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PAID Denver, CO

PERMIT #5031

P.O. Box 4659Boulder, CO 80306www.jaredpolisfoundation.org

F a l l 22 0 0 5Jared PPol i s EEducat ion RReport

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Jared Polis Foundation

P.O. Box 4659

Boulder, CO 80306

Phone: 303-442-1130

Fax: 303-998-1694

www.jaredpolisfoundation.org

cconntaacct uuss!!Dear Coloradans,

I am excited to share with you the Fall 2005 issue of theJared Polis Education Report.This report contains importantinformation on after-school programs, Referenda C and D,and legislative updates. I welcome you to share any ideas withme at jpolis@jaredpolisfoundation.org or by mail at P.O. Box4659, Boulder, CO, 80306. Our children and community ben-efit when parents, neighbors and educators work together tomeet the needs of all Colorado students.

Jared PolisVice-Chairman and Member-At-Large

Colorado State Board of Education

Jared Polis FoundationThe Jared Polis Foundation works to build strong communities bysupporting education throughout the state of Colorado.We believeeducation is the source of strength, growth and sustenance for ourstate. We promote high standards in education through four mainapproaches: (1) providing technology resources through theCommunity Computer Connection public charity so that schoolsand non-profits can be successful in their work; (2) promotingschool reform and helping to open alternative schools of choice forthose with unique needs through Colorado Youth Charity; (3)encouraging and inspiring educators in their work through appreci-ation gifts and grant making opportunities; (4) informing the publicof policies and events impacting education in Colorado through oureducation report.

Not Paid for by Tax Dollars

SB 200 - School Finance Act(Sen.Windels/Rep. Pommer)This bill increases the minimum fundingper student to $5689; expands the "at-risk" funding factor to include students whose dominant language is not English; increases the "at-risk"funding factor; adds 3310 slots for theColorado Preschool Program - 2810for preschool and 500 for full-dayKindergarten; authorizes $200,000 for civic education programs; and,authorizes $83,000 for teachers' national credential fees.

SB 91 - Dropout and GraduationRate Calculation(Sen. Spence/Rep.T. Carroll)School districts use different ways to report high school graduation anddropout rates that often understate theactual numbers. This bill requires onestatewide method for calculating highschool graduation, dropout, mobility,continuing education, and promotionrates, to be determined by the StateBoard of Education.

SB 196 - School Land Trust(Sen. Owen/Rep. Buescher)This bill adds to long-term educationfunding by authorizing some lease

revenues from school trust lands to go to the intergenerational permanent school fund.

SB 81 - School Nutrition Policies(Sen. Sandoval/Rep. Madden)To support children's health, this billencourages school districts to have astudent nutrition and wellness policy by July 1, 2006, as required by federallaw. Areas may include ensuring accessto healthful food choices, informationabout nutritional content, and nutritional guidelines.

HB 1024 - Dropout PreventionFund(Rep. Solano/Sen.Williams)This bill establishes a state income taxcheck-off fund for school dropout prevention efforts that focus on before-and after-school, arts, and vocationaleducation programs. Please considerchecking off the dropout preventionfund box on your next income taxstatement.

HB 1246 - Alternatives to CSAPfor Students with Disabilities(Rep. Solano/Sen.Williams)Requires a study of whether it wouldbe appropriate for students with

Individual Education Plans to take testsother than the CSAP, whether scores of such assessments should be includedon the school's report card, at whatgrade level the test should be adminis-tered, and any effects on funding.

SB 32 - Preschool Count Dates(Sen.Williams/Rep. Hefley)Allows school districts to count preschool students and three- and four-year old students with disabilitieson November 1 instead of October 1.

SB 88 - Kindergarten(Sen. Shaffer/Rep. Solano)Quality Kindergarten and preschoolprograms are proven ways to save long-term costs because they improvechildren's learning and development and help close achievement gaps.This bill requires districts to provideKindergarten.

For all bills, additional details are omit-ted due to space constraints. If interest-ed in more information, please visitwww.jaredpolisfoundation.org

2005 Legislative Roundup

Printed on Recycled Paper

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CU Business Leadership Program

This November, Colorado voterswill have a chance to vote on twoballot measures on state revenueand spending: Referendum C and Referendum D. In the 2005session, Colorado legislators sentthese measures to the ballot. Bothreferenda would allow the state to override revenue and spendinglimits required by TABOR(Taxpayers Bill of Rights) to pay for specific services.

Referendum C would allow the state to spend or save all therevenue it collects for five years(2006-2010), to support schools,health care, roads, and police andfire fighter pensions. The measurewould allow an estimated $3.1 bil-lion to be spent during those fiveyears that would otherwise go to arefund mechanism. Referendum Dwould authorize bonds for construction and maintenanceprojects to:

!Support K-12 school construc-tion ($147 million)

!Support state universities, col-leges, and community colleges construction ($50 million)

!Repair and replace highways and bridges, and complete other specific transportation projects ($1.7 billion)

!Address shortfalls for pensions for police officers and firefighters ($175 million)

In addition to letting the statespend the revenues it collects,Referendum C would permanentlyeliminate the "ratchet effect" byallowing the state to return its revenue and spending to pre-recession levels.

