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The legislative session is still several months away but we are actively engaged in policy discussions on a variety of issues of import to rural schools and communities, including school finance, rural teacher pathways, teacher housing and other recruitment/retention incentives, consolidation, waivers and student discipline. We are excited by the collaborative approach to policy making that we have embarked on this year through our Advisory Committee (details below) and will present our 2018 Advocacy Agenda at our Annual Breakfast Friday, December 1st at the Broadmoor.
The information below represents some highlights of the important work around the State. It's a lot to get through but-we think-it's worth the read!
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School Finance Picture Taking Shape
Tracie Rainey, Executive Director of the
Colorado School Finance Project
,
presented in Grand Junction at the West Slope School Finance Meeting immediately prior to the Western Slope Superintendents meeting last week. Tracie explained that the legislature will have anywhere between $500 to $600 million to spend in 2018-19 but cautioned the crowd that after funding K-12 growth and inflation and other state case load growth the legislature would have closer to $200,000 to $300,000 to spend on new programs and/or put towards paying back the Budget
Stabilization or BS (formerly the Negative) Factor, while other interest groups will be going after the same dollars.
While this is certainly a better scenario than last year, other interests; i.e., higher ed, PERA and transportation, will be vying for these funds and the pressures on the state's budget will be exacerbated by proposed cuts in federal programs, including the Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP), which will hit Rural districts hard.
The Governor's budget will be released on November 4th. Stay tuned...
Click here
for an action alert from AASA supporting the extension of CHIP.
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Colorado Education Network launches
Promise of Colorado
Campaign
The Colorado Education Network is a coalition of individuals and organizations committed to promoting public education in Colorado. The Network's P
romise of Colorado
campaign is designed to provide Coloradans with tools to advocate for public schools. The CEN is not a political initiative and is not advocating for any specific school finance/funding reform.
Members of the Network recognize that Colorado has one of the fastest growing economies in the country butt we are not adequately or equitably funding education and the consequences of this underfunding include:
- students losing out on educational opportunities,
- schools unable to attract and retain qualified teachers, and
- growing inequities across school districts.
The Rural Alliance has signed on as a member of the Colorado Education Network.
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The Governor's Education Leadership Council (ELC) held it's second meeting in Pueblo earlier this week.
Council members heard a presentation from Paul Teske (UC Denver School of Public Affairs) detailing the Colorado education landscape, which was designed to establish a shared fact base in four key areas: Early Childhood; K12, Higher Education and Workforce Development. The presentation also highlighted strengths and opportunity areas and compared Colorado to other states and countries.
Council members agreed on the need for a new vision or "culture" of education in Colorado. Achievement gaps, funding, and early childhood education were all cited as key challenges for our State.
Going forward, the Council will focus on gathering input from a broad array of stakeholders and learning more about innovative work around the State with the goal of building on that success. I
t is critical that committee members understand the rural perspective and we strongly encourage each of you to stay up to date on their work and get involved in the stakeholder input process.
Teske's presentation and updates on the Committees work can be found on the on the
Council's website
.
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Online Standards Feedback open thru November 27th
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CDE's online standards feedback system is designed to allow broad based feedback on proposed revisions to the:
- Colorado Academic Standards
- Colorado English Language Proficiency Standards
- New High School Voluntary Computer Science Standards
Click here t
o participate. Please share with your teachers and administrators. Their input is critical!
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Grant Funds for Rural Recruitment/Retention Initiatives
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The Colorado Center of Rural Education (CCRE) at the University of Northern Colorado has issued an RFP for
universities/colleges across the state that partner with rural school districts to develop/ expand programs for the recruitment, preparation, and ongoing support of educators in rural school districts.
Attendance at a “Proposal Summit” is required for all those who are planning to submit a proposal.
The summit will be convened on the UNC Denver Center at Lowry on Friday, December 15, 2017 for the purpose of reviewing proposal presentations from each University-Rural School District Partnership, providing feedback for strengthening proposals, and ensuring that the proposals meet statewide needs on a regional basis.
Final proposals are due by December 31, 2017. Funds will be distributed in January, 2018 and must be committed and encumbered by June 30, 2018. . The amount for approved partnerships is expected to be in the range of $40,000 to $60,000 and the CCRE expects to fund 5-7 proposals statewide.
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The Colorado Rural Education Collaborative: Rural Districts Working Together to Improve Student Outcomes
The
Colorado Rural Education Collaborative, led by Kirk Banghart, is doing some incredible work around the State.
