 |
Welcome to the NEWS for March 22, 2024
Explore post-secondary preparation from rural and urban perspectives in Colorado. Learn if authorizer evaluations predict success for new charter schools. Discover efforts to improve education for Hispanic students in Denver, and Colorado lawmakers' actions to support free school meals.
Be sure to explore the League's upcoming events and training sessions for the rest of the school year in the League's News & Events section below. If your campus has an update to share, please submit it to us by 12 PM each Thursday.
News & Commentary
Top News
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|
Local Headlines
Colorado charters on the back foot
Fordham Institute | March 21, 2024
The hits just keep on coming: Earlier this month, a motley crew of former Colorado lawmakers helped spur the introduction of a grotesque piece of legislation aimed squarely at dismantling the state’s venerable charter school sector. Read more.
Forget TikTok. Crocheting is the new craze at this Colorado elementary and middle school.
Colorado Sun | March 21, 2024
Endless chatter and bursts of laughter stream far out of Room 215 each Monday afternoon at Aurora’s Challenge School, where it sounds like students might be teaming up on learning the newest TikTok dance or solidifying plans for spring break. Read more.
New funding to create AI literacy in Colorado schools, preparing students for the tech industry
CPR News | March 20, 2024
A program that aims to build artificial intelligence literacy among Colorado students and educators received a $3 million seed grant from the Colorado Office of Economic Development and International Trade. It’s one of 43 grants awarded Wednesday by Gov. Jared Polis in the second round of grants to prepare Coloradans for in-demand jobs. Read more.
Reform group will report monthly on DPS key issue progress
Boardhawk | March 19, 2024
A school reform advocacy group on Monday presented the Denver Board of Education with a host of measurable goals to raise achievement, enhance student safety and make school data more accessible to parents and the public. Read more.
Charter School to Hold Public Interviews for New School Director
Pagosa Daily | March 18, 2024
Pagosa Peak Open School, the community’s district-authorized K-8 charter school, will be interviewing three finalists for the position of School Director today, Monday March 18, starting at 3pm. Read more.
The Forgotten: A case study
Boardhawk | March 18, 2024
Last year, my best friend, Stevon, was diagnosed with a rare cancer. When he went to his local doctor, they realized that the care and surgery he needed was outside of their skillset and resources. Read more.
Opinion: “Mean-spirited” legislation targets Colorado’s charter schools
The Denver Post | March 15, 2024
Charter schools have been an effective and popular option for hundreds of thousands of Colorado families, including many Black and Latino families. Read more.
Districts increasingly turn to 4-day school weeks to recruit, retain staff
K-12 Dive | March 14, 2024
It’s been over six years since Colorado’s 27J Schools implemented a four-day school week, and Superintendent Chris Fiedler says he doesn’t foresee the district going back to a traditional schedule. Read more.
National Views
Toward a more research-informed charter school application process
Fordham Institute | March 21, 2024
Like everyone else, we education reformers would love to have a crystal ball. Yet, in practice, predicting the performance of schools, like almost every other form of prediction, is inherently challenging. Read more.
Exclusive: Over 80% of Women Leaders in Education Experience Bias, Survey Shows
The 74 | March 19, 2024
At 5 feet tall, Uyen Tieu doesn’t tower over anyone, including many students. So when a superior said she was too petite to be anything but an elementary school principal, she figured he was probably right. Read more.
6 Tips for Spotting a High School That Best Prepares Teens for Their Futures
The 74 | March 19, 2024
High schools aren’t just learning factories that isolate students for about seven hours a day to earn a diploma. Read more.
Supreme Court protects public officials’ free speech rights in social media rulings
K-12 Dive | March 18, 2024
Decisions by public officials — including school board members — to block the public from their social media accounts violate the First Amendment only under some circumstances, according to two unanimous Supreme Court decisions handed down Friday. Read more.
What the Data Says About Pandemic School Closures, Four Years Later
NY Times | March 18, 2024
Four years ago this month, schools nationwide began to shut down, igniting one of the most polarizing and partisan debates of the pandemic. Read more.
