May 20, 2020 | Press
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
May 20, 2020
DENVER – As the Colorado Legislature prepares to reconvene next week to balance the state budget and pass the School Finance Act for the 2020-21 school year, the Colorado Education Association is charging legislators to protect public education funding now and for the future.
“The notion that our schools and students could bear the brunt of the cuts needed to balance the state budget is unacceptable. The last thing anybody wants is further disruption in the lives of students after all they have been through,” said CEA President Amie Baca-Oehlert, a high school counselor, during a virtual press conference today.
Baca-Oehlert noted that past education cuts from the Great Recession, totaling $8.1 billion, still harm our students today.“Difficult budget decisions shouldn’t continue to be made on the backs of Colorado students and educators. The Colorado Legislature did that 10 years ago and we’ve never recovered. We need to treat this downturn differently and continue to prioritize educators, schools and students,” Baca-Oehlert added.
Baca-Oehlert said the key to minimizing K-12 education cuts is keeping the Budget Stabilization Factor flat. Even if the BS Factor remains flat, it still amounts to a $572 million cut to our students and educators for the next school year. Before further cuts to the K-12 education system are even considered, she said the legislature must first:
- Pass an Emergency Tax Relief bill to raise revenue;
- Pause the accountability system and redirect funds currently allocated to some grants and mandates in order to free up local resources;
- Make cuts to other departments so that education is not bearing the majority of the burden.
“Our students, many of whom come from high-trauma and high-poverty situations, don’t need their lives impacted further. They need stability,” said Cody Childers, a middle school English teacher in Cortez.“Every single cut impacts us tremendously.”
In a new CEA poll, Colorado voters agreed public schools and educators are worthy of more public support and investment. When asked to consider budget cuts to public services, most voters ranked K-12 public school funding as one of the last things to cut. In the same poll, when voters were offered three possible options on how to close the state’s $3 billion state budget shortfall, 81% preferred increasing taxes over cutting K-12 public school funding, with 68% preferring to increase taxes only on those making over $250,000.
“We hear everyone say, ‚ÄòWe’re all in this together.’ It’s time to put our money where our mouth is. We must welcome students back to a more equitable, safe, and dynamic learning environment,” said Marilyn Winokur, chair of Coloradans for the Common Good. CCG, along with CEA, endorses Fair Tax Colorado to place Initiative #271 on the election ballot to give tax relief to 95% of Coloradans while raising critical revenue for education and other vital public services.
Colorado educators are going above and beyond under unbelievable circumstances to meet student needs since in-person instruction and learning was cancelled due to the pandemic. Denver teacher Monica Hunter said distance learning is not a long-term solution and her students who have lost valuable face-to-face, in-person instruction time will require additional supports and resources to catch up.
“Specialized services such as social workers, counselors and psychologists were already stretched thin before COVID-19 and we know many students are dealing with new traumas,” said Hunter, who teaches at a Title I school.“These are unprecedented times but no matter what, education must prevail.”
In CEA’s voter poll, a clear majority of voters responded that schools should prioritize classroom instruction that focuses on teaching to close student learning gaps over everything else when students return to school, including standardized testing.
Baca-Oehlert reviewed the long-lasting effects of severe budget slashing from only a decade ago: more educators leaving the profession; fewer college students choosing to study education; four-day school weeks; lack of access to mental health supports; larger class sizes and fewer class offerings.“The further cutting of school budgets will harm our students for the next decade and beyond. Tough decisions are required but balancing another budget crisis on the backs of our students, educators and schools is simply not an option.”
Download the polling memo and the topline results of CEA’s statewide voter poll by Keating Research.
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May 19, 2020 | Press
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
May 18, 2020
DENVER – Statement from Amie Baca-Oehlert, high school counselor and president of the Colorado Education Association, on Gov. Polis’ announcement of prioritizing $500 million in federal funding for K-12 public education:
“Educators are encouraged by today’s news that Gov. Polis has prioritized $500 million in federal funding to shore up public education during the COVID-19 crisis. This one-time funding is a positive step forward in ensuring all students can succeed in school, whether they are learning in-person, at home or a combination of both. Districts were planning to make draconian budget cuts and this money will help cushion the blow to keep educators in their jobs and keep students learning. When school begins in August, these funds will be crucial in providing educators the necessary resources and supports to help students catch up due to distance learning this spring. These funds will address the increased mental health needs of students recovering from trauma and prepare schools to operate under the potential of new social distancing requirements.
“We appreciate the governor’s powerful investment in our students and educators, and we also still need long-term solutions to fix a broken funding structure that has taken vast opportunities away from our students over the last decade. The Budget Stabilization Factor has amounted to $8 billion in cuts to public education over the last decade, and we are still a long way from recovering from those cuts. Educators call on the Colorado legislature to explore the emergency tax provision in TABOR for immediate school revenue and tax relief, demand our senators in Washington pass the HEROES Act for state relief, and encourage all Coloradans to support Initiative #271 during the 2020 election to properly fund our public schools through a fair tax policy for all.”
