Governor Owens Archive

Colorado State Archives

Executive Orders from the Administration of Governor Bill Owens 1999-2005

FOR RELEASE:
Thursday, August 17, 2000

CONTACTS:
Dick Wadhams
303/866-6324
Amy Jewett Sampson
303/866-6323

OWENS RAISES AN INITIAL $1.1 MILLION DOLLARS FROM CIVIC LEADERS TO ASSIST FAILING SCHOOLS

Fund Board of Trustees include John Elway, Dan Ritchie, Phyllis Coors, Susan Sturm, Craig Bowman and Yrma Rico

Governor Owens announced that $1.1 million has been raised so far for Colorado’s failing schools through his Fund for Colorado ‘s Future. Fund Board of Trustee John Elway and other trustee members join Gov. Owens at the kick-off announcement.

DENVER – Governor Bill Owens today announced $1.1 million has been raised so far in his effort to help failing schools improve through the Fund for Colorado’s Future. The Fund will mobilize the resources of the Centennial State’s philanthropic community behind a singular mission: to ensure that no child is left behind because they receive an inadequate education.

"We need more than just government money to ensure that every child in Colorado is receiving a quality education – we need parental and community involvement," said Gov. Owens. "That is what the Fund for Colorado’s Future is all about."

More than two dozen schools in Colorado are struggling. More than three-quarters of the students in these schools do not grasp the basic skills of reading, writing, and math that they will need to succeed in life.

The Fund will focus on five initiatives to assist Colorado’s lowest performing schools that are striving to improve student achievement:

After School Programs to help keep teen-agers safe and focused on learning between the end of the school day and when their parents arrive home from work;

Failing School Assessment Teams will be composed of outside teachers and administrators who evaluate how failing schools may raise student achievement;

Mobility Study to undertake major empirical research study on the causes of student transience in Colorado and its effect on student achievement and school performance;

Failing School Alliances will provide knowledge, expertise and resources to schools that are attempting to improve to help implement the school’s reform plan;

Leadership Academies for school boards, superintendents, and principals overseeing low performing schools to learn how their peers turned around other troubled schools.

Even before its official launch today, the Fund received a $1 million grant from the federal government, as well as donations from individual Colorado citizens. The Fund is beginning an aggressive fund-raising campaign for Colorado’s philanthropic and corporate communities.

Governor Owens appointed six civic leaders to serve on the Fund’s board of trustees: Craig Bowman, teacher at Bear Creek Elementary School; Phyllis Coors, community activist; John Elway, the Elway Foundation; Dan Ritchie, chancellor of the University of Denver; Yrma Rico, Univision; and Susan Sturm, Sturm Family Foundation.

"These distinguished Coloradans are committed to ensuring that no child is left behind. I am honored that they are working with me to partner with our public schools," said Gov. Owens.

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