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Referenda C and D

The Colorado Alliance of Boys & Girls ClubsThe University of Colorado's LeedsSchool of Business works to broadendiversity within the school and beyondthrough its Business LeadershipProgram. This program provides tophigh school students from diverse back-grounds with an understanding of busi-ness fundamentals, computer skills and a chance to network with business pro-fessionals, all on the Boulder campus.

The week-long program allows studentsto:!Win a $1,000 scholarship to the

school !Compete in an advertising

campaign !Interact with guest speakers from

major corporations !Meet Business School faculty and

administrators !Be a "CU Student for a Day" !Socialize with students and peers

from different high schools

The program selects 30 individuals peryear from 400 high schools throughoutColorado and looks for well-rounded,diverse students with strong academicperformance and community serviceinvolvement. It partners with majorcorporations and several local business-es for funding, guest speakers, trainingsessions and other resources.

For more information, contact AswadAllen at aswad.allen@colorado.edu, theOffice of Diversity Affairs at 303-735-5117 or 303-735-5644, or visithttp://leeds.colorado.edu

DU Bridge ProjectFor over 14 years the University of DenverGraduate School of Social Work has servedunderprivileged children and their parentsthrough its Bridge Project.Working in threeDenver public housing areas (South LincolnPark, Columbine and Westwood), the BridgeProject's programs have informed, educatedand motivated children and youth to stay inschool and improve their current and futureeducational opportunities.

The project's after-school program has recruit-ed a team of volunteers (including communitymembers, organizations, faculty and staff) toprovide needed services to children and theirparents. Through tutoring, reading programs,homework help, mentoring, clubs, and otheropportunities, the after-school program assistswith educational and social growth.A child mayalso choose to participate in other extracurricular activities provided by the programsuch as joining Boy Scouts, Girl Scouts or theChess Club.

Last year, the Bridge Project successfully helped385 children and more than 50 adults with itsservices. For more information, contact MaryKrane at mkrane@du.edu, 303-871-7405, orvisit www.du.edu/bridgeproject

In January 2005, a new statewide network was launched to increasestate and local support for after-school programs serving Coloradoschool-age children.With supportfrom local, state and national organizations, the Colorado After-School Network seeks to connectproviders with families and engagepolicymakers in an effort to supportthe development and sustainability of quality after-school programs.

Across the nation, after-school pro-grams are growing in importance insupport of educational outcomes anddevelopmental opportunities for allstudents. Research shows that youthwho participate in after-school programs are more likely to have better school attendance, improvedgrades, and are less likely to dropout1. In addition, quality after-schoolprograms support the needs of working parents by providing safe and supervised environments foryouth during the most at-risk hours.The time after the school day ends isthe peak period when youth engage inrisky behaviors such as drug and

alcohol use and juvenile crime2. InColorado, only 11% of children parti-cipate in an after-school programwhile 37% of children without a par-ent at home are left unsupervised inthe afternoon3.

To help meet this need, the Networkhas identified three broad-based goalsto guide its efforts:!Build public will - Develop a net-

work of statewide, regional, and local after-school programs and partners to build public will to support after-school programs

!Inform policy development - Monitor and analyze national, state,and local policies affecting after- school quality and funding, and advocate for policies that lead to long-term funding

!Improve quality of programs - Increase the quality and success of after-school programs through information sharing, peer network-ing, access to research, training,and evaluation

The Network will support efforts byColorado decision-makers to mobilize

and coordinate quality after-schoolprograms, and will be a criticalresource to parents, practitioners and policymakers.

For more information, please visitwww.jaredpolisfoundation.org

1 Huang, D., Gibbons, B., Kim, K.S., Lee, C., & Baker,E.L. (2000). A decade of results:The Impact of theL.A.'s BEST after school enrichment initiative in sub-sequent student achievement and performance.2 Fight Crime: Invest in Kids. (2000). America'sAfter-School Choice:The Prime Time for JuvenileCrime, Or Youth Enrichment and Achievement.3 Afterschool Alliance. (2004). America After 3pm.

Statewide After-School Network

For many years, the Boys and GirlsClub has provided valuable after-school programs for thousands of young people.These programshave focused on the following areasof childhood development and education:!Development of Character and

Leadership !Education and Career Assistance!Health and Life Skills!The Arts!Sports, Fitness and Recreation!Computer Technology

Together, the nine constituent organ-izations of the Colorado Alliance ofBoys & Girls Clubs serve nearly45,000 young Coloradans each year,including more than 27,000 ClubMembers. On any given school day,on average nearly 3,000 young people attend the local Clubs.That number is slightly higher during thesummer months when school is outof session. Currently, there are 32Boys and Girls Club sites inColorado, operated by eight localcorporations and four military bases.

Boys and Girls Club membershipranges in age from six to 18, andthree-quarters of the members areage 12 or younger.The Clubs havesignificant participation amongminority youth, and have had over2,100 volunteers supplement morethan 500 staff.

For more information, please contactyour local Boys and Girls Club orvisit www.bgca.org

F o r m o r e i n f o r m a t i o n , v i s i tw w w. j a r e d p o l i s f o u n d a t i o n . o r g

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