This morning Democratic Sen. Michael Bennet is expected to deliver remarks about the importance of hiring great principals at Jefferson County public school Wheat Ridge 5-8.
UPDATE:
During his visit to Wheat Ridge 5-8, Sen. Bennet admitted concern that his proposed reforms to No Child Left Behind do not go far enough in assigning accountability, but says it's a lesser evil to leaving things status quo according to the Associated Press.
No Child Left Behind did a huge disservice. One of the most important things it did well was is it showed us the enormous gaps that exist in our country between kids living in poverty and more affluent kids.
But the measuring stick was all screwed up because it was asking an irrelevant question. Which is how did this year's fourth graders do compared to last year's fourth graders?
After receiving a preliminary approval from the Senate Education committee last Thursday, the bill is expected to go to a Senate vote later this year.
Tomorrow the senator is also expected to tour a classroom at Maplewood Elementary School in Greeley to discuss teacher preparation in high-need schools and subjects, according to a press release from his office.
EARLIER:
Wheat Ridge 5-8 was reconfigured as a middle school earlier this year, since budget cuts forced district leaders to close nearby Martensen Elementary. Jefferson County is the state's largest district, serving over 86,000 students, according to Education News Colorado.
Last Wednesday Sen. Bennet lashed out at Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.) for stalling the Elementary and Secondary Education Act, an act seeking to reform No Child Left Behind.
"The senator speaks of the tragedy of this process," Bennet said, referring to Paul's remarks. "I'll tell you what a tragedy is. The tragedy is that only nine of 100 children living in poverty in this country in 2011 can expect to get a college degree. That's a tragedy."
Bennet has been able to secure some provisions of the bill under the Lead Act, which calls for securing and training high performing principals to lead turnarounds in high need schools.