House Committee on Education (03/16/2009)

Final
STAFF SUMMARY OF MEETING

HOUSE COMMITTEE ON EDUCATION

Date:	03/16/2009	ATTENDANCE

Time:	02:04 PM to 05:08 PM	Baumgardner	X
		Benefield	X
Place:	HCR 0112	Massey	X
		Middleton	E*
This Meeting was called to order by		Murray	E*
	Representative Merrifield	Peniston	X
		Priola	X
This Report was prepared by		Scanlan	X
	Katey McGettrick	Schafer S.	E*
		Summers	X
		Todd	X
		Solano	X
		Merrifield	X
		X = Present, E = Excused, A = Absent, * = Present after roll call

Bills Addressed:		Action Taken:
SB09-237 SB09-131		Amended, Laid Over Laid Over

02:05 PM -- Senate Bill 09-237

Representative Acree, sponsor of Senate Bill 09-237, concerning grounds for mandatory expulsion, presented her bill to the committee.

02:07 PM

The following people testified on the bill:

02:08 PM -- Marie Morrow, representing herself, testified in support of the bill, and shared her experience being expelled from school for having carried a fake firearm in the trunk of her car to school.

02:09 PM -- Reilly Pharo, representing the Colorado Children's Campaign, testified in support of the bill because the expulsion punishment under current law is too severe.

02:10 PM -- Jonathan Robbins, representing the Douglas County Young Marines, testified in support of the bill.

02:11 PM -- Glenn Rotkovich, representing himself, testified in support of the bill, and shared his experience as fire arms safety and training instructor. He addressed the consequences of current law for students.

02:13 PM

Representative Priola asked if a fake firearm is required to have a hunter orange tip, and whether Mr. Rotkovich knew if Ms. Morrow's gun had that feature. Mr. Rotkovich noted that many fake projectiles have hunter orange coloring.

02:14 PM -- Jennifer McGrew, testified in support of the bill, and shared her experience as the mother of Ms. Morrow, who had been expelled for bringing a fake firearm to school, and the consequences it has had on her daughter.

02:17 PM -- Sherlye Hutter, representing the Colorado Cross-Disability Coalition and the Colorado Developmental Disabilities Council, testified in support of the bill because she believes the school district should have the latitude to make disciplinary actions.

02:19 PM -- Peg Ackerman, representing County Sheriffs of Colorado, testified in support of the bill.

02:21 PM -- Ann Marie, representing Common Good Colorado, testified on the bill. She shared information about a survey that Common Good Colorado conducted across the state regarding the zero tolerance policy.

02:23 PM

Representative Middleton asked follow up questions about the survey Common Good Colorado conducted.

02:24 PM -- Mary Chesley, representing Cherry Creek Schools, testified against the bill as written. She noted the logistics involved in coordinating the education of 50,000 students in the school district and the challenges in finding the right balance between safety and a school district's discretion to make expulsion decisions.

02:29 PM

Representative Middleton asked Dr. Chesley under what circumstances should school districts have discretion for disciplinary decisions. Representative Benefield asked if the student had informed school personnel about the fake firearm, would the mandatory expulsion be avoided. Dr. Chesley replied yes. Representative Todd asked the protocol the school district follows when a weapon or weapon facsimile is discovered. Dr. Chesley reviewed the school district policy and procedures regarding mandatory expulsions.

02:34 PM

Ms. Morrow returned to the witness table to answer questions from the committee. Representative Peniston asked Ms. Morrow if she was expelled. Ms. Morrow explained that she was expelled for 6 days. Representative Merrifield asked Dr. Chesley to specify the problems she has with the bill in its current form. She noted that she has issue with line 14, page 2 of the bill because it does not address whether the fake weapon is found in a locker, a backpack, or other locations. Representative Peniston asked Ms. Chesley to explain how the bill affects students from coming forward to report weapons at school. Ms. Chesley responded that over the past 10 years, there has been an effort to urge students to report such sightings. Representative Middleton asked if it is possible to send a safety message to students without expulsion, because of the adverse effect the expulsion has on the student's record.

02:39 PM

Dr. Chesley explained that Ms. Morrow would most likely not have been expelled had there been discretion for the district. She also addressed the impact on student records, noting that, upon graduation, the expulsion is not listed on the transcript, and that a student's disciplinary file is not released to schools or the military. Representative Benefield asked if the expulsion could be avoided if she told the school she forgot and had the weapon in her car. Representative Summers asked about the communication of the weapon policy to students. Representative Scanlan asked Dr. Chesley if clarifying language was included to take into consideration things like finding weapons in back pack, gym bag, or locker, would she be supportive. Dr. Chesley explained yes.

02:45 PM

Committee discussion ensued about how to include situations in the bill such as a weapon in a back pack, gym bag or locker.

02:51 PM -- Bruce Caughey, representing the Colorado Association of School Executives (CASE), testified on the bill. He shared information on amendments considered on the section of the bill pertaining to brandishing or carrying a weapon in the Senate Education Committee.

