S_ED_2017A 03/23/2017 01:30 PM Committee Summary

01:32 PM -- SB17-114



Senator Hill, chair, called the meeting to order. He invited Senator Moreno to the table to present Senate Bill 17-114 which concerns accountability in the elementary and secondary public education system. Senator Moreno asked the committee to postpone the bill indefinitely.

01:35 PM -- HB17-1184



President Grantham, sponsor, presented House Bill 17-1184 which concerns developing additional resources for modern technology education in public schools. A handout was distributed to the committee (Attachment A).



17SenateEd0323AttachA.pdf



The following people testified on the bill:



01:37 PM -- Kelly Caufield, representing Colorado Succeeds, testified in support of the bill.



01:38 PM -- Heidi Ganahl, representing Colorado Succeeds, testified in support of the bill.



01:42 PM -- Andrea Young, representing the Colorado Technology Association, testified in support of the bill.



































01:45 PM



The preceding three witnesses answered questions from the committee. The committee discussed the bill's fiscal note.



01:51 PM -- Madeline Burton, representing the Denver School of Innovation and Sustainable Design, testified in support of the bill.



01:53 PM -- Adriana Guzman, representing herself as a student at Skyline High School, testified in support of the bill.



01:57 PM -- Michelle Tran, representing herself as a student at Skyline High School, testified in support of the bill.



02:00 PM -- Katelyn Wojniak, representing herself as a student at Skyline High School, testified in support of the bill. She answered questions from the committee.





02:03 PM



There were no more witnesses and Senator Hill closed public testimony. President Grantham gave closing comments to the bill. Committee discussion ensued.

02:06 PM -- Confirmation of University Of Northern Colorado Board Of Trustees



Senator Hill invited Kay Norton, President of the University of Northern Colorado (UNC) to come to the table to introduce the appointee and reappointee to the UNC Board of Trustees: Janice Sinden and Anthony Salazar. Copies of the Governor's appointment letter and the appointees' applications and resumes were distributed to the committee (Attachment B). Ms. Sinden told the committee about her background, and about why she would like to be appointed to the board. Mr. Salazar spoke about his background, and about his prior board experience. He talked about the school's capital projects and the board's focus on enrollment growth. President Norton and the appointee and reappointee answered questions from the committee.



17SenateEd0323AttachB.pdf

02:20 PM -- Confirmation of State Historical Society Board Of Directors



Senator Hill invited Steve Turner, President and CEO of History Colorado, to come to the table and introduce the appointee and reappointee to the State Historical Society Board of Directors: Cathy Carpenter Dea and Robert Musgraves. Copies of the Governor's appointment letters and the appointees' applications and resumes were distributed to the committee (Attachment C). Ms. Carpenter Dea introduced herself to the committee and spoke about her background and about why she would like to be appointed to the board. Mr. Musgraves introduced himself and talked about his background and about his prior term on the board. The appointee and reappointee answered questions from the committee.



17SenateEd0323AttachC.pdf

02:32 PM -- Confirmation of Collegeinvest



Senator Hill invited Angela Baier, CEO of CollegeInvest, to come to the table to introduce the appointee and reappointee to the board: Frederick Taylor and Rita C. Felde. Copies of the Governor's appointment letter and the appointees' applications and resumes were distributed to the committee (Attachment D). Ms. Felde talked about her background and about why she would like to be reappointed to the board. Mr. Taylor introduced himself, and talked about his background and about why he would like to be appointed to the board.



