Democratic gubernatorial candidate John Hickenlooper promised to expand Internet access to rural schools and back a plan to replace the state’s student assessment test with one that will provide quicker results to educators.
Hickenlooper and his running mate, CSU Pueblo president Joe Garcia, made the campaign pledge while announcing an education plan that includes increasing college participation and closing the achievement gap between middle class and low-income students.
“We will make sure we are addressing some of the real systemic problems that keep us from having great schools,” Hickenlooper said in a news conference today at Arapahoe Community College.
Republican nominee Dan Maes couldn’t immediately be reached for comment.
State Sen. Josh Penry, R-Grand Junction, who sat on the Education Committee, said there is little new in Hickenlooper’s proposals.
The next governor will have an opportunity to follow through on Senate Bill 191, the controversial bill that changed the way teachers earn and maintain tenure, tying their evaluations to student achievement, Penry said.
Some Democrats and the state’s largest teachers union bitterly opposed the legislation.
“The question for whoever the next governor is, is will they see that process through or succumb to pressure from the teachers union and allow that legislation to wither on the vine,” Penry said.
Tom McGhee: 303-954-1671 or tmcghee@denverpost.com
