THE PASSAGE OF COLORADO’S SENATE BILL 191: GAME CHANGING TEACHER AND PRINCIPAL EFFECTIVENESS LEGISLATION SUMMARY AND ANALYSIS
On May 12, 2010, the Colorado State Legislature passed Senate Bill 191 – the Great Teachers and Leaders Bill. SB 191 is the most significant educator effectiveness legislation ever passed by a Democratic controlled legislature. Below is a summary and analysis including: an explanation of the bill, a rundown of its journey through the legislative process, and the key factors that led to the bill’s passage.
SB 191 --- WHAT DOES IT DDO?O?
1. Reforms the practice of tenure, otherwise known as non-probationary status in Colorado. Teachers can earn non-probationary status after 3 years of sufficient student academic growth; non-probationary status is revocable following 2 consecutive years of insufficient growth.
2. Governor’s council will define teacher effectiveness and come up with parameters for an evaluation system that requires 50% of a teacher’s evaluation to be based on student achievement using multiple measures.
3. Requires principals to be evaluated annually with 50% of the evaluation based on student achievement and their ability to develop teachers in their buildings and increase their effectiveness.
4. Eliminates the practice of forced teacher placement (slotting teachers in schools without their or the principal’s consent) and replaces it with mutual consent hiring using the Chicago model (principals and teachers must agree to teacher placements and teachers who are not selected serve as substitutes for a year and, if not selected in the subsequent hiring cycle, are put on unpaid leave).
5. Allows school districts to make reduction in force decisions based on teacher performance rather than on seniority.
SB 191 --- HOW DID IT PASS?
Political Landscape in Colorado 1. Democratic Governor Bill Ritter, Jr. (not running for re-election in 2010) and Lt. Governor Barbara O’Brien were supportive of SB 191.
2. Democrat controlled Senate (21 Democrats – 14 Republicans). Senate President Brandon Shaffer, whose wife is a teacher and union leader, opposed SB 191 on principle but allowed the bill to be introduced. 3. Democrat controlled House (37 Democrats, 27 Republicans, and 1 Independent). Speaker of the House Terrance Carroll strongly supportive of SB 191 but deeply concerned about division within his caucus and upcoming election challenges for his members. 4. Very strong legislative sponsors. Prime Democratic sponsor in Senate, Michael Johnston, author of SB 191, an expert on education policy who was appointed in 2009 through a vacancy committee. Prime Democratic sponsor in House, Christine Scanlan, a veteran in House leadership and knowledgeable about education policy. Prime Republican sponsors in House and Senate, Carole Murray and Nancy Spence, well respected within their party and have strong track records on education issues.
5. Powerful teacher’s union, Colorado Education Association (CEA) was staunchly opposed to SB 191, gave more than $500,000 directly to Senate and House Democratic leadership in 2008 and made significant contributions to Democratic candidates.
Key Events Prior to the Legislative Campaign 1. Colorado submitted a decent Round 1 Race to the Top (RTTT) grant application with key weaknesses (scored poorly in Great Teachers and Leaders section and on Implementation). CO was a finalist, but didn’t win (finished 14th out of 16 states).
2. Governor created council through executive order to define teacher effectiveness and figure out how to develop a fair, transparent, and rigorous evaluation system.
3. We knew Round 1 RTTT application didn’t go far enough to win and used the wait time before the official announcement that CO didn’t win to develop a strong coalition of organizations and civic and business leaders ready to take action after announcement.
4. Governor Ritter and Commissioner of Education Dwight Jones’ decision to apply for Round 2 RTTT grant provided vital leverage to move forward with legislation. CEA said they would not participate in the Round 2 application.
5. Recognizing this once in a generation opportunity, Colorado Stand for Children committed to fund an advocacy campaign similar to the campaign led by Stand for Children’s Tennessee affiliate, which provided vital support in January for Governor Phil Bredesen’s “First to the Top” legislation whose passage helped Tennessee win $500 million in Round 1 RTTT funding.