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May 12, 2020 | Press
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
May 12, 2020
DENVER – Statement from Amie Baca-Oehlert, high school counselor and president of the Colorado Education Association, on the May state budget forecast and funding for the 2020-21 school year:
“Public school students and educators are worthy of public support and investment, even during a crisis. While difficult budget decisions are required, they can’t continue to be made on the backs of students and educators. The legislature did that 10 years ago and public education has never recovered. More than $8 billion in debt from the Great Recession is still carried by students and educators. We cannot dig the hole even deeper for our students and expect they will overcome this burden and thrive as adults.
“School funding is crucial to fixing the disparities and inequities that divide our students into haves and have-nots, disproportionately affecting communities of color and lower income. Our reaction to this crisis must ensure that we don’t leave our most vulnerable students behind. Students are experiencing trauma now and their needs will be far greater when they return to school than when they left. Mental health supports and distance learning capabilities are today’s wise investments.
“Colorado needs to treat this downturn differently and prioritize public schools, students and educators. A crisis is not the time to cut public school investment and deny our students opportunity. The last thing anybody wants is further disruption in the lives of students. We can’t afford to repeat the mistakes of the past that rob students of their love for learning.”
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Apr 9, 2020 | Press
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
April 9, 2020
DENVER – The 39,000 members of the Colorado Education Association have formally asked Gov. Polis to do more to help vulnerable Coloradans, students and educators during the coronavirus pandemic.
CEA delivered a petition to the governor, signed by more than 3,200 members, calling on Gov. Polis to prioritize educators, workers and students by taking additional actions for Colorado communities.
“We readily acknowledge the governor has shown brave and decisive leadership through this crisis,” said Amie Baca-Oehlert, a high school counselor and president of the Colorado Education Association. Baca-Oehlert pointed to the state’s actions to close schools, cancel standardized testing for students and waive requirements for educator evaluations as positive developments that have reduced the level of anxiety for students and educators.
“Now we are calling on the Governor to do more. Our state’s lower income and vulnerable populations need more. Our educators and students need more,” stated Baca-Oehlert during a virtual press conference held to address the issues raised in the petition.
CEA members joined the call to talk with the media about the needs of their communities. Kelly Osuna, a high school Spanish teacher in the Cherry Creek School District, said immigration policies impact her school, where students speak 60 languages and come from 80 countries. The CEA petition requests the governor’s assistance in imploring the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, or ICE, to cease all arrests and release nonviolent offenders.
“Even before the threat of COVID-19, many of my students were living in fear for the safety and well-being of themselves and their families,” said Osuna.“As this pandemic continues to take over our society, our young people need to feel secure in the fact that their parents will come home from the essential jobs they are working, the jobs that are currently keeping our state afloat.
“Everyone in our state needs to feel safe, not fearful and harassed. Restricting ICE actions will allow Colorado’s mix-status families to feel more valued and secure as they do the essential work that benefits us all,” Osuna added.
Another piece in the petition asks the governor to provide firm direction to school districts that, in normal times, are accustomed to having a great amount of local control in making decisions. One example of necessary state direction is moving districts to reimburse educators for additional expenses they have incurred during the rush to distance learning. Carlos Meikel, an elementary school art teacher in the Poudre School District, told reporters he has spent about $200 out of his own pocket so far with more items still to purchase.
“We weren’t prepared to leave school. For remote learning, I needed to get supplies, technology and software on my own,” said Meikel.“It would be very nice to have some direction from the state to have our districts reimburse us. Our family budgets are crunched as well, we have spouses who are out of work now. We need to be reimbursed for those extra things we’re having to get at this time.”
“Employees need to know they are going to be paid and their benefits will continue during this critical time. We need to know we can support our families,” said Monte Hollander, a school bus driver in Jeffco Public Schools, on the stress and uncertainty school support staff are feeling across the state. In another curbing of local control in extraordinary times, the petition calls on Gov. Polis to mandate that school districts continue to pay all employees for the entire school year.
Hollander is receiving pay and benefits now, but he knows school districts can layoff employees. Even having a collective bargaining agreement in place between a district and employees doesn’t prevent a layoff from happening with devastating effects to the local and state economy.“We need the strong support of our governor, school boards and legislators to do the right thing regarding compensation and benefits for all education support professionals. Don’t forget us.”
Baca-Oehlert shared the heartbreak educators are feeling with the sudden end to in-person learning at school, when they“realized with finality that we won’t stand in front of our classes or see our students’ smiles on the school bus or in the lunch line.” She challenged the state and its school districts to rise up to meet the people’s needs and lend great comfort and care at this critical time.
“The coronavirus will test our school communities to be at their best for students and employees,” Baca-Oehlert observed.“In the wake of these uncertain and difficult times, strong leadership from our state is crucial. Together, we will get through this crisis and continue our collective pursuit to help every student thrive.”
Media may request a copy of the petition from Mike Wetzel, CEA public relations director, at mwetzel@coloradoea.org.
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