Final
BILL SUMMARY for
HB05-1248
HOUSE
COMMITTEE ON
EDUCATION
Votes:
Action Taken:
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11:59 AM -- House Bill 05-1248
Representative King reviewed the provisions of House Bill 05-1248, concerning public school improvement. He discussed his reasons for bringing the bill and the interested parties he had worked with in developing the concepts in the bill. He noted that the provisions in the bill were voluntary for school districts. He discussed the potential for new accreditation contracts under the bill and the potential for increased responsibilities at the school level.
12:06 PM
Representative Merrifield announced that the committee would not vote on the bill at this meeting and would lay the bill over for action. Representative King responded to questions about whether school districts could take the actions described in the bill currently. He responded to additional questions about provisions concerning school funding for instructional supplies and materials and for the capital reserve or management of risk-related activities in the bill.
12:09 PM
The following persons testified:
12:09 PM --
John Carbula, representing the Colorado Association of School Executives and a principal in Poudre School District, testified in opposition to the bill. He spoke about the ideas that have been discussed in developing the bill and described reforms and ideas that have been put in place at his school. He spoke about the impact of federal legislation and mandates on school district.
12:12 PM
Mr. Carbula responded to questions and testified that the bill would negatively impact high school principals. In describing his experiences, Mr. Carbula said that he feels the legislation is unnecessary.
12:16 PM --
John Hefty, representing the Colorado Association of School Executives said that his organization has been studying the concepts in the bill for several months. He testified in opposition to the bill and said that he feared that the fabric of school districts could be eroded under the provisions of the bill. He discussed the need for coherence and alignment of schools in a school district. He referred to research on school district reform.
12:20 PM
Representative King responded to Mr. Hefty's testimony and discussed issues of school funding that could be addressed in the bill. Representative King discussed the example of a Canadian school district in Edmonton he had been studying.
12:24 PM --
Tony Salazar, representing the Colorado Education Association (CEA), testified in opposition to the bill. Mr. Salazar discussed the reasons that CEA would be opposing the bill and said that CEA had contacted teacher organizations in other areas where greater decentralization has taken place.
12:29 PM --
Phuonglan Nguyen, representing Metro Organizations for People (MOP) as a member of the Board of Directors, testified in support of the bill. She provided background on recent reform efforts undertaken or supported by MOP in Denver. She discussed the reasons that MOP would be supporting the bill and described how reform must address the unique needs of schools. Her testimony included a reminder to the committee that the bill's provisions were voluntary.
She distributed four hand-outs (Attachments D through G).
12:35 PM
Representative King responded to questions about how the bill may impact school districts that are undertaking reforms currently. Ms. Nguyen made additional comments based on questions from committee members.
12:38 PM --
Sanice Young, also representing MOP, testified in favor of the bill. She discussed her concerns with state achievement and funding levels.
12:39 PM --
Shelly Travis, also representing MOP and a parent of Denver Public Schools (DPS) graduates, testified in favor of the bill . She discussed her concerns about
achievement in the school district.
12:42 PM
Representative Pommer made comments based on Ms. Travis' testimony. Ms. Travis discussed her support for the bill and how it might assist schools in Denver Public Schools.
12:45 PM --
Jeremy Simons, representing himself as part of the Cole Middle School community, testified in favor of the bill. He said that there needs to be more community collaboration in school reform. He responded to questions from committee members.
12:50 PM
Representative King described how he hopes that the provisions in the bill could assist in closing the achievement gap. Representative Pommer discussed the demographics and examples of schools in the Boulder Valley School District. Mr. Simons made additional comments on students he has worked with at Cole Middle School. There was discussion of current at-risk funding requirements.
12:54 PM --
Linda Wurst, representing herself as a Denver Public School teacher, testified in favor of the bill. She responded to some of the earlier testimony and committee discussion. She said that her principal has been hampered by administrative bureaucracy in Denver Public Schools and described her concerns about achievement in her district.
12:58 PM
Representative Pommer responded to Ms. Wurst's testimony and said he was concerned that the only testimony in favor of the bill had come from representatives of DPS. Ms. Wurst made further comments on her experiences as a teacher and parent.
01:05 PM
Representative Paccione discussed her experience in the Cherry Creek School District and voiced the opinion that many school district reforms could be undertaken without the legislation. She discussed the impact of federal legislation and federal funding. Ms. Wurst discussed the potential for the role of executive leadership in schools.
01:13 PM
Representative Todd discussed her experiences as a teacher and thanked the witnesses for their testimony and their support of public education.
01:14 PM
Ms. Nguyen returned to the table and clarified her position and views on the bill. She also discussed the positions of MOP on school reform issues. Representative King responded to questions about his views on the bill and the voluntary nature of the bill.
01:18 PM
The bill was laid over for action until the committee's meeting on Thursday, February 24.
01:18 PM
The meeting was adjourned.