Click here for their latest updates.
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Call for Nominations: Demont Leadership Award
The Demont Award was established in 2002 by Representative Jim Wilson to honor administrators from rural schools with 1,500 or fewer students who have demonstrated high moral character, compassion and positive contributions to public education. Rep. Wilson will present the award at the Rural Alliance Annual Breakfast, scheduled during the CASB convention at the Broadmoor, on Friday, December 1, 2017.
FOR NOMINATION PACKETS AND/OR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Jim Wilson – State Representative -- Colorado House District 60
AASA Executive Consultant for Rural & Small Schools
Completed nomination packets must be received in the Salida R-32-J Board of Education office on or before the close of business on October 31, 2017
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S-CAP Professional Development Opportunities!
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The Student-Centered Accountability Program (S-CAP) is actively looking for people to attend and participate as a Reviewer or Observer at the upcoming events listed below!
The Student-Centered Accountability Program (S-CAP), is a collaborative effort by six rural districts in Colorado to create a more comprehensive system of accountability than the state DPF system and to focus on "whole child" accountability through continuous improvement of the system. The program is focused on providing parents and the community accurate, well-rounded information to be used for strategic and continuous improvement.
To find an S-CAP event happening near you, check out the links below:
- Buffalo Merino S-CAP SSR, for more information, click here!
- Monte Vista S-CAP SSR, for more information, click here!
To learn more about S-CAP,
click
here
!
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7 Mindsets Making an Impact in Rural Schools Throughout the State
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The 7 Mindsets are actions and attitudes that can literally change the course of a person’s life. They represent the irrefutable, time-tested thinking at the heart of fulfillment, happiness and success on one's own terms, regardless of gender, race, nationality, or socio-economic background.
The 7 Mindsets are:
1.
Everything is Possible – Dream big, embrace creativity, and expect great results
2. Passion First – Pursue your authentic talents and deepest interests
3. We Are Connected – Explore the synergies in all relationships and learn to empower one another
4. 100% Accountable – Choose to be responsible for your own happiness and success
5. Attitude of Gratitude – Seek positives from every experience and be thankful for all you have
6. Live to Give – Inspire and serve others while maximizing your potential
7. The Time is Now – Harness the power of this moment, and take purposeful action today
7 Mindsets provides Social Emotional Learning tools, lessons, training and content to schools and communities using common language and framework leaders need to succeed long-term.
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Save the Date
The Rural Alliance Annual Breakfast will be held at the Broadmoor (during the CASB convention) on Friday, December 1st from 7:30 to 9:30 a.m.
We hope you can join us as we review our 2018 Advocacy Agenda and honor Representative Jim Wilson as a Rural Schools Champion and Phil Verden and Tim Snyder two of the Rural leaders responsible for founding the Rural Alliance (then the Rural Caucus). We will also recognize CASB's leadership for their significant contributions to this effort over the years.
We are excited to announce that the
2018 The National Forum for Rural Education
, sponsored by Battle for Kids and the National Rural Education Association, will be held in Denver on October 11-13. A team from Colorado attended the Forum in Ohio this year, which was filled with dynamic keynote speakers and presenters and provided the opportunity for valuable networking and relationship building between rural educators. Stay tuned for more details.
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Rural Champions and Advocacy Receptions
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Over 80 people showed up in Brush to honor two of our Rural Schools Champions, Senator Jerry Sonnenberg and Representative Jon Becker. The crowd included teachers, administrators, board members, superintendents, work force partners, higher education partners, county commissioners and hospital administrators from throughout the region.
As always, we appreciate the opportunity for candid conversation with two of our rural leaders and look forward to our next reception in Burlington on November 8th.
Click here
to register for the Advocacy Reception in Burlington November 8
Please email
Michelle Murphy
if you would like to schedule an advocacy reception in your region.
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First Joint Board/Advisory Committee Meeting
The Rural Alliance Board held it's first joint meeting with its Advisory Committee last week. The group had excellent discussions around funding, possible ballot initiatives, Rural funding and teacher pathways legislation. The Advisory Committee is made up of representatives from each of our Associate members: CASB, CASE, CEA, Great Ed and PEBC. The BOCES Association (CBA) is a long time Associate member and, due to the close relationships with BOCES and their Rural districts, has a voting member on the Alliance Board, currently Loraine Safer (SE BOCES).
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