The Process 1. SB 191 was introduced in the Colorado Legislature on April 12, 2010.
2. SB 191 was first heard in the Senate Education Committee (5 Democrats and 3 Republicans) where the bill had 2 days of public testimony. Day 1 testimony included National Education Association President Dennis Van Roekel and Colorado Education Association (CEA) leadership and activists. On Day 2 proponents testified – including a panel of four superintendents, 4 teachers, and 3 parents recruited by Stand for Children, former Denver Mayor and A+ Denver Board Chair Federico Peña, Denver Metro Chamber of Commerce President Kelly Brough, Colorado Children’s Campaign President Chris Watney, and President of The New Teacher Project Tim Daly, among others. Bill sponsors took the lead on negotiating several delicate amendments, after which, the bill went to a vote on Friday, April 23.
3. SB 191 passed Senate Education Committee 7-1. Passage was uncertain until the day of the vote. While all but one of the 5 Democrats ultimately voted yes in committee, only 3 of the committee members voted yes again on the 3rd Reading vote on the Senate floor.
Key Lesson: A vital asset during the tough Senate Education Committee stage was the ability of Lindsay Neil (Stand for Children), Erin Silver (Colorado Concern and A+ Plus Denver), Moira Cullen (Democrats for Education Reform, Colorado Succeeds and Colorado Children’s Campaign) and Jeani Frickey (Denver Metro Chamber of Commerce) to use their relationships and knowledge of the process to influence the dates, times, and structure of the committee hearings, arrange presentations of the poll results to key state legislators, orchestrate the presentation of more than 2,000 petition signatures to the Senate Education Committee, and coordinate the testimony of more than fifty diverse proponents of the bill – including 4 teachers recruited by Stand Advocacy Director Kayla McGannon, 3 of whom were union members.
4. On April 26, the Senate Appropriations Committee heard and passed SB 191 by a vote of 10-0.
5. On April 29, SB 191 passed 2nd Reading in the Senate after a lengthy debate and several proposed amendments. It passed 3rd Reading on the Senate floor on April 30, by a 21-14 vote (7 Democrats and 14 Republicans voted yes).
6. SB 191 was introduced in the House of Representatives on May 3, just 9 days before the end of the 2010 session. SB 191 faced major challenges in the House given the number of entrenched Democrats with strong ties to the Colorado Education Association. SB 191’s strong House bill sponsor Representative Christine Scanlan, worked hard with Stand and other key coalition members to shore up Democratic votes and prevent bad concessions. Representative Carole Murray, meanwhile, kept Republican House members on board.
7. The Chairman of the House Education Committee, Michael Merrifield strongly opposed the bill; because of his opposition, the date, time, and format for the House Education Committee hearing was unknown to proponents. All negotiation of amendments was deferred to sponsor Representative Christine Scanlan and Speaker of the House Terrance Carroll. After several days of unsuccessful attempted negotiations with CEA, on May 6, after a contentious 10 hour hearing, SB 191 passed out of the House Education Committee on a tense 7-6 vote.
Key Lesson: A full page Denver Post ad that ran on the same day as the House Education Committee vote turned out to be a game changer. The ad, purchased and created by Stand less than 48 hours before it ran, illustrated CEA’s isolated opposition by listing the 50+ organizations endorsing the bill – including the American Federation of Teachers who announced their support on May 5, after the negotiation of four reasonable amendments.
8. While the votes were confirmed and we had expected the hearing on Friday, May 7, the hearing was postponed by SB 191 opponents to enable large numbers of teacher opponents to voice opposition at key Democratic Representatives’ town halls across the state. Quickly responding to this pressure tactic, the coalition acted quickly and turned out supporters from our networks across the state. SB 191 was heard in House Appropriations on May 10.