Here’s When the Supreme Court Says School Officials Can Block Critics Online
The 74 | March 15, 2024
School board members can block constituents on social media only if they’re commenting on issues completely outside of their authority or sharing personal information, the U.S. Supreme Court said Friday, clarifying the First Amendment standard for governing on the internet. Read more.
Why are teachers missing so much school?
Fordham Institute | March 15, 2024
Last year, 43 percent of teachers in Chicago Public Schools were absent at least ten times. Read more.
Students to have lower lifetime earnings, graduation rates as a result of lower achievement
K-12 Dive | March 14, 2024
The latest NAEP results, released October 2022, showed declines in math and reading at grades 4 and 8 for the majority of states. Read more.
Community Announcements
Join the Charter Development Summit!
School of Choice is excited to announce its upcoming in-person Charter Development Summit on Thursday, April 4th, from 9:00 am to 3:30 pm at the Daniel’s Fund Offices (101 Monroe St, Denver, CO 80206). This summit aims to support new, replicating, and expanding charter schools, focusing on Community Engagement, Governance, Finance, Authorizing, and building Inclusive School Culture. With about 10 spots remaining, interested parties should sign up soon. Those unable to attend after registering are requested to email husbands_c@cde.state.co.us. Stay tuned for the final agenda later this week. All are welcome to participate!
OERColorado: Where Colorado Learns Through Shared Knowledge!
Budgets eating up curriculum funds? The OERColorado Project is a statewide initiative, funded through state and federal grants and administered by the Colorado River BOCES, to provide access to digital collections of free, openly licensed curriculum resources for PK-12+ educators. OERColorado is a digital library of Open Educational Resources (OER), textbooks, and classroom materials across subject areas, CTE, and communities of practice. Think “Teachers pay Teachers” but Free! For more information on how to use OERColorado resources in classrooms and with students, visit the “OERColorado” channel on YouTube or email OERColorado@gmail.com.
New School Applications: Do Authorizer Evaluations Predict the Success of New Charter Schools?
Join us next week at Third Thursdays as NACSA presents the forthcoming report from the Thomas B. Fordham Institute: "Do Authorizer Evaluations Predict New Charter School Success? Evidence From North Carolina." Featuring speakers Alex Quigley, Executive Director of Durham Charter School; Adam Kho, Assistant Professor at USC's Rossier School of Education; and David Griffith, Associate Director of Research at the Thomas B Fordham Institute. Engage in focused dialogue, ask questions, and delve into the report's implications for your work. Register now!
Save The Date and Celebrate National Charter Schools Week!
Join us in celebrating National Charter Schools Week! From May 12-17, 2024, the National Alliance for Public Charter Schools highlighting the incredible impact of charter schools on students, families, and communities across the nation. Explore success stories, learn about innovative programs, and join the conversation on social media using #CharterSchoolsWeek. Together, let's celebrate the diversity, excellence, and opportunity that charter schools provide. Visit the link to discover more and join the celebration!
Exciting Opportunity for Charter School Leaders: Fall Global Professional Learning Tour with EF Tours!
The Colorado League of Charter Schools is proud to partner with EF Educational Tours to offer school and network leadership (administrators, executive directors, CEOs, etc.) this unique professional development opportunity. APPLY NOW for a full scholarship to participate in travel-based learning in Panama from October 10th through 14th, 2024! Applications are due by Friday, April 5th, 2024. For more information, contact Heather Keeton, Educational Partnerships Manager for EF: heather.keeton@ef.com or 720.903.8639.
Get Your School in its A-GAME
Over the past five years, a bold group of charter school authorizers from across the country have been reflecting on better ways to measure school quality. We have embraced the slogan: Measure What Matters, When It Matters. We now know we can only go so far without YOU at the table. Join these upcoming conversations as we get on our A-GAME together.
Making Sense of 2024: A Presentation for High School Students
The current political context is daunting and discouraging for everyone, but perhaps most of all for young Americans. What is happening in our country’s politics, how did we get here, and what is our role within it? Drawing on history, political science, original research, and popular culture, Stephen Hawkins, Global Director of Research for More in Common, seeks to answer these questions in a way that is grounded, yet inspiring, all in a 35-minute presentation. Developed for students in grades 9-12, the presentation is 35 minutes followed by Q&A. For more information, contact Kelsie@moreincommon.com.
