase course offerings. He said that finding funding for the infrastructure is very challenging. Ms. Stephenson described the research she is starting research on course offerings and resources in rural school districts. She returned to a discussion of some of the strong teachers that the rural school districts employ who now may not meet requirements under federal law.
08:32 AM
In response to questions, Dr. Bohrer commented on meetings and discussions he has had in regard to new CCHE pre-collegiate requirements and said that he would welcome a postponement or revocation of the requirements. Ms. Stephenson also discussed discussions that she has had with representatives of CCHE. The committee discussed new data on remediation and the link between the need for remediation and the new CCHE requirements.
08:40 AM
The committee adjourned.