Recent studies show that the COVID pandemic led to big drops in testing scores. We must provide more resources to educators
education
Posted inEducation
A Colorado school cut teachers in anticipation of an enrollment drop. Then nearly 100 extra kids showed up.
Colorado Springs School District 11 officials asking remaining teachers at Jenkins Middle School to take on bigger workload
Posted inEducation
Denver teachers union, district reach agreement on 8.7% pay increase
The Denver teachers union and Denver Public Schools reached a tentative agreement that raises wages an average of 8.7%, sets starting salary a little above $50,000, and promises teachers more planning time during the work day. The announcement of a deal Thursday comes after a marathon bargaining session between the Denver Classroom Teachers Association and district leaders […]
Posted inEnvironment, Equity, News
As Colorado schools get hotter, air conditioning is still out of reach for some
Schools across Colorado began opening for the fall semester in the middle of August, with daytime temperatures reaching into the 90s in some places. Tens of thousands of Colorado public school students attend school in buildings with no air conditioning in their classrooms, and often—especially in buildings that are many decades old—no air conditioning in […]
Posted inEconomy, Education, Housing, News, Politics and Government
Colorado mountain town asks locals to open up their homes to teachers
EAGLE — Brian Trommater’s bedroom window opens up to a view of mountain slopes peeking out from behind clusters of trees, giving him a vantage point that often leaves him dazed by the thought that he’s living a dream. It’s an expansive backdrop for an otherwise tiny place to call home: His apartment covers about […]
Posted inEducation, News
Colorado teachers earn 36% less than other college-educated workers, the worst gap in the country
Teacher pay has long trailed behind other professions requiring a college degree, and in Colorado that pay gap is widest of any state, according to a report published last week by the Economic Policy Institute, a Washington, D.C.-based nonprofit think tank that identifies itself as nonpartisan. Colorado teachers earn 35.9% less than other college-educated workers, […]
Posted inNews
Colorado schools’ hardest jobs to fill: Bus drivers and special education
For Lacey Nelson, the weeks leading up to the start of school are a blur of spreadsheets, meetings, and calls from principals about last-minute teacher resignations. With less than two weeks to go, Denver Public Schools’ director of talent acquisition is still looking to hire 150 teachers, 275 paraprofessionals, and up to 45 bus drivers. […]
Posted inEducation, News
Colorado students have recovered some academic ground since COVID arrived but deficits remain, test results show
Colorado students made significant headway in overcoming academic setbacks due to pandemic-related hiccups in learning, but their progress still hasn’t set them fully back on track, according to state standardized test data published by the Colorado Department of Education on Wednesday. Colorado Measures of Academic Success assessments are typically conducted each spring as a way […]
Posted inEducation, News
How a Colorado Springs school co-op saves hundreds of thousands of dollars in health insurance costs
Pat Bershinsky has gifted his nearly 220 staff members $1,000 every Christmas for four years and once again gave bonuses this summer. The leader of one of Colorado’s school cooperatives has the extra cash because of a decision he made four years ago on employee health care. Bershinsky, executive director of the Pikes Peak Board […]
Posted inEducation, News
“At a crisis point”: Homes are out of reach for many Colorado teachers. What does that mean for schools?
Fewer than one-fifth of homes across Colorado are affordable to teachers who make an average salary in their district, even as average teacher salaries have increased by about 25% in the past seven years, according to a report published Tuesday by the nonpartisan Keystone Policy Center. The report puts numbers to a problem that prices […]