New Collaborative to Funds Charter Research
MIT Blueprint Labs recently launched a Charter School Research Collaborative to make charter research more actionable, rigorous, and efficient. The Collaborative will fund research proposals on long-term student outcomes, non-test score measures of school quality, the determinants of school quality, charter governance practices, and more (the full research agenda is here). The first request for proposals is now open, and Blueprint seeks proposals of various sizes, with grants ranging from $10,000 to $500,000 based on research scope and stage. Apply here by April 17, 2024.
Funding Opportunities
Cahn Fellowship
Cahn Fellowship provides advanced leadership development and recognition in large metropolitan areas to strong, talented school leaders to improve public education. The best schools are led by strong principals. Cahn Fellowship selects high-potential principals to participate in programs that maximize their talents and enhance their skills. These programs aim to have a dramatic impact on the performance of the school, the outcomes for the students, and the satisfaction and commitment of the principals themselves. Learn More.
CDE Updates
Nominate an Exceptional Teacher for the 2025 Colorado Teacher of the Year
Do you know an exceptionally dedicated, knowledgeable and skilled K-12 teacher? Nominate him or her to apply for the 2025 Colorado Teacher of the Year award by Tuesday, May 28. The selected teacher will represent the entire profession in the state and automatically become Colorado’s nominee for the National Teacher of the Year Program. For more information contact Patty Gleason at gleason_p@cde.state.co.us or 303-910-5721.
Summer Electronic Benefits Transfer data collection due Tuesday, April 30
The mandatory Summer Electronic Benefits Transfer data collection will be open from Monday, April 1, to Tuesday, April 30. Household income information may be collected from families through free and reduced lunch applications, a combo form or the Family Economic Data Survey form. CDE will host an S-EBT webinar training at 2 p.m. on Tuesday, March 26. and will also provide updates on the data collection during the Data Pipeline Town Hall every Thursday in March from 9 a.m. to 10 a.m. For more information and to access an informational flyer for families in English and Spanish, visit the Summer EBT webpage. For questions, contact Madeleine Breza at s-ebt@cde.state.co.us or 720-471-7049.
Engage, Learn, Connect with CDE
On April 4th, an in-person Charter Development Summit at the Daniel’s Fund Offices in Denver, CO, from 9am-3pm, will cover essential topics for new, replicating, and expanding charter schools, focusing on Community Engagement, Governance, Finance, and Inclusive School Culture. Secure your spot now!
Math instruction professional development
Elementary, middle school and high school teachers are invited to register for free online professional development in math instruction. The virtual asynchronous sessions will begin in June and will provide participants with practical tools and techniques to engage students, foster deeper understanding and cultivate an engaging learning environment around math. For more information contact Rachel Moore at moore_r@cde.state.co.us.
Colorado Educator Loan Forgiveness Program opens March 15
Colorado educators can apply for student loan forgiveness beginning Friday, March 15. The program is designed for Colorado educators who are later in their career. Disbursement of payments will begin in July. This program is limited and not all who apply can be awarded. First preference will be given to applicants in approved rural schools/districts, followed by applicants in content-shortage area in non-rural schools/districts. Learn more about program qualifications on the Colorado Department of Higher Education website. For more information contact April Gonzalez at April.Gonzales@dhe.state.co.us.
Informational CMAS Science & AEC Performance Framework Results Now Live
The 2023 informational performance framework reports containing 2023 CMAS Science for all districts and attendance/truancy results for Alternative Education Campuses have been provided to district accountability contacts via Syncplicity. For questions related to Syncplicity, training or support, email accountability@cde.state.co.us.
Prevention & Promotion Science Professional Development
This spring the Colorado State University Prevention Research Center, in partnership with CDE, will offer one-day, in-person regional training sessions on prevention science to support evidence-based prevention programs, practices and policies in schools. Afterward, participants can join remote learning communities to share their successes and challenges. The training dates and locations will be determined with interested district and school staff. Email Aubrie Radford at aubrie.radford@colostate.edu if you’re interested in participating. For more information contact Chauncey Stephens at stephens_c@cde.state.co.us or 720-355-3026.