17SenateEd0323AttachD.pdf

02:37 PM -- Presentation on College Assist and CollegeInvest



Senator Hill invited Kachina Weaver, Legislative Liaison, Department of Higher Education (DHE), and Angela Baier, CEO of CollegeInvest, to come to the table to begin their presentation on College Assist and CollegeInvest. Copies of a handout were distributed to the committee (Attachment E). Ms. Baier explained that Colorado statute requires that the CEO of CollegeInvest also be the CEO of College Assist, both of which are Enterprise Funds within DHE. She told the committee that College Assist acts as the insurer for student loans issued under the Federal Family Education Loan program, and no longer makes direct loans. She said the program is charged with managing about $9 billion in guaranteed loans, and focusing on default diversion and loan rehabilitation. She explained that College Assist does not receive any state taxpayer dollars, and no longer receives loan origination fees. Ms. Baier then spoke about CollegeInvest, and the types of college savings plans available for families. She spoke about the fees charged, and stated that CollegeInvest is the fastest growing 529 program in the nation, growing on average 8 percent per year as opposed to the 4 percent national average. Ms. Baier spoke about the cost of college, and about CollegeInvest's matching grant and 529 scholarship program. Ms. Baier and Ms. Weaver answered questions from the committee.



17SenateEd0323AttachE.pdf



02:53 PM -- HB17-1194



The committee took a brief recess.





03:11 PM



The committee came back to order. Senator Cooke, sponsor, presented House Bill 17-1194 which concerns technical changes relating to the operation of pathways in technology early college high schools. Senator Cooke answered questions from the committee.



The following people testified on the bill:



03:14 PM -- Marty Goldberg, representing Front Range Community College, testified in support of the bill.



03:19 PM -- John Ahrens, representing the St. Vrain Valley School District, testified in support of the bill.



03:22 PM -- Brandon Shaffer, representing the St. Vrain Valley School District, testified in support of the bill.



03:24 PM -- Kelly Caufield, representing Colorado Succeeds, testified in support of the bill.

























03:26 PM



There were no more witnesses and Senator Hill closed public testimony. Senator Cook gave closing comments to the bill.

03:27 PM -- HB17-1160



Senator Priola and Senator Fields, co-sponsors, presented House Bill 17-1160 which concerns authorizing a local education provider to determine the language in which a student who is an English language learner takes reading assessments in kindergarten through third grade. Senator Gardner took over as committee chair.



The following people testified on the bill:



03:31 PM -- Lisa Escarcega, representing the Colorado Association of School Executives, the Colorado Education Association, the Colorado Rural Schools Alliance, and the Colorado Association of School Boards, testified in support of the bill.



03:36 PM -- Christine Muldoon, representing Denver Public Schools, testified in support of the bill.



































03:48 PM



The preceding two witnesses answered questions from the committee.



03:55 PM -- Jorge Garcia, representing the Colorado Association for Bilingual Education, testified in support of the bill.



04:04 PM -- Hunter Smith, representing himself, testified in support of the bill.



04:08 PM -- Val Flores, representing the State Board of Education, testified in opposition to the bill.



04:17 PM -- Steve Durham, representing the State Board of Education, testified in opposition to the bill.





04:33 PM



The preceding two witnesses answered questions from the committee. Committee discussion ensued.



04:37 PM -- Jack Teter, representing Democrats for Education Reform, testified in support of the bill.



04:40 PM -- Leslie Colwell, representing the Colorado Children's Campaign, testified in support of the bill.



04:43 PM -- Caroline Ellis, representing herself, testified in support of the bill. Ms. Ellis answered questions from the committee.





04:55 PM



There were no more witnesses and Senator Gardner closed public testimony. Senator Gardner laid the bill over for action only to a later date to be determined.















































04:56 PM -- HB17-1181



Senator Priola and Senator Todd, co-sponsors, presented House Bill 17-1181 which concerns requiring a single statewide end-of-year assessment for students enrolled in ninth grade that is aligned with the tenth grade state assessment.



The following people testified on the bill:



05:01 PM -- Ross Izard, representing the Independence Institute, testified in support of the bill.



05:06 PM -- Jack Teter, representing Democrats for Education Reform, testified in support of the bill.



05:10 PM -- Cheryl Mosier, representing herself as a teacher, testified in support of the bill.



05:12 PM -- Ryan Mosier, representing himself as a student, testified in support of the bill.





05:14 PM



There were no more witnesses and Senator Gardner closed public testimony. Senator Priola and Senator Todd gave closing comments to the bill.

05:18 PM



The committee adjourned.