Reflective of the tense, conflictive atmosphere, at the Appropriations Committee hearing, the Chair was hostile to both bill sponsor, Representative Christine Scanlan and the Department of Education representative. After marathon questioning, when it came time to vote committee members each discussed the reasoning behind their votes. The most moving testimony came from Representative Mark Ferrandino, who through tears said his last-minute tiebreaking vote was the hardest he ever had to make. Ferrandino talked about his experience as a special education student and the impact a bad teacher had on his confidence and career as a strong motivator for his decision. Because of Ferrandino, SB 191 passed the Appropriations Committee by a vote of 7-6 (2 Democrats and 5 Republicans voted yes).
9. On Tuesday, May 11, the day before Colorado’s legislative session was to end, House Democratic opponents of SB 191 tried to kill the landmark bill with a filibuster. They dragged on consideration of several bills leading up to the discussion about SB 191, which they prolonged with parliamentary maneuvers, nearly 200 amendments, and drawn out dialogues. The debate was long and emotionally charged, including a moment when Democrat Max Tyler compared asking a teacher to educate poor and minority children with odds against them to asking a baker to use flour full of maggots to bake bread that he must sell. In spite of emotional pleas, tears, and ultimately unsuccessful stalling tactics, just minutes before midnight after which point the bill would have died for procedural reasons, SB 191 passed 2nd Reading in the House on a standing vote.
Key Lesson: Prior to the decisive House floor vote, a critical tactic for SB 191 supporters was mobilizing more than seventy parents, teachers, and business leaders to physically go to the capitol to lobby legislators over several days at the same time Stand and coalition allies were generating hundreds of calls and emails to targeted House Democrats.
10. On May 12, the last day of the Colorado’s 2010 legislative session, SB 191 passed the House on a 36- 29 vote (8 Democrats, 27 Republicans, and 1 Independent voted yes).
CAMPAIGN ANALYSIS
Stand for Children’s “Great Teachers and Leaders Campaign” to Pass SB 191
1. Broad coalition of more than fifty education, community, and business groups signed on in support – with the Colorado business community engaged as never before. Key partners included Democrats for Education Reform – Colorado, Education Reform Now, the Colorado Children’s Campaign, A+ Denver, Colorado Succeeds and BizCARES, the Denver Metro Chamber of Commerce, Colorado Concern, Padres & Jóvenes Unidos, Common Good Colorado, Metropolitan Organizations for People, the Colorado Association of School Boards, the Colorado Association of School Executives, the Colorado State Board of Education, and at a key juncture, the American Federation of Teachers - Colorado.
COALITION ANALYSIS: FOLLOWING IS A BREAKDOWN OF THE CONTRIBUTIONS BY KEY COALITION MEMBERS:
Stand for Children – Funded the Great Teachers and Leaders campaign outside of expected budget ($211k total). Coordinated a core strategy team for the bill and had two lobbyists working full-time. Designed and launched Great Teachers and Leaders website with a petition (2,000 signatures collected) and coordinated web video segments. Commissioned and drafted the poll and brought pollster to Denver to present to key legislators, business community, and the Denver Post. Arranged patch through calls to 16 targeted legislators. Turned out more than 75 people for the Senate Education Committee and organized and prepared testimony – including teacher and parent panel. Had 5 Letters to the Editor, 3 guest commentaries and were mentioned in more than 12 stories. Ran on-line ads in newspapers coinciding with targeted legislative votes. Conceptualized, designed, and paid for 2 full page ads in the Denver Post, 1 in the Fort Collins Coloradoan, and 1 in the Boulder Daily Camera.
DFER-Colorado/Ed Reform Now – Both prime Democratic bill sponsors are founding members of DFER – Colorado. Advisory Board committee members Lt. Governor Barbara O’Brien, Speaker of the House Terrance Carroll, Representative Karen Middleton and Elaine Berman each played a pivotal role in the bill’s passage. Contributed lobbying of Moira Cullen, who was part of core strategy team. Played a key role in development and execution of media outreach and strategy. Signed on to and sent the petition. Attended committee hearings. Sent out action alerts and had key DFER leaders make calls and send emails to targeted legislators. Paid for The New Teacher Project President Tim Daly to come and testify at Senate Education Committee hearing.
