NOTE: I will continue providing updates on State Board of Education activities throughout June and July, since there will be no regular meetings.

NEW COMMISSIONER OF EDUCATION – Dwight Jones has begun working as the Commissioner of Education. Amazingly, he has now completed 3 weeks on the job! He met with the lead staff at CDE, several legislators, and most of the SBE members individually. He reports that he has gained a good understanding and much insight about what is involved in running CDE. No changes in the department have been made yet, but I’m sure we can expect some as Commissioner Jones works with the State Board to make improvements and implement new laws. One of the new laws is SB 215, which requires the Division of Online Learning to be created in the department. Commissioner Jones will be attending the 21^st Century Learning Navigator Conference at the Marriott Hotel in Colorado Springs next Monday and Tuesday, June 25-26. Expect to see him in the future at other education conferences in the state. Since he is a member of the Education Commission of the States, he will be attending that annual conference in Philadelphia, July 11-13, along with several of us from the SBE.

P-20 COUNCIL – Governor Ritter has appointed the "P-20 Council" to look at issues related to improving the education system in Colorado from early childhood through postsecondary. Commissioner Jones and SBE Chair Pam Suckla have been named as ex officio members of the Council, along with David Skaggs, Executive Director of the Department of Higher Education, and Ray Baker, Chair of the Colorado Commission on Higher Education. Jones and Suckla – along with staff at CDE – will provide whatever support is necessary to the Council. The subcommittees have not been named as of yet, but Commissioner Jones assured the SBE that we will play a strong role in the work of the subcommittees.

SBE RETREAT – The SBE will finally hold a Retreat this summer, probably on August 30-31. We have no details yet about the exact times or the location.

UPCOMING EVENTS

• NOTE – The correct date that I will be speaking about education issues at Representative Sara Gagliardi’s town meeting is JULY 7 (not the 28^th as previously listed), at 10:30 a.m. at the YMCA on West 64^th Avenue in Arvada.
• July 9 – The new Director of State Board Relations, Mary Frances Nevans, will begin working on this date; she has been hired as the replacement for Karen Gerwitz.
• August 8 – SBE Work Session, with the appeal hearing of the Denver Collegiate Academy Charter School vs. Denver Public Schools at 1:30 p.m., and 2^nd appeal hearing of the Sterling Charter Academy vs. the Valley School District at 3:00 p.m.
• August 9 – SBE Regular Meeting, with a hearing on the permanent rules for the Read to Achieve Grant Program at 9:45 a.m. and a hearing on revisions to the rules for the Public School Finance Act at 10 a.m. (part of the revisions to the rules for the Finance Act will be the addition of rules for the Fast College Fast Jobs Program, as well as the revisions regarding 5^th-year options and online enrollment made at the May 10, 2007, meeting).
• August 30-31 (tentative dates) – SBE Retreat, at a place to be announced.