League News & Events
|
|||||
|
|||||
|
Health & Wellness
Professional Development
Empowerment Through Education: Stewards of Children Training - April 24, 2024
April 24 | 2 PM MT
Stewards of Children is an evidence-informed, award-winning training designed to empower adults with practical actions to reduce instances of child sexual abuse in organizations, families, and communities. By participating, you'll acquire valuable insights, skills, and resources to recognize, respond to, and contribute to creating a safer environment for youth. Register here.
Improving Student Health & Wellness for Educators
May 9
The Colorado Healthy Schools Collaborative is excited to announce the upcoming
hybrid meeting on May 9 th, 2024! The meeting will be held in person in Colorado Springs and hosted virtually. In addition to the meeting, we have a variety of professional development opportunities available in the afternoon. Review the May 9 event schedule and register!
Prioritizing Well-Being Among School and District Staff, Educators & Administrators
April 11 | 2 PM MT
Health and well-being are fundamental to our success in educating youth, engaging families, collaborating with colleagues, and maintaining a healthy work-life balance. All school and district staff, regardless of position or title — including cafeteria workers, bus drivers, paraprofessionals, teachers, and administrators — are encouraged to attend this no-cost, webinar series. Register here.
The Impact of Stress on Learning and Behavior
April 15-16 | 8 AM - 4:30 PM MT
Hosted By: Mountain Plains MHTTC
Registration Deadline: February 23, 2024
Register here.
Free Health Equity Training
On-Demand
Check out the Prevention Technology Transfer Center (PTTC)’s 90-minute recording of Equitable Language and Why it Matters. School Health Professionals play a vital role in student health! Register here.
Enroll in the Health Equity Online Module, a 2.5-hour, self-paced online course from the Rocky Mountain Public Health Training Center. The course is free and meant for those who are serious about walking their health equity talk but aren’t quite sure how to get started.
Register here.
Resources
Study: Overscheduling Harms Students' Well-being
A recent data analysis by economists from the University of Georgia and the Federal Reserve Board highlights the psychological costs of overscheduling for students, particularly during high-school years. The study reveals that excessive homework and extracurricular activities can harm mental well-being, making students more anxious, depressed or angry. Read more in The Hechinger Report.
Recess for Adults
You are, let’s say, eight years old, sitting at your school desk. Yes, that desk: the one that confines you in your chair, the one sitting in orderly roles, where you are supposed to do, well, whatever, with self-control and, above all, without causing trouble. Getting things done, under the teacher’s gaze. The bell rings. You are overcome with adrenaline-fueled excitement. It’s recess. Let’s go out to the playground. Doing something else. Read more.
Educator Residency Improves Teacher Diversity, Well-being
PEBC's pilot program, supported by a $1.5 million, 2-year grant from Kaiser Permanente, aims to rebuild the educator workforce in Colorado by recruiting teachers from historically underserved populations. The Teacher Residency program, aligned with the Thriving Schools initiative, focuses on integrating social and emotional well-being into classrooms to address burnout and retention challenges exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic. Notably, during the 2022-2023 school year, 9% of teaching positions in Colorado remained unfilled. Since the grant, the program has seen a 32% increase in participants from historically underrepresented groups, with retention rates 25% higher than the national average for program graduates. Learn more about the impactful PEBC Teacher Residency program.
Free Crisis Services
Colorado Crisis Services offers free, confidential support 24/7. Call 844-493-TALK (8255) or text TALK to 38255. Walk-ins are welcome for all Colorado residents, regardless of ability to pay. Visit the website for mental health, substance use, or emotional concerns.
Jobs
| Careers |
Recent League Newsletters
- ACT (March 20, 2024)
- NEWS (March 8, 2024)
- MOVE (March 15, 2024)
- LEGISLATIVE UPDATE (March 11, 2024)
- CONNECT COHORT (March 14, 2024)
|
||||||||
|
||||||||
|
||||||||
|
| © 2024 Colorado League of Charter Schools |