News outlets around Colorado are covering a growing phenomenon in school districts across Colorado: back-to-school supply lists that have expanded far beyond the old pencil and notebook lists of the past.
When we asked our supporters to tell us us about the high cost of back to school, we learned a lot about the growing user fees associated with "free" public schools:
From E.D. in Jeffco:
We spent about $30 on school supplies for a Kindergartener going half day! . . . The most unexpected item was $8 for 2 large (75+) containers of Clorox Wipes. After all of that, we still had to pay a $25 supply fee. . . . I don't know how many families can afford this.
E.W. answered that question:
I have two boys in Elementary school, it cost us 140 dollars for school supplies this year. That is a week's worth of groceries. We have been eating very poorly to try to compensate for the cost.
From C.P. in Boulder:
I spent $100 on supplies for my middle schooler + $450 in fees! I spent $25 on my elementary schooler + $55 ON FEES.
So much for free public education.
From K.L. in Douglas:
I have spent about $440 including elementary band fees. Today we are going to buy a NetBook for my son (5th grade) to increase his access to technology at school, something I really value. The school did not ask for this, but did recommend it.
The Aurora Public School Distict just voted to create its vision for next five years -- called "Vista 2015" -- including the ambitious goal of 80% student proficiency. Also included in their vision was the goal to expand access to quality preschool programming.
The final draft includes amendments from the original Vista 2015 draft introduced last year, changes that reflect the district's looming budget shortfalls and financial challenges. Specifically, the new draft eliminates an item related to the construction of new preschool classroom space. In the original draft, a set of achievement goals called for an "increase in the number of quality preschool classrooms by 10 percent annually for the next 10 years."
In the new version, the item had been eliminated "due to funding."
Extensive research shows that early childhood education is the key to ensuring that kids are proficient in skills by third grade and won't be left behind, but Colorado's poor investment in P-12 means that this most fundamental building block to academic success will have wait (even though the 3, 4 & 5 year olds of Aurora, can't).
Great Ed and the Great Futures coalition are working to ensure that strategic plans in Aurora and all over the state can look at what our kids need for success, and that Colorado will have the resources to make sure it's a reality. Stay informed with news updates and easy ways to take action.
**UPDATE** A new audit of higher ed tuition and fees underscores why Colorado needs to find ways to improve higher ed funding -- rather than decimate it via 60, 61 & 101. From Ed News Colorado:
Fees at state colleges and universities jumped 142 percent from 2006 to 2010 while tuition increased 69 percent, according to a state audit released today. Total tuition and fees rose 76 percent in that time period.
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Last Friday, the Colorado Commission on Higher Education passed a resolution officially opposing Amendments 60, 61, and Proposition 101, citing the even more drastic cuts that K-12 and higher education would experience should these measures pass this November:
As noted in this Colorado Statesman article, the Great Futures coalition is just getting started.
[Great Ed Policy Director Lisa] Weil said the Great Futures Colorado and the DECIDE coalitions were committed to working with other groups to make sure that something would appear on the 2011 ballot that would bring relief to school districts and public colleges and universities. She did not close the door entirely to working with the General Assembly on another effort in its next session. "If they're interested in doing this, fabulous," she said. "We'll make sure they hear from their constituents. But we won't wait for them" to act, she added.
Find out how your organization can be a part of this growing movement here.
NEWS RELEASE
Great Futures Colorado Campaign
July 15, 2010
New Report Surveys K-12 Cuts for Upcoming Year
Education Coalition: "We will not let another year pass without giving voters the opportunity to provide a better legacy for our children."
DENVER - Responding to the negative impact of state budget cuts on Colorado students detailed in a new report by the Colorado School Finance Project, the Great Futures Colorado coalition today released an open letter to Colorado voters. By signing the letter, hundreds of Coloradans statewide joined the coalition's call for a ballot measure in 2011 to address Colorado's education funding crisis.
The CSFP Report details the decisions made by districts and charter schools throughout the state to meet the requirement that they passed a balanced budget for the 2010-11 school year by June 30, 2010. The Report indicates that districts throughout the state are resorting to cost-cutting measures that will have a significant and lasting impact on students and families: increased class sizes, shorter school years, transportation and technology fees, deferred textbook purchases, reduced art, music and physical education programs, and even four-day school weeks.
