Since the elections in November of a new governor and many new state legislators, much has been said about the nearly unprecedented opportunities for change in Colorado. But for Colorado’s students, a more recent development may mark a change with even more potential impact: the resignation of the state education commissioner and the resulting opportunity for new leadership in Colorado’s education system.
The choice of who will assume this position after 10 years of Commissioner William Moloney’s service will be an important one for our students and the future of our state. As the State Board of Education begins its search for the next commissioner, its members must set their sights on a candidate who has the vision and skills to help make Colorado one of the nation’s leaders in preparing our students for the changing demands of an increasingly global economy. Several strengths will be important in the next leader’s success and, ultimately, the success of our students.
First, with the increasing call for and widespread discussion of school reform underway in Colorado, the new commissioner must be an agent of change, promoting reform and working to use the existing assets and influence of the state to improve outcomes for kids, rather than trying to protect the status quo or avoid state-level obligations. To succeed, the next commissioner must be passionate about the need to help more children succeed.
Candidates for this position should be able to articulate their understanding of Colorado’s unique challenges, and they should support concepts that have momentum in the education community in Colorado. These include early childhood education; a comprehensive approach to education, from preschool to post-secondary; closing the achievement gaps; improving graduation rates; obtaining and sustaining adequate education funding and educational accountability; and public school choice and charter schools.
There are many schools and districts that are succeeding at important goals, such as closing the achievement gaps or increasing high school graduation rates. We need a commissioner who can highlight successes and help us replicate them, a leader who will focus our attention on the areas of greatest concern.
The new commissioner must be able to work effectively with state policymakers, including the legislature, the State Board of Education, the governor’s office, and other state agencies. He or she also will need the management skills to make the Colorado Department of Education a more effective and influential institution. In addition, with the emphasis on local control in Colorado, the new commissioner should have an appreciation of that culture and an understanding of the important balance between local control and the need for state accountability, as well as the ability to work well with local policymakers and administrators, especially school districts. It will also be valuable for the new commissioner to understand Colorado’s complex fiscal structures, particularly those state constitutional measures that substantively affect education funding, such as TABOR, Amendment 23, and the Gallagher Amendment.
With high school dropout rates at nearly a third for all students in Colorado and about 50 percent for minority students, and achievement gaps that have continued to grow, the State Board of Education and its new commissioner face daunting challenges in the years ahead, but they also face unprecedented opportunities. For the commissioner to have the credibility and support to effectively address these education challenges, the search process should include the input of educators and district leaders, as well as representatives of all of Colorado’s diverse communities and regions. Ultimately, the search process should result in a selection that has the support of a consensus – or at least clear majority of the elected state board.
With an understanding of the unique assets and challenges of our state, the support of the education community and a climate of political change in Colorado, a new commissioner will be well positioned to create an education system that will allow our students to meet and exceed the standards needed to succeed in the 21st century and beyond.
Kenneth DeLay is executive director of the Colorado Association of School Boards. Megan Ferland is president of the Colorado Children’s Campaign. John Hefty is executive director of the Colorado Association of School Executives.
