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Education Policy Center Newsletter

From The Independence Institute
December 17, 2009
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In this issue
-- Christmas TV Alert: Pam Benigno on Independent Thinking
-- Colorado Charter School “Witch-Hunt” Stopped
-- Get Ready for Open Enrollment Season
-- Political Refund Message Draws Union Officials’ Attention
-- Utah Highlights Need for Accountability in Union Release Time

Dear Friends,

We hope you enjoy our latest update from the Education Policy Center. May you
all have a Happy Hanukkah, Merry Christmas, and a Happy New Year 2010!

Pamela Benigno, Director

Ben DeGrow, Policy Analyst
Marya DeGrow, Research Associate
Raaki Garcia-Ulam, School Choice Website Outreach Coordinator

Christmas TV Alert: Pam Benigno on Independent Thinking

If you’re looking for a way to recover from all the gift-giving, Yuletide festivities
and holiday cheer, you may want to include an episode of Independent Thinking
as part of your routine. Pam Benigno, along with some of her Independence
Institute colleagues, will join host Jon Caldara for a look ahead on some
important policy issues. Please tune into KBDI Channel 12 in Denver at 8:30 PM
on Friday, December 25 (yes, Christmas night!), with the episode set to re-air
at 1:30 PM on Monday, December 28.

Colorado Charter School “Witch-Hunt” Stopped

The recent unsavory drama surrounding the Denver Public Schools Board
transition drew a lot of media attention. But fewer people noticed the anti-
charter school attack from a handful of state legislators about the same time.
Democratic state senator Lois Tochtrop described the overreach as a “witch-
hunt,” successfully voting with the four Republicans on the legislative audit
committee to reject the proposal. In an iVoices podcast, Ben DeGrow interviewed
Colorado League of Charter Schools president Jim Griffin about what unfolded.

For more:
GoBash, Legislative Committee Halts Charter School “Witch-Hunt”
Ed Is Watching, Stop! The “Witch-Hunt” Attacks on Charter Schools Really Creep
Me Out
Ed Is Watching, Colorado Still Strong in Charter School Law, But There’s Room to
Improve
iVoices podcast, Low Politics Marks Denver School Board Transition
Ed Is Watching, Drama Sweeps in New Denver School Board…Surprise, Intrigue
to Follow?

Get Ready for Open Enrollment Season

A quick update from the publications department: Our senior fellow Krista Kafer’s
paper A Chronology of School Choice in the U.S. (PDF) was updated in December
to reflect the latest national developments, including a new scholarship tax
credit program in Indiana.

On the local school choice front, we are approaching the open enrollment period
in many Colorado school districts. That means it’s the time students and parents
can select a public school outside their assignment area for the following school
year. Find a school and become well-informed about the open enrollment
process by visiting our School Choice for Kids website.

For more:
Ed Is Watching, Computer Crashes or No, It’s Open Enrollment Time for Colorado
Families
Ed Is Watching, Arizona Shows K-12 Tax Credit Program Saves State Millions of
Dollars
Ed Is Watching, Don’t Let Union and Congress Grinches Stop D.C. Opportunity
Scholarships
Ed Is Watching, As Bad Schools Close, Milwaukee’s Voucher Market Shows It’s
Working

Political Refund Message Draws Union Officials’ Attention

The deadline has passed for Colorado Education Association members to request
the Every Member Option political refund, but only after we received some
flattering attention. Ben DeGrow is still recovering from his recent whirlwind of
eight interviews with radio talk shows across Colorado to explain the EMO to
teachers who haven’t heard.

Meanwhile, the Denver Classroom Teachers Association used the word “sinister”
to describe our efforts to inform teachers of the December 15 deadline through
postcards and emails. Ben also joined Jon Caldara to discuss another colorful
union response—this time from the Jefferson County Education Association—on a
new iVoices podcast.

For more:
Schools for Tomorrow, Political refunds and painful truths for DCTA
Jon Caldara, The Most EVIL Podcast Ever Recorded!

Utah Highlights Need for Accountability in Union Release Time

In another iVoices podcast, Ben talked to Judi Clark of Utah’s Parents for Choice
in Education about the lack of accountability surrounding school districts and
taxpayer-funded union release time in her state. As our prodigious young
blogger Eddie says: Colorado Needs Standards for Tax-Funded Union Release
Time. Look for more news on this front from Colorado in the coming year!

Contact Information
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email: pam@i2i.org
phone: 303-279-6536
web:http://www.independenceinstitute.org
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