DENVER – Following an overwhelming outcry from Colorado parents regarding the future of their children’s education during the COVID-19 pandemic, Senate and House Republicans have penned a letter to Governor Jared Polis, requesting a special session to tackle the pressing issue.
The letter, delivered to the Governor this morning, was spearheaded by Senator Bob Gardner (R-Colorado Springs). It is signed by the entire Senate Republican Caucus and the majority of the House Republican Caucus.
“Colorado’s parents are concerned both for their children’s health and their education. If we act quickly, we can provide parents with the resources to educate their children in-home or in small groups arranged by them to ensure that their children don’t fall behind,” said Senator Bob Gardner. “The legislature needs to meet now to ensure that single-parent families and our most economically challenged parents have the economic resources to provide for their children’s education. We have solutions. We ask the Governor to call a special session now so that we can provide parents with the resources they need.”
Senator Paul Lundeen (R-Monument), echoed those sentiments. “The instinctive drive of parents to find the best learning opportunities for their school-age children transcends politics. We need to give them safe learning choices during our battle against COVID-19,” he said. Senator Lundeen is a member of the Senate Education Committee and is the former Chairman of the State Board of Education.
You can view a PDF of the letter delivered to the Governor here.
“Parents need the financial resources either to remain at home to teach or to engage someone to
serve as their children’s educator. In response to this, one proposal we will introduce is a
direct education support package for families, called “Safe Learning Choices”. This support
would be available to families whose children cannot attend public school full-time due to the
virus—whether due to their own risk concerns or due to their local school deciding not to
operate. These families would be entitled to all or a portion of their child’s per pupil revenue to
access the educational resources they need to thrive during the pandemic. The funding would
allow parents to remain at home, engage an educator, purchase quality curriculum and materials,
and if necessary, the computers and broadband service to ensure access.”