Colorado Children’s Campaign – Contributed lobbying of Reilly Pharo and Moira Cullen. CCC President Chris Watney testified in the Senate Education Committee hearing and Board Member Anne Bye Rowe testified in the House Education Committee hearing. Chris Watney spoke at the press conference introducing SB 191 in addition to highlighting the bill on Colorado Public Radio and a 9 News segment. Utilized out-state network called It’s About Kids to generate guest commentaries and Letters to the Editor in rural Colorado. Signed on to and sent out the petition. Through KidsFlash action alerts generated more than 280 emails to targeted legislators. Had members of the Board of Directors and Circle of Friends participate in lobby day at the Capitol. Co-hosted poll presentation for legislators with Stand.
A+ Denver – Contributed lobbying of Erin Silver, who was part of the core strategy team. Chairman Federico Peña testified in Senate Education Committee and Executive Director Laurie Zeller in House Education Committee. Wrote a guest commentary for the Denver Post. Actively engaged in progressive blogs making the case for why progressives should support 191. Signed on to and sent out the petition. Board members and general members called and emailed key legislators.
Colorado Succeeds – Contributed lobbying of Moira Cullen. Through BizCARES set up website to complement the Great Teachers and Leaders site. Through strategic outreach engaged business groups outside of the metro Denver area. Members wrote guest commentaries for Denver Post and other newspapers across the state. Members testified in Senate and House Education Committees. Did turnout for lobby day in the House and helped with calls to targeted legislators. Signed on to and sent out the petition and action alerts.
Denver Metro Chamber of Commerce–Contributed lobbying of Jeani Frickey, who was part of the core strategy team. Brought President and CEO Kelly Brough to testify at Senate Education and House Education Committee hearings. Mobilized key business leaders to call targeted legislators and participate in lobby day in the House. Arranged for business leaders to submit opinion pieces to Denver Post.
Colorado Concern – Contributed lobbying of Erin Silver, who was part of the core strategy team. Brought business leaders Dan Ritchie and George Sparks to testify at the Senate Education Committee hearing. Mobilized key business leaders to submit opinion pieces to the Denver Post and out-state papers and used their influence with leadership to ensure bill passage.
Padres & Jóvenes Unidos – Signed on to and sent out the petition. Brought students to several lobby days. Had students, parents, and staff testify at Senate and House Education Committee hearings. Worked with Univision on TV stories – were the referral spot for Spanish speaking community members, made targeted calls to legislators.
Common Good Colorado – Signed on to and sent out the petition, helped obtain the guest commentary by 3 former governors.
Metropolitan Organizations for People (MOP) – Signed on to and sent out the petition, had staff and members attend the Senate Education Committee hearing.
2. Personal endorsements by more than 20 civic leaders including 4 Colorado Governors, Lieutenant Governor Barbara O’Brien and Commissioner of Education Dwight Jones.
3. Demonstrated isolation of Colorado Education Association in a full page Denver Post ad listing supporters on the same day as a key committee vote. http://www.stand.org/Document.Doc?id=2644
4. More than 8 lobbyists partnering with chief sponsors on the bill with 6 key lobbyists leading the charge – Lindsay Neil and Kayla McGannon from Stand for Children, Moira Cullen from DFER, Reilly Pharo from the Colorado Children’s Campaign, Erin Silver from Colorado Concern and A+ Denver, and Jeani Frickey from the Denver Metro Chamber of Commerce. Lobbying expertise and relationships secured co-sponsors, dictated bill hearing timing, and limited length of testimony in the Senate Education Committee.
5. Significant strategy to generate media including news stories in variety of papers, op eds, supporting editorials, Letters to the Editor, etc. More than 10 supportive Denver Post editorials and columns, more than 200 news stories, and 45 guest commentaries and Letters to the Editor from parents, teachers, and business leaders from across the state. See links to key stories and editorials below.
6. Over 3,000 calls and emails from constituents to strategically targeted legislators at key times in support of the bill.
