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All win – more or less – under new high ed funding model
The proposed new formula for funding Colorado’s public colleges and universities would give every institution an increase in 2015-16, but some campuses would gain more than others. That’s because the...
View ArticleHigher ed commission signs off on new funding model
The Colorado Commission on Higher Education Thursday gave unanimous approval to a new formula that would fund state colleges and universities based partly on performance factors such as student...
View ArticleBill would give scholarships to top three grads at every high school
Inspired by his own experience, a veteran Democratic senator has introduced a bill that would provide four-year, full-tuition scholarships at state colleges and universities for the top three graduates...
View ArticleNew bill would extend college tuition increase cap indefinitely
A bill that would indefinitely extend the current 6 percent cap on annual tuition increases at state colleges and universities was introduced by two Democratic lawmakers Monday. Responding to growing...
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Pair of testing reduction bills pop up in Senate
The first testing bills of 2015 have been introduced in the Senate, one that would make extensive trims to the current assessment system and the second of which would cut back social studies testing....
View ArticleSenate panel not persuaded, kills tuition cap bill
A bare, 5-4 majority of the Senate Education Committee on Thursday killed a measure that would have set a 6 percent cap on annual tuition increases by state colleges and universities. Although Senate...
View ArticlePanel passes kindergarten, preschool funding bills, but divisions remain
The House Education Committee on Monday passed two bills intended to increase funding for both preschool and full-day kindergarten, but the discussion highlighted differences over which program should...
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Tuition increases stabilize, but perhaps not for long
A new report from the Department of Higher Education casts fresh light on a never-ending worry for parents and policymakers – rising college costs. The 2014-15 Tuition and Fees Report, presented to the...
View ArticleTwo Colorado colleges move toward making PARCC results count
A pair of Colorado colleges have announced they will evaluate the use of scores on PARCC language arts and math exams as a way to determine whether students are ready to take college courses. Adams...
View ArticleState’s college attendance rate shows slight turnaround
The percentage of Colorado high school students enrolling in college right after graduation increased slightly in 2014, according to a new report from the Department of Higher Education. Of 2014’s...
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Higher ed funding boost defeated
Rep. Ray Scott was realistic about the prospects for his higher education funding bill, but he told the House State Affairs Committee that he wanted to start “a conversation” about energy jobs and...
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Colorado dual enrollment growing
AURORA - The number of Colorado students who earned college credit while still in high school jumped 15.5 percent between 2010-2011 and last year, Lt. Gov. Joe Garcia announced Wednesday. Students work...
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JBC goes with $30M boost for colleges
The legislative Joint Budget Committee Wednesday recommended an increase of about $30 million in state support of public colleges and universities, basically ratifying the proposal first made last...
View ArticleCU, community college tuition votes set
Both the University of Colorado Board of Regents and the state community college board will meet this week to consider proposed 2013-14 tuition rates. The regents meet Tuesday at the CU system’s Denver...
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Regents bite the bullet on tuition
The University of Colorado Board of Regents Tuesday voted 6-3 to approve 2013-14 tuition hikes of 8.7 percent at the Boulder campus and of 6 percent at the Denver and Colorado Springs campuses. PHOTO:...
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Merit aid pulled from budget bill
Updated 9:30 p.m. - A last-minute dispute over undocumented students has cut $3 million in merit-based scholarships out of the main 2013-14 state budget bill. House Minority Leader Mark Waller,...
View ArticleCMC to award first four-year degrees
Colorado Mountain College this week will award 58 bachelor’s degrees -- a first for the community college that has 11 campuses in the central and northern mountains. The 2010 legislature gave CMC the...
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College merit aid bill passes House
Updated 9:45 a.m. May 1 - The House voted 59-5 Wednesday morning to pass the bill that would revise the state merit scholarship program. On Tuesday evening the had given preliminary approval to the...
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College attendance gap persists for Hispanics
Hispanic high school graduates continue to lag other groups in college attendance, according to new data from the state Department of Higher Education. From left, Colorado State University in Fort...
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State moving to new college admissions system
In the future, gaining admission to a Colorado college or university may be more about what skills a student can demonstrate than about grade point averages and classes completed. A state task force...
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Tuition hikes only one piece of college costs
Colorado college students are again facing tuition increases next school year, but the jumps are a bit more moderate than in recent years. The increases range from nothing at Colorado State...
View ArticleGarcia says Obama higher ed plan fine by him
Lt. Gov. Joe Garcia was quick out of the box Thursday morning to praise the goal of President Obama’s higher education affordability plan. The White House Thursday released a proposal that, among other...
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Reports track students from high school to college
New reports from the state Department of Higher Education provide a more richly detailed look than was previously available of what happens to Colorado students after they graduate high school. Photo...
View ArticleState launches new program to improve college graduation
State leaders Tuesday unveiled the “Colorado Challenge,” an effort to improve college completion rates, starting with 2,500 “underrepresented” students who will receive extra support as they move...
View ArticleLooking for a truce on community college degrees
A group of higher ed administrators and others are working to find a compromise plan for community colleges to offer bachelor’s degrees, an issue that prompted the most bitter education fight of the...
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College performance funding plan approved
Updated Dec. 5 - The initial structure of how Colorado colleges and universities would be financially rewarded for increasing graduation rates and achieving other key goals were unanimously approved...