02:56 PM -- Kathy Shannon, representing the Colorado Association of School Boards (CASB), testified against the bill as written because the bill creates more problems than it solves. She stated that she believes the simple solution is eliminating the mandatory expulsion requirement.

03:01 PM -- Randy Councell, representing Cherry Creek Schools, testified against the bill as written.

03:03 PM -- Scott Campbell, representing Pikes Peak Area School District Alliance, testified against the bill.


BILL:	SB09-237
TIME:	03:06:38 PM
MOVED:	Merrifield
MOTION:	Moved amendment L.006 (Attachment A). The motion passed without objection.
SECONDED:	Todd
		VOTE
	Baumgardner
	Benefield
	Massey
	Middleton
	Murray
	Peniston
	Priola
	Scanlan
	Schafer S.
	Summers
	Todd
	Solano
	Merrifield

Not Final YES: 0 NO: 0 EXC: 0 ABS: 0 FINAL ACTION: Pass Without Objection


BILL:	SB09-237
TIME:	03:08:34 PM
MOVED:	Murray
MOTION:	Moved amendment L.007 (Attachment B). After committee discussion, Representative Merrifield, the chair, decided the bill would be laid over for action on Thursday, March 19. The motion was withdrawn.
SECONDED:	Baumgardner
		VOTE
	Baumgardner
	Benefield
	Massey
	Middleton
	Murray
	Peniston
	Priola
	Scanlan
	Schafer S.
	Summers
	Todd
	Solano
	Merrifield

Not Final YES: 0 NO: 0 EXC: 0 ABS: 0 FINAL ACTION: TIE

03:19 PM -- Senate Bill 09-131

Representative Massey, sponsor of Senate Bill 09-131, concerning physical activity for elementary school students, presented his bill to the committee. He noted the correlation between physical activity and student academic achievement.

03:25 PM

Representative Solano asked if any other subject area has a required amount of prescribed minutes of activity time in state law. Representative Massey explained no, but that there is teacher contact time, and that schools can meet the requirements of the bill through recess. Committee members raised concerns about the mandated physical activity and the effect it has on local control and time spent on other school courses such as art, music, and other specials.

03:31 PM

The following people testified on the bill:

03:32 PM -- Jane Urschel, representing the Colorado Association of School Boards (CASB), testified against the bill as written. She raised concern about how the bill interacts with the state constitutional provisions regarding local control.

03:36 PM

Representative Benefield asked if CASB could support mandated recess without the minute requirement. Ms. Urschel explained that the same issues would arise. Representative Todd asked if recess is defined in state law. The committee discussed what would constitute physical activity.

03:46 PM -- Bruce Caughey, representing the Colorado Association of School Executives (CASE), testified against the bill. He stated that CASE supports the concept of the bill, but not the method, and that including physical activity in the school day should be left to local boards.

03:50 PM -- Tara Trujillo, representing the Colorado Children's Campaign, testified in support of the bill. She also shared testimony from JoAnna Hangland, a parent of a child who attends a charter school.

03:59 PM -- Jonathan Sovine, representing himself, testified in support of the bill and shared his experience as a third grader.

04:06 PM -- Molly Morein, Christopher Musselman, and Cannon Sullivan, representing the Rocky Mountain School for Expeditionary Learning, testified in support of the bill, shared their experience as middle school students, and discussed the importance of physical activity in their lives.
.
04:21 PM -- Sandy Stenmark, representing the University of Colorado Health Sciences Center (UCHSC), testified in support of the bill, and shared a handout with committee members (Attachment C).

04:26 PM -- Shepard Nevel, representing the Colorado Health Foundation, testified in support of the bill and shared a handout with committee members (Attachment D).

04:33 PM -- Vicki Newell, representing Colorado PTA, testified in support of the bill and discussed the importance of recess.


BILL:	SB09-131
TIME:	04:35:54 PM
MOVED:	Benefield
MOTION:	Moved amendment L.008, as amended (Attachment E). The motion failed on a 6-6-1 vote.
SECONDED:	Todd
		VOTE
	Baumgardner	Yes
	Benefield	Yes
	Massey	Yes
	Middleton	No
	Murray	Excused
	Peniston	No
	Priola	Yes
	Scanlan	No
	Schafer S.	Yes
	Summers	Yes
	Todd	No
	Solano	No
	Merrifield	No

Not Final YES: 6 NO: 6 EXC: 1 ABS: 0 FINAL ACTION: TIE


BILL:	SB09-131
TIME:	04:36:59 PM
MOVED:	Benefield
MOTION:	Moved amendment L.013 (Attachment F), which amended L.008. The motion passed without objection.
SECONDED:	Todd
		VOTE
	Baumgardner
	Benefield
	Massey
	Middleton
	Murray
	Peniston
	Priola
	Scanlan
	Schafer S.
	Summers
	Todd
	Solano
	Merrifield

Not Final YES: 0 NO: 0 EXC: 0 ABS: 0 FINAL ACTION: Pass Without Objection

05:07 PM

Representative Merrifield explained that Senate Bill 09-131 would be laid over until Thursday. With that, the committee adjourned.