"The report makes clear that kids throughout Colorado will be returning to more crowded classrooms, for fewer days, and with narrower curriculum," said Lisa Weil, Policy Director of Great Education Colorado, a member of the Great Futures coalition. "With the real threat of even greater cuts to K-12 and higher ed looming for the next two years, public education supporters recognize this crisis will only deepen until the voters are given the opportunity to fix it."
Great Futures is a diverse and growing coalition of community and statewide organizations that was formed in January 2010 to advocate for a P-20 education system that has the resources to prepare all children for the challenges of the 21st century. Earlier this year, the coalition called on the legislature to refer a measure to the ballot in November 2010 to provide a mechanism for preventing even deeper cuts, but the legislation failed.
"We cannot stand idly by as cuts grow deeper every year," said Lynn Huizing, President of Colorado PTA, a member of the Great Futures coalition. "Our constituents understand that our children can't wait any longer for us to get our priorities straight and live our values. This letter is their way of saying inaction is no longer an option."
More than sixty communities - from Arvada to Yampa, and Grand Junction to Rush - are represented in the open letter. Signers of all walks of life, ages, political parties, and occupations added their names to the list, showing the breadth and depth of support for public education in Colorado.
The text of the open letter and list of signers follows.
Though news about school district operating funding remains grim, good news continues to be generated by the "Building Excellent Schools Today (BEST)" school construction program. Yesterday, the BEST board recommended approval of another $245 million for specific school construction grants throughout the state. This brings the total number of BEST projects to 63. As State Treasurer Cary Kennedy, an architect of the BEST program, noted:
"These are aging schools that have critical needs. . . . These funds will be used to remove asbestos, make sure buildings have heat in the winter, and fix fire systems and roofs. These are basic health and safety measures that we can't afford to ignore. “
"This construction is creating jobs in addition to meeting health and safety needs,” said Kennedy. “People are going to work across the state on these projects.”
The 2008 BEST legislation was inspired by statewide tours conducted by Great Education Colorado and Children's Voices in 2007. Among the districts that received initial approval for projects is Holly, Colorado. With the BEST grant (and a local match), Holly will be able to finally replace the elementary school building that former Governor Roy Romer attended -- a building that has been strapped together with the metal equivalent of a rubber band for years. Two years ago, Great Ed visited the Holly district, and then traveled across the border to Kansas, for a comparison.
Sadly, even the good news from BEST is burdened with a shadow: if Amendment 61 passes this November, the BEST program will end:
Voters statewide also may have an influence on the BEST projects, which are funded by lease-purchase agreements called certificates of participation, or COPs in government lingo. Amendment 61 on the November ballot would ban use of COPs.
"All bets are off if Amendment 61 passes," said Dave Van Sant, a retired superintendent who serves on the [School Capital Construction Assistance] Board.
You don't have to go much past the headlines in Sunday's Denver and the West section to feel the pulse of school districts in Colorado: School districts' hands are tied on 'brutal cuts' reads the headline on the front page. The "jump" follows with: SCHOOLS: Nothing safe from cuts Beyond the headlines, the Post article sums up the larger context for Colorado -- the facts that make Colorado's cuts more dire than those in most other states:
Colorado was already ranked near the bottom of kindergarten-through-12th-grade funding compared with other states. Now with the recession, major programs are being slashed everywhere.
The Post story gives an accounting from several metro districts (Adams 12, Douglas, Cherry Creek, Denver, Jeffco, Littleton, Aurora and Englewood) of a now-familiar parade of educational opportunities and resources that will be lost to kids throughout Colorado because of the state's funding shortfall: -- Eliminating sports -- Laying off teachers (168 in Douglas alone) -- Imposing transportation fees -- Imposing technology fees -- Cutting foreign-language programs, art, music and physical education classes -- Increasing class size -- Closing schools -- Adding a sixth period for high school teachers -- Dipping into reserves, with little hope of restoring them
When will it get better? The immediate prognosis isn't good. State economists issued revenue forecasts today that will require $72 million more in state cuts for the 2010-11 year. In addition, assistance from the federal government has stalled, making it possible that another $200 million beyond that may have to be slashed from Colorado's budget.
