- Denver’s school district has captured the national spotlight for reforms like closing schools and reopening them with bold turnaround plans. The changes didn’t come easily. It took rancorous debate and a slim majority vote on Denver’s seven-member school board.
- For a young person, reciting Shakespeare is a lofty challenge: the language is at times beautiful and subtle, at times dangerous and passionate. On Sunday, students from across the state competed to recite Shakespeare’s words with feeling and clarity.
- More and more kids in the state are choosing online schools. And when they do, they’re going on your dime. Just like you pay for the public school down the street, you pay for these virtual campuses. But are they a good investment of tax dollars?
- As competition increases between schools to attract students, the pressure is on for principals to raise test scores and retain good teachers. Yesterday, we spent time with principal Peter Sherman as he got ready for the new school year. The 9-year principal is fresh off a training fellowship.
- As pressure builds for school reform, the spotlight is shining brightly on principals. A good one can raise test scores and retain families and good teachers. Today we’ll visit with one principal who has made great strides. But Peter Sherman’s not resting yet.
- Coloradans marked the 10th anniversary of the Sept. 11 attacks at several events across the state. Colorado Public Radio Reporters Pat Mack and Jenny Brundin attended two of the largest gatherings and have this report. Here are the transcripts of their reports. [Photos: Pat Mack and Jenny Brundin/CPR] Reporter: I’m Pat Mack.
- On 9/11, all over Colorado, classroom teachers scrambled for how to react to the day’s horrifying events. In fact, they’re still trying to figure it out today. For one student, just watching how his veteran teacher responded that day would have a lasting impact on his own future.
- Probably most families with kids in school know how hard it is to catch the school bus every time, especially if they have chosen a school further from home. Parents in northeast Denver found the traditional bus system wasn’t working. So they began pushing for a more flexible bus system with more options.
- A year ago, low test scores, poor morale and dwindling enrollment plagued Lake Middle school in northwest Denver. Parents began pushing for change. So the district embarked on a controversial plan to reconfigure the school and give students more options. A year later, Denver’s superintendent calls the changes a “middle school renaissance.”
- It was the end of an era of sorts, for those who oversee the tests teachers and students sweat over every spring. For the 15th and final time, education leaders yesterday released the CSAP results. The tests measure how students are doing in reading, writing, math and science.
- Are Colorado’s kids getting the kind of education required by the state constitution? A Denver district judge will consider that question starting today and her decision could have a huge impact on how the state funds schools — and how much it spends. We’ll interview the family that helped spark the lawsuit.
- Douglas County is trying something no one’s tried before in order to give public money to support students in private schools. The idea is to create a charter school – unlike any other charter school in Colorado. It’s only goal? To run a voucher program for students to attend private schools.
- More students than ever are entering college in the U.S. But once they get there, many drop out. That ends up costing states a lot of money, because tuition’s often subsidized. And it means employers aren’t getting the highly skilled workers they need.
