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253B7D5D3B194143872586640075A31D Hearing Summary




PUBLIC
BILL SUMMARY For SMART ACT HEARING FOR THE DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION

JOINT COMMITTEE COMMITTEE ON JOINT EDUCATION
Date Jan 21, 2021      
Location Old State Library



SMART Act Hearing for the Department of Education - Committee Discussion Only
02:24:59 PM  
Representative McLachlan
invited the presenters from the Colorado Department of Education (CDE)
to begin their presentation.  Dr. Katy Anthes, Commissioner of Education,
spoke about the demographic make up of students in Colorado, the number
of students eligible for free and reduced-price lunch, the number of students
reading at grade level in third grade, and four year graduation rates for
high school students.  Dr. Anthes provided an overview of the roles
and responsibilities of the State Board of Education and CDE.  She
spoke about CDE's  COVID-19 response and the support CDE has provided
to districts, schools, and educators during the past year.
02:47:33 PM  
Dr. Anthes reviewed
districts' top ten priorities for students that were submitted by 108 out
of 178 school districts in the state, as well as the distrcits' top ten
priorities for teachers.  She spoke about personnel gaps, especially
due to quarantine rules for teachers and a lack of substitute teachers
across all districts.  She discussed the pillars on which the department's
goals are built, which are: expanding access and opportunity for historically
underserved students, strengthening equity, diversity, and inclusion within
the department, strong foundations in supporting high-quality early learning
and literacy for all students, and that all students can read at grade
level by the end of third grade.
03:04:09 PM  
Dr. Anthes spoke
about the pillar of quality schools: prioritize and maximize support and
districts identified for academic improvements so that all students and
families have access to quality schools that meet students' needs. She
ended talking about the final pillar, the Educators Matter initiative to
develop a strong pipeline of high-quality teachers and principals and provide
deeper support for school and district leaders in order to have high-quality
educators in every classroom and strong leaders in every school building.
 Dr. Anthes answered questions from the committee.
03:11:32 PM  
Dr. Colleen O'Neil,
Associate Commissioner of Educator Talent, answered questions about how
to attract more qualified people into the teaching profession.  Dr.
Anthes answered questions from the committee.
03:27:18 PM  
Dr. O'Neil answered questions about shortages of school mental health professionals and special service professionals such as speech language pathologists, school counselors, social workers, and occupational therapists.
03:32:37 PM  
Dr. Anthes answered questions about how to look differently at requirements for instructional time, especially in regards to statewide required assessments. Committee members made comments about mental health needs of students and teachers.






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