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Tuition, debt dominate higher ed budget hearing
Key legislators signaled concern about tuition levels during a budget hearing Thursday, even though state colleges have promised to keep 2014-15 increases below 6 percent. From left, Colorado State...
View ArticleHickenlooper backs enrollment count, transparency proposals
Gov. John Hickenlooper’s annual state of the state speech endorsed proposals to change how school enrollment is counted and to create greater transparency for school spending. Speaking Thursday to a...
View ArticleSmooth start for community college four-year degree bill
A bill allowing state community colleges to offer some four-year degrees sailed out of the Senate Education Committee Thursday on a 6-0 vote after a good-natured hearing at which every witness...
View ArticleTesting, Common Core officially on the legislature’s plate
A Republican-sponsored bill to delay rollout of new statewide tests and to require a new study of the state’s academic standards – which include the controversial Common Core Standards – was introduced...
View ArticleLegislative analyst slams higher ed performance funding plan
The state’s plan for performance funding of state colleges and universities is “not likely to work very well,” a staff analyst told the Joint Budget Committee on Tuesday. JBC analysts are known for...
View ArticleAdvanced Placement incentives bill gets in line
The House Education Committee on Wednesday apparently agreed with Rep. Jim Wilson, R-Salida, when he said, “I believe all students should have equal opportunity to pursue Advanced Placement classes.”...
View ArticleHouse panel endorses study of minority teacher pipeline; school finance law...
An articulate seventh grader helped to convince the House Education Committee Wednesday to pass a bill that would require the state Department of Education to study the shortage of minority teachers...
View ArticleAre Colorado colleges meeting workforce needs?
Are Colorado colleges and universities pumping out graduates with the right degrees to take the jobs that the state needs filled? A recent report from the Department of Higher Education and two other...
View ArticleLawmakers reach compromise on CSU Global Campus bill
Expected controversy over a proposed expansion of Colorado State University Global Campus was defused Thursday with what was reported to be a last-minute compromise. As originally introduced, Senate...
View ArticleBill could liven up higher ed discussions
This year was supposed to be a legislative session of sweetness, light and more money for Colorado’s colleges and universities. Gov. John Hickenlooper proposed a $100 million increase for higher ed,...
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Speaker Ferrandino pitches new higher ed funding formula
The questions were flying like balls out of pitching machine Friday when House Speaker Mark Ferrandino defended his new higher education funding bill at a meeting of the Colorado Commission on Higher...
View ArticleThe legislative habit of gambling on the future
One of the many peculiarities of Colorado’s complex state budgeting process is the legislature’s weakness for spending – or at least promising to spend – money before it’s even collected. The latest...
View ArticleParty lines sharply drawn on Common Core, PARCC
During a procedural roll-call vote early Thursday evening, all 17 Republican senators voted for a motion to pull $16.8 million in funding for the coming PARCC tests from the proposed 2014-15 state...
View ArticleHigher ed funding bill sparks high-level differences
It’s rare to see vigorous public debate between the speaker of the House and the lieutenant governor, especially when they’re from the same party. But a proposed higher education funding bill brought...
View ArticleThird version of higher ed makeover passes committee
House Speaker Mark Ferrandino’s proposed overhaul of Colorado’s higher education funding system got a 10-2 endorsement from the House Education Committee Wednesday, but more work and likely some...
View ArticleHigher ed funding bill has easy time in House
It's nice to be speaker of the House, even when you’re a lame duck. The House Thursday gave easy preliminary approval to Speaker Mark Ferrandino’s proposal to inject a little performance funding into...
View ArticleOnline bill has rocky outing in House Education
Proposed changes in state law governing multi-district online schools got generally bad reviews from witnesses at a committee hearing Monday, and a vote on House Bill 14-1382 was delayed so its...
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Higher ed system goes back to the drawing board
With polite smiles firmly pasted on their faces, Colorado’s higher education leaders and bureaucrats are steeling themselves for an intense six months of work on a performance funding system that none...
View ArticleHave your say on how the state pays for higher education
Colorado’s higher education system is in the middle of trying to figure out how to implement House Bill 14-1319, which sets up a new system for funding colleges based both on enrollment and performance...
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Where Bruce Rauner and J.B. Pritzker stand on key education issues, from...
The race for Illinois governor is shaping up to be one of the most expensive in U.S. history, and anyone who hasn’t been living under a rock has probably seen or heard one of the barrage of ads for the...
View ArticleMore NYC high school graduates are college-bound — and 'college ready'
Marking a new record high, 62% of students in the class of 2018 have enrolled in higher education programs, city officials said Thursday. Nearly 49,000 students who started high school in the fall of...
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‘Do everything’: Journalist Paul Tough on how colleges can get more...
All those college pennants in American classrooms and the focus on “college readiness” point to one fact: Despite the rising costs, a college degree retains a rare power to lift young people out of...
View ArticleWith move to online learning, University of Denver students petition for...
Taking up a call made by college students around the country, students at the University of Denver are asking for a tuition reduction that reflects what they’ve lost since the campus closed last month...
View ArticleCounselors’ advice for college-bound students facing coronavirus uncertainty:...
Like many other prospective college students worried about their future during the coronavirus pandemic, Vista Peak Prep senior Jordan Stewart is debating whether he should wait to go to college. “It's...
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