Looking for something a little different than the traditional schooling model, maybe even cutting edge and innovative? After all, exposing Colorado families to more choices and educational options is a big part of what the “glimpse at new schools” series is all about.

You might be interested in this: Aurora Public Schools opens the doors of Vista PEAK Exploratory in August. The school was highlighted a few months back in a story for the Aurora Sentinel:

It’s an approach that will offer students a new way of planning their education from an early age, one that will give children access to specialized programs in science, math, visual arts, business and other areas. This new “pathways” method will play a central role in the Vista PEAK Exploratory School on East 6th Avenue and Harvest Road that’s set to open later this year, the first part of a campus that’s eventually slated to include a high school and a satellite college campus.

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Several weeks ago I very briefly highlighted a School Reform News piece written by my Education Policy Center friend Ben DeGrow on an innovative public charter school network in California that may someday soon come to Colorado.

The name? Rocketship Education. It couldn’t be more cool, makes me think about becoming an astronaut someday. Even better, the school is helping needy students in San Jose learn a lot using a unique hybrid model to divide instruction between the traditional classroom and the online “Learning Lab.” Rocketship schools are able to save money and resources for other key priorities in the process.

Well, Rocketship CEO John Danner is coming to Denver this Friday to speak at the Donnell-Kay Foundation’s Hot Lunch event. Before making his trip, Mr. Danner joined Ben DeGrow for a new iVoices podcast (click the link or the play button below) to discuss what sets his schools apart, his vision for education reform and possible future plans for Rocketship Education (maybe coming to Colorado?):

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On Friday my Education Policy Center friends took in the presentation and tour of new Standards-Based Education (SBE) system in the local Adams School District 50 (Westminster). It’s the largest school district in the nation to have taken such a bold departure from the traditional system of age-based grade levels and familiar letter grades.

Under the leadership of Superintendent Roberta Selleck, District 50 decided to move outside the box in addressing the challenges of a long-term decline in student enrollment coupled with growing rates of student poverty and limited English proficiency. The district is just completing its first full year using the SBE system, and there’s definitely something exciting and innovative going on. The system is about so much more than can be squeezed into a blog post, but here’s 16summary thoughts about SBE: Continue Reading »

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When you write about a lot of education policy, you often get tied up in talking about laws and systems and structures and statistics — you know, big picture stuff. Once in a while, it’s refreshing to read about the real-world impact of a dedicated teacher who excelled at her work.

In that spirit, you really have to read a nice tribute to recently deceased Cole Arts and Science Academy kindergarten teacher Mary Pat Holliday. It’s written by Jason Janz, who serves on the Cole leadership team, and more importantly, whose son was on Mrs. Holliday’s “bucket list.”

Here’s an excerpt to stir the heart and moisten the eyes (so you go read the rest of it): Continue Reading »

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For the real Independence Institute groupies out there (like those who watched my friends Ben and Marya DeGrow this past Friday on Mike Zinna’s Tough Love TV show… Thanks for the plug, guys!), you know that Ben is a frequent writer and contributing editor to the national publication School Reform News.

On this Monday morning back from spring break and Easter holiday, wouldn’t you just rather read Ben’s latest School Reform News article? Yeah, I thought so. This one is really good. It profiles a successful “hybrid” — and I ain’t talkin’ about a green Toyota Prius — charter school network that effectively reaches poor students through a mixture of individualized learning technology and intensive teacher intervention. Go on, read it: Continue Reading »

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Back before Christmastime, I told you about the promising work going on in the once-troubled Cole Arts and Science Academy in Denver, thanks to its newfound liberating status as an Innovation School.

Well … freedom and autonomy lend themselves not only to innovation but also toward groundbreaking partnerships not nearly as likely to take place in the traditional public K-12 school system. Determined to place their mostly poor students on a track of college success, Cole parents and leaders recently have reached out to the Denver School of Science and Technology (DSST) charter school as a potential partner. Continue Reading »

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Ed News Colorado’s top-line story today details the “surprising findings” of a new National Association of Charter School Authorizers report that a majority of Denver Public Schools students attend schools that don’t meet district performance expectations:

“There are 20,000 elementary school students in the Denver Public Schools system who … don’t have a performing elementary school to go to,” said NACSA vice president William Haft. “That’s half the elementary-aged students in the system.”

Discouraging results? In some sense, yes. But we have known that a lot of hard work remains before us in improving educational outcomes for American students, especially poorer students in urban settings. And the fact that Denver actually has been serious about establishing and using a performance framework puts the district ahead of some of its peers. The report is fascinating, with a lot of detailed information, so it’s worth a read.

But one observation highlighted in the Ed News Colorado story caught my attention: Continue Reading »

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You can write about education issues a lot, have your eyes focused on the future, and still miss some of the debates that are going on out there. Washington Post blogger Valerie Strauss says that schools need to hire more male teachers, especially in the early grades, for the sake of boys. Citing Richard Whitmire’s book Why Boys Fail, blogress extraordinaire Joanne Jacobs responds: “Boys can learn without male teachers.”

While I don’t have much to add to the debate, I at least have a vested interest in the discussion. As a boy, I want a smart and caring teacher who keeps the standards high and doesn’t let me get away with nonsense. (Someone who believes in homework quality over quantity, and has a soft spot for Legos and Mr. Potatohead, would also be appreciated.)

More important for troubled boys than whether their teacher is male or female is expanded opportunity for an excellent education through school choice. That’s what Independence Institute senior fellow Krista Kafer persuasively argued for in “The Boy Crisis in Education” (an Independent Women’s Forum publication), and that’s what I’m sticking with.

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Today’s Denver Post has an excellent story about a generous Christmas deed performed at a truly inspirational school:

Millionaire businessman Tom Gamel stood before a classroom of sixth-graders at Cole Arts & Science Academy on Wednesday, about to blow their minds with a nifty gift, but first, he wanted to impart some wisdom.

“I am a very lucky person,” said Gamel, who owns Timpte Trailers and has made wise investments. “The reason I am able to buy you each a present is because of education. I want to urge you, if you want to grow up and be successful, get an education.” … Continue Reading »

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As conservative Mike Rosen notes in his column today for the Denver Post, a big school board race is underway in the Douglas County School District. My Education Policy Center friend Ben DeGrow researched and wrote a neat report (PDF) last year on the district’s innovative local licensure program.

For those not in the know, Douglas County is Colorado’s third-largest school district and is located immediately south of Denver, a mix of suburban and rural communities with one of the lowest poverty rates in the state. Education reform in high-poverty urban areas typically receives the most attention, and rightly so. But does that mean a district like Douglas County has reached a plateau, and doesn’t need reform? Continue Reading »

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