With the signing of House Bill 24-1448 into law by Colorado Governor Jared Polis, public school districts, like Denver Public Schools, will be better positioned to continue to provide equitable educational services to our students.
“The new formula directly addresses the needs of our most vulnerable students—those who are at-risk, English Language Learners and students with special needs—by providing the additional funding necessary to support their education and success,” said DPS Superintendent Dr. Alex Marrero. “It also simplifies the funding process, making it more transparent and equitable, which will ultimately lead to better outcomes for all our students.”
Denver Public Schools played a pivotal role in this achievement. Earlier this year, DPS Chief Financial Officer, Chuck Carpenter, chaired the Public School Finance Task Force. This task force successfully recommended a comprehensive overhaul of our state's school finance formula. Many of those recommendations have been incorporated into HB24-1448.
"I would like to extend my deepest gratitude to Speaker Julie McCluskie, Assistant Majority Leader Jennifer Bacon, Senator Rachel Zenzinger, and Minority Leader Paul Lundeen for their tireless work on this bill,” said Marrero. “Additionally, I want to thank all the Denver-based legislators who co-sponsored this bill.”
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