7. Commissioned statewide poll – showed 65-90% support among likely voters for key components of legislation. Brought pollster Adam Davis to Colorado to present to legislators, the public, and the media prior to the bill’s first vote in the Senate Education Committee - was a game changer with a few key Senators and helped win key votes on the House floor.
8. Strong turnout (more than 250 people) to key legislative hearings and frequent meetings by constituents with legislators.
9. Coordinated testimony of more than 50 teachers, principals, parents, community and business leaders and Tim Daly, President of The New Teacher Project.
10. Developed micro site – http://www.greatteachersandleaders.org - with videos of teachers, parents, principals, and business leaders talking about why they support the legislation and on-line petition – resulted in over 2,000 signatures we gave to members in the Senate Education Committee.
11. Purchased Google search words and Facebook ads in addition to banner ads in on-line newspapers in districts of targeted legislators.
To access copies of resources and strategy materials mentioned above including the poll results, visit - http://www.stand.org/Page.aspx?pid=2387
Colorado Education Association Opposition - CEA staunchly opposed and did everything possible to defeat SB 191: • Threatened to withdraw campaign contributions to Democrats in the fall elections • Waged expensive opposition campaign including inflammatory rhetoric and misinformation to teachers sent via member email blasts and to the general public through the purchase of radio ads • Mobilized daily contingent of teachers at the Capitol • Brought NEA President Dennis Van Roekel to Colorado to testify against SB 191 in the Senate Education Committee (illustrative of national importance of the bill). See links to their news articles, radio ads and messages to their members below:
o CEA’s position on the bill - http://www.denverpost.com/opinion/ci_14893603?source=email
o Guest commentary by CEA President -
http://www.denverpost.com/opinionheadlines/ci_14923151
o CEA’s radio ads against the bill - http://www.coloradoea.org/atthecapitol/SB191.cfm
o Message to members post SB 191 - http://www.stand.org/Document.Doc?id=2651
NEWS COVERAGE HIGHLIGHTS (For a list of additional stories visit - http://www.stand.org/Page.aspx?pid=1604 )
1. LA Times story on SB 191 and performance based personnel decisions - http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/nation/la-na-colorado-20100523,0,5945475.story
2. Washington Post story on SB 191 and Colorado’s improved Race to the Top application – http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/05/25/AR2010052504692.html
3. EdNews Colorado summary of bill with key attachments - http://www.ednewscolorado.org/2010/04/21/hearing-teases-out-teacher-bill-fears/
4. Front page story in Sunday Denver Post - http://www.denverpost.com/education/ci_14953971
5. Guest commentary by Stand member – http://www.denverpost.com/opinion/ci_14940422
6. Huffington Post article by Stand for Children teacher member– http://www.huffingtonpost.com/zachary-rowe/colorado-should-follow-dc_b_534887.html
7. Front page article in North Denver Tribune by Stand member – http://www.northdenvertribune.com/
8. Arne Duncan’s statement on SB 191 – http://blogs.denverpost.com/coloradoclassroom/2010/05/10/arne-duncan-weighs-in-on-sb-191/
9. Randi Weingarten’s statement on SB 191 – http://blogs.denverpost.com/coloradoclassroom/2010/05/06/afts-randi-weingarten-weighs-in/
10. Remarks by State Representatives comparing teaching poor children to baking bread using flour full of maggots – http://www.denverpost.com/search/ci_15066164
11. Denver Post’s Jeremy Meyer’s summary of SB 191’s process - http://www.denverpost.com/education/ci_15074264
12. Denver Post’s Dan Haley assessment of the impact of SB 191 - http://www.denverpost.com/opinion/ci_15081883
13. Article by Senator Johnston and Representative Scanlan clarifying the intent and the process for SB 191 - http://www.denverpost.com/opinionheadlines/ci_15129751
14. Press release from Governor Ritter about signing SB 191 – http://www.stand.org/Document.Doc?id=2646
15. Senator Mike Johnston’s end of session wrap up on SB 191 - http://www.stand.org/Document.Doc?id=2650