Even worse, three initiatives on the November ballot (Amendments 60, 61 and Proposition 101) would decimate school funding even further if passed. Ultimately, this devastating trend will end only when the voters of Colorado decide together to solve our statewide school funding crisis with a statewide solution at the ballot box. Take a stand and add your voice to the growing network of Coloradans committed to giving Colorado voters that choice in 2011. Colorado's kids have waited too long already.
Here's one model: a state sets high educational standards, creates a system of accountability to assess progress toward those standards, and provides the resources necessary to ensure that all kids can be successful.
Then there's the Colorado model. Over the last several legislative sessions, Colorado has been addressing the first two planks, but when it comes to the third -- resources -- it's catch as catch can. For years, as Colorado has drifted ever farther behind the nation in per pupil funding, our public schools have depended on private funding: grants, parent fundraising, activity fees, foundations, and occasionally the sympathy of well-wishers in other states.
In fact, private spending on public schools may be the only category where Colorado has ranked recently in the top ten. (See pages 17-18 of this report by Great Ed board member, Professor Paul Teske.) With historic cuts coming in the next school year, desperate parents, districts and community members are -- by necessity -- relying more and more heavily on fundraising, fees and grants. A few examples: -- Douglas County has not only been forced to impose transportation fees and increasing technology and athletic fees, it has also beefed up its foundation efforts, even soliciting nation-wide donations.
Time and time again, this blog has commented on how Colorado's school funding failures have impeded progress toward promising reforms like summer school and extended hours, especially for at-risk kids.
This week the Denver Post highlighted the same issue in an article aptly titled: "School's out, but should it be?":
A movement is underway to lengthen the school year, or at least provide students with year-round academic enrichment to prevent "the summer slide."
But districts continue to cut programs as budgets have shrunk.
Research shows most students fall more than two months behind in math over the summer break. Low-income children fall behind two to three months in reading while their middle- and upper-income peers make slight gains, according to the National Summer Learning Association.
"Summer learning loss . . . it's devastating," said U.S. Education Secretary Arne Duncan in an interview posted on the U.S. Education Department's website. "We need to do something about it." (Emphasis added).
The Post notes that some summer school programs are available where federal or private funds can be cobbled together. It's an open secret, however, that Colorado is falling down on the job, when it comes to this most obvious, universally recognized need.
DPS Superintendent Tom Boasberg said the district should do more.
"More than half of our kids (are) below grade level," Boasberg said. "Having that additional time is clearly a critical opportunity to allow those kids to catch up. . . ."
"Ultimately, it is a conversation for us as a state to have," Boasberg said. "If we are going to reduce the dropout rate and get kids back on track, one key part of that is having a longer school day and year."
When will Colorado be ready to have the adult conversation about providing the resources that most recognize as necessary to advance important reforms?
If we want to turn Colorado around, we'd better start now.
It's an election year. Sometimes that means that the things that get talked about don't always bear much relation to what really matters. But election year or not, one conversation that is critical for Colorado's future is the one about what kind of legacy we want to pass on to our children and what we need to do to make that possible.
That's the conversation that the Great Futures Colorado coalition sought to advance by proposing the DECIDE referendum during the recent legislative session.
It's also the issue raised in a recent Education News post by Paul Teske, Dean of the University of Colorado, Denver School of Public Affairs.
Indeed, if we are to sustain an adequate K-12 education system, and any publicly-funded higher education system at all, much less aspire to the great, and reformed, system many of us would like to see, the state fiscal picture needs to be addressed. Soon.
Part of that requires an ability of polite people to have adult conversations about taxes. Not just "NOOO."
I am often struck by the battle lines in Colorado of reformers, who believe we can make radical changes even with the same low (below national average) funding, versus those who advocate for more, and more fair, funding (and are often derided as somehow being "anti-reform"). These things should go together more.
Reform done badly, often because it is done on the cheap, is likely to backfire and slow ultimate progress. . .
