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Departments of education officials meet to begin defining Colo. standards
By ARIANNA RANAHOSSEINI
The Aurora Sentinel
DENVER | The state departments of education and higher education met Tuesday to formally define standards for postsecondary and workforce readiness in education.
The definition aims to prepare high school graduates for college, the workforce and the global economy by emphasizing knowledge and skills in critical thinking, problem solving, innovation, global and cultural awareness, civic responsibility and work ethic.
“The educational life of a child in Colorado is a continuum,” Gov. Bill Ritter said. “It’s a continuum we pay attention to from the very beginning until the exit ramp, whatever that exit ramp is — if it’s high school, if it’s a junior college, community college, four-year university or beyond that.”
The formal adoption was the first step in a six-year process to further align preschool through postsecondary workforce readiness.
Next, the State Board of Education and the Colorado Commission on Higher Education plan to implement the definition as mandated by a bill passed in 2008. The bill, titled “Preschool to Postsecondary Alignment,” directed state agencies to create a plan to expose students to options for life after high school graduation.
This process is instrumental in fueling Colorado’s efforts for Race to the Top funds, as committees reached the definition six months sooner than anticipated.
Race to the Top is a competition between states to receive a portion of nearly $5 billion in reserved funds from the U.S. Department of Education.
“We continue to be in a very strong position for this,” said Lt. Governor Barbara O’Brien. “One of the requirements is that a state has to have a definition of college and career readiness.”
Both O’Brien and Ritter say that Colorado’s efforts to improve education are recognized in Washington D.C.
“Turning around failing schools is something that our biggest school districts, that had some problems, have really looked at, DPS has really tackled this the past few years,” Ritter said. “Washington, D.C., paid notice, and more importantly, Arne Duncan, who was the superintendent in Chicago, was paying attention to what we were doing in Denver and in Aurora.”
Further information on Race to the Top guidelines and Colorado’s proposal are to be released in late July.
The definition aims to prepare high school graduates for college, the workforce and the global economy by emphasizing knowledge and skills in critical thinking, problem solving, innovation, global and cultural awareness, civic responsibility and work ethic.
“The educational life of a child in Colorado is a continuum,” Gov. Bill Ritter said. “It’s a continuum we pay attention to from the very beginning until the exit ramp, whatever that exit ramp is — if it’s high school, if it’s a junior college, community college, four-year university or beyond that.”
The formal adoption was the first step in a six-year process to further align preschool through postsecondary workforce readiness.
Next, the State Board of Education and the Colorado Commission on Higher Education plan to implement the definition as mandated by a bill passed in 2008. The bill, titled “Preschool to Postsecondary Alignment,” directed state agencies to create a plan to expose students to options for life after high school graduation.
This process is instrumental in fueling Colorado’s efforts for Race to the Top funds, as committees reached the definition six months sooner than anticipated.
Race to the Top is a competition between states to receive a portion of nearly $5 billion in reserved funds from the U.S. Department of Education.
“We continue to be in a very strong position for this,” said Lt. Governor Barbara O’Brien. “One of the requirements is that a state has to have a definition of college and career readiness.”
Both O’Brien and Ritter say that Colorado’s efforts to improve education are recognized in Washington D.C.
“Turning around failing schools is something that our biggest school districts, that had some problems, have really looked at, DPS has really tackled this the past few years,” Ritter said. “Washington, D.C., paid notice, and more importantly, Arne Duncan, who was the superintendent in Chicago, was paying attention to what we were doing in Denver and in Aurora.”
Further information on Race to the Top guidelines and Colorado’s proposal are to be released in late July.
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