So, how about more money and reform working together? "Gifts, donations, and private philanthropy" are probably not enough to produce a very good evaluation system for 50,000 teachers statewide, especially given the need for better assessments and evaluation training (and, at the same time that CAP4K curriculum changes will be implemented, without enough money).
Professor Teske's well-respected voice adds a critical perspective to Colorado's public conversation about the future of education and of our state. Great Ed is thrilled and honored to welcome him to our board.
As this school year ends, districts around the state are setting next year's budgets, coping with deep cuts in state funding, and determining what kind of educational opportunities will be waiting for Colorado kids when they return from summer break.
There's no shortage of information about the devastating effects state budget cuts are having on students. The Great Futures interactive map provides stories, videos and articles about the current and future impact of inadequate resources. Education News Colorado recently compiled data about the "Historic Cuts Hammer[ing] Districts" in the metro area. And newspaper and broadcast outlets continue to cover the unfolding decisions from districts around the state. A recent sampling:
Douglas County parents will now have to pay about $180 annually for a child to ride the bus to their "free" public schools.
Likewise, students in the Adams 12 Five-Star and Woodland Park school districts are expected to pay new transportation fees next year.
Jeffco Public Schools would cut 136 employee positions under a proposed budget rolled out May 13 that cuts $14 million over the previous year's spending.
Increased class sizes, higher athletic fees, fewer transportation routes and reduced choices for electives would result from the budget, which was designed in the face of massive cuts in state funding.
In the face of unending cuts, some districts, (including Littleton, which has already closed schools and dropped over 200 positions over the past three years), are considering going to their voters for a mill levy increase. If approved, those increases will do a critical service for district kids -- preventing deeper cuts. But even a successful mill election won't be able to reverse the multi-year slide in state support that schools are now enduring.
With the failure of the legislature to put DECIDE on the November ballot, Colorado voters won't have an opportunity to prevent or reverse cuts for the coming school year. But we can ensure that Coloradans will have a chance in November 2011 to stop and reverse these devastating cuts. Link here to take your stand,
Much to our dismay, if you received our email from Representative Debbie Benefield and tried to take action after 1:46 pm on Wednesday, you probably got an error message.
The server outage that caused the problem has now been resolved, so you can sign our open letter to the voters of Colorado here.
Our apologies for any inconvenience and thanks for your support.
Less than a week after the Colorado legislature killed DECIDE along with any hope of preventing education cuts in 2011, the voters of Arizona took a different path. On Tuesday, by a margin of almost two-to-one, Arizona voters approved a one penny sales tax increase that will prevent deeper cuts to education.
"Doing the right thing almost always means doing the hard thing, and today, (voters) did the hard thing," Gov. Jan Brewer told a crowd of about 200 people gathered at Madison Middle School in Phoenix.
She thanked the volunteers, who she said put partisanship aside to help pass the measure.
With this vote, Arizona joins Oregon in passing ballot initiatives this year to protect public education from further cuts.
Would Colorado voters do the same? Unfortunately, with the end of DECIDE, we won't have a chance to find out -- this year. Next year, however, is a different story. . .
Below is the vote tally from Wednesday's third reading House vote on HCR1002, the DECIDE measure.
What did this vote mean? Those who voted "yes" on HCR1002 were supporting Colorado's last chance to prevent crippling cuts to education in 2011. They were supporting an effort to give the voters control over the future of our schools, colleges and universities. They were voting to let us DECIDE: whether to continue making deep Education Cuts or whether instead to Invest in our Democracy and Economy.
Next year, class sizes will grow, tuition will increase, and educational opportunities will shrink. It should be remembered that the legislators with a "Y" by their names had the courage to try to do something about it.
Our thanks to the House members below who stood up for Colorado's kids and future:
Great Education Colorado is a nonpartisan, statewide, grassroots organization of public school
supporters that advocates for adequate funding for K-12 education in Colorado.
1600 Downing St | Denver, CO 80218 | 303.722.5901
You don't have to go much past the 
Here's one model: a state sets high educational standards, creates a system of accountability to assess progress toward those standards, and provides the resources necessary to ensure